Tracy, Sheila

Born as Sheila Lugg in Mullion, Cornwall. Sheila studied piano, violin and trombone at the Royal Academy of Music.

She joined the Ivy Benson All Girls Band (1956 – 1958) and then formed a vocal/trombone duo called The Tracy Sisters. They appeared in variety, on radio and television, as well as in cabaret all over the world. She made her broadcast debut in 1958.

When the act broke up, she joined BBC TV, presenting regional TV programmes Spotlight South West (1960 – 1961) and South-West at 6 (1962) from Plymouth, and South Today from Southampton.

She moved to London as a BBC TV in-vision network announcer (February 1961 – 1963) and voiced BBC TV presentation trails until 1974.

Other television credits include:

• Panellist on Juke Box Jury (1962);
• Presented Where Coco Lives (BBC One, 1964);
• Presented Llangollen (BBC One, 1964);
• Commentated on Miss England (BBC One, 1966, 1968 – 1969);
• Co-presented A Spoonful of Sugar (BBC One, 1967 – 1970);
• Is There Anything…? (BBC One, 1969);
• Panellist on Call My Bluff (BBC Two, 1968);
• Not a Word (BBC Two, 1970).

On radio, Sheila was a presenter on the BBC Light Programme in February 1963, presenting Late Choice, Melody Fair, Anything Goes and Music for Late Night People.

In October 1973, she joined BBC Radio 4 as an announcer. She was the first female newsreader on BBC Radio 4 on 16th July 1974. She was also a regular contributor to Breakaway on the same network.

Sheila joined Radio 2 in January 1977, where she became host of The Late Show, You and the Night and the Music, The Early Show and Saturday Night with the BBC Radio Orchestra.

Sheila is probably best known for devising two long-running programmes – The Truckers’ Hour (from 1981) and Big Band Special (1979 – 2001).

Sheila was a former president of The British Trombone Society and qualified as a special policewoman in London. In 1997, she was made a Freeman of the City of London and an associate of the Royal Academy of Music.

She was married to actor John Arnatt from 1962 until his death in 1999.

Sheila died aged 80, at the Princess Alice Hospice in Esher, Surrey.

EXTERNAL LINK: Sheila Tracy: Former radio and TV host dies.

EXTERNAL LINK: Sheila Tracy: Obituary – The Telegraph.

Personal information

Clips of Sheila on The TV Room

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Online presence

Acknowledgements