Audrey Hepburn

AUDREY HEPBURN d1993. British actress, model, dancer & humanitarian who still remains today instantly recognisable as a film and fashion icon. She is ranked by the AFI as the third greatest female screen legend from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Born in Brussels, she spent her childhood between Belgium / England and the Netherlands (where she studied ballet with Sonia Gaskell) before moving to London in 1948 where she began performing as a chorus girl in various West End musical theatre productions. Following minor appearances in several films, she starred in the 1951 Broadway play "Gigi" after being spotted by French novelist Colette on whose work the play was based. She then shot to stardom after playing the lead role in Roman Holiday (1953), for which she was the first actress to win an Academy Award, a Golden Globe and a BAFTA for a single performance. She then went on to star in a number of successful films including ; Sabrina (1954) / The Nun's Story (1959) / Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) / Charade (1963) / My Fair Lady (1964) and Wait Until Dark (1967), for which she received an Academy Award, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations. She appeared in fewer films as her life went on, devoting much of her later life to UNICEF. She had contributed to the organisation since 1954, then worked in some of the poorest communities of Africa, South America and Asia between 1988 and 1992. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in recognition of her work as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in December 1992. Just a month later on January 20th 1993, Audrey Hepburn died of appendiceal cancer at her home in Switzerland at the age of 63