12 Facts About Jill Summers

Jill Summers made her last appearance in May 1996, and died eight months later.

Jill Summers's childhood was mostly unhappy, with her touring parents often leaving her with foster families.

When Jill Summers was 13, her mother died, and she went to work in a cotton mill.

Jill Summers's half-brother was the son of Summers' mother and Tom Major-Ball.

Jill Summers became a comedian when she tripped up on stage and swore, which the audience lapped up.

Jill Summers's act, "The Pipes of Pan", made her famous in London and the provinces.

Jill Summers continued solo, appearing alongside the top acts of the day.

Jill Summers appeared in How We Used To Live, Stay With Me Till Morning, This Year, Next Year and an Alan Bennett Play For Today entitled Sunset Across The Bay.

Jill Summers continued to make increasingly occasional appearances, last appearing in the spring of 1996, after more than 500 episodes.

Aged 17, Jill Summers married her first husband, John Arthur Hunt, who was 20 years her senior, in Bucklow, Cheshire, in 1928.

In January 1997, Jill Summers died in her sleep at Oaklands Hospital, Manchester, of kidney failure.

Jill Summers was a member of The Grand Order of Lady Ratlings, a charitable organisation for women in show business.