Born Sandra Goodrich on 26 February 1947, Sandie Shaw came from Dagenham in Essex, England. Following an education at the Robert Clack Technical School, she began working as an IBM machine operator at the local Ford plant.
During 1964, when Adam Faith, Eden Kane and Dave Berry came to Dagenham as part of a British tour, Sandie talked her way backstage to give Adam Faith an impromptu version of Everybody Loves A Lover.
Faith’s manager, Eve Taylor, was mildly amused at the teenagers’ antics but also recognised a raw talent and agreed to represent her with a management deal.
Sandra Goodrich became Sandie Shaw – the girl with a BIG voice and no shoes.
Provided with excellent material by songwriter Chris Andrews (another of Eve Taylor’s clients) she had a series of hits in Britain between 1964 and 1969 and conquered many other countries in the process; First France and all French-speaking countries, then Germany, Spain and South America.
Always Something There To Remind Me brought her instant fame, which she consolidated with Long Live Love, another chart-topper.
In 1967 she represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest and 50 million viewers saw her sweep to victory with Puppet On A String.
Two years later she disappeared from view until the 1980s when she returned for unlikely (but brilliant) collaborations with Heaven 17 and The Smiths.
Shaw published her autobiography The World At My Feet, in 1991. This brought much-needed media attention, unlike the unwelcome headlines in October 1991 when she was arrested for not taking a breathalyser test outside her flat in Harley Street, London.
Consequently, PC Thomas Nicholls escorted her to Tottenham Court Road police station.
When the case came to trial at Marlborough Street magistrates’ court a year later, Shaw accused PC Nicholls of sexually assaulting her, but she was still fined £100.
