PATTI BOULAYE (OBE)

THE PATTI BOULAYE STORY

THE STORY OF A YOUNG NIGERIAN GIRL

'Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.'

(William Shakespeare-Twelfth Night).

Shakespeare must have known someone like Patti Boulaye. A young girl from Nigeria, Patricia Ebigwei had aspiration to be a nun, when she travelled to London. Fate had other plans; she was thrust into the spotlight. Her career took off and her candle never stopped burning. Five whole decades in the limelight, she has met almost everyone in the royal family, she was honored with the OBE on Queen Elizabeth's birthday, Patti was friends with Michael Jackson, she met Lady Di, she filled up the Royal Albert Hall...…and we have not even scratched the surface. Miss Boulaye was 2 decades ahead of Nollywood with her classic movie that made history. Welcome to the life of the great Patti Boulaye.

Her achievements are such that it is impossible for anyone to encapsulate them all in one article. It needs a book and she did so in her biography 'The faith of a Child'-a superb book to read.

After the horrific Nigerian civil war, fame and fortune were the furthest thing on young Patti's mind. Her father wanted her to become a lawyer, but she felt she was too honest to become one. She said she could never see herself defending someone she felt was guilty. She wanted to be a nun, she joined the boarding school at the convent to study in order to become a nun, but her Mother Superior (Head of the convent) advised her dad to let young Patti do some travelling for a while. Her dad sent her to England where Patti's sister was already studying.

The curtain to greatness swung wide open and it never closed for Patti. She has stayed very relevant all through the years. In the next few days, we will slowly unveil the life of an innocent young girl who was not looking for fame, yet she stumbled upon it and a country that just could not have enough of her.....just as Shakespeare wrote, 'some people have greatness thrust upon them'.

We asked her what she thought was the secret of her longevity in the limelight. She gave us a very insightful response. Do not miss it.

MADAME TUSSAUDS

Patti was a teenager when she arrived in London. She woke up one morning and decided to do some sightseeing at the famous Madame Tussauds. As fate would have it, she mistakenly ended up in the line for singers' auditioning. (It was for a role in the musical, 'Hair'). She had no idea she was in the wrong queue until she got to the door and as she reached into her bag to pay, she was told it was free and an audition was going on. Since she had waited in line for two hours, she decided to go in out of curiosity. She was asked if she could sing, young Patti said ' of course' and she thought of one of her favorite songs in the classic movie ' Sound of Music'.

She opened her mouth and belted the song 'The streets are alive-with the sound of music'.'

They judges very impressed. She was a soprano -exactly what they were looking for. She got the part and that was the beginning of a star that started to shine more than five decades ago.

BIGGEST AFRICAN MOVIE

In 1978, Patti Boulaye won the UK talent show, 'New Faces', (today's version of X Factor or British Got Talent). Something unusual happened; Patti impressed the judges so much, she was given the maximum point possible-120 points. A perfect score.

She soared to fame.

Long before what is known today as Nollywood, Patti Boulaye starred in the African hit movie 'Bisi, Daughter of the River'. The movie became the highest grossing African movie ever made. It ran for three years in Nigerian movie theatres. This was two decades before the resurgence of what is now known today as Nollywood. She was way ahead of the curve.

Patti was the face of LUX soap in Nigeria for almost 29 years. Her commercial ran endlessly on Nigerian Television

Patti Boulaye also starred in another movie: 'The Music Machine' -(the British form of the movie Saturday Night Fever). She was in another movie, 'Hussy' with the legendary actress Helen Mirren.

Patti has made over 200 TV appearances.

Her debut album was titled, 'You stepped into my life'. In 1984, she was so famous, that she had her own TV series, titled 'The Patti Boulaye Show' on Channel 4. UK could not have enough of Patti Boulaye.

BRITISH ROYALTY

The following image of younger Patti Boulaye (in braids) was taken in 1978 by Lord Litchfield. Who is Patrick Litchfield?

Thomas Patrick John Anson, 5th Earl of Litchfield or Lord Litchfield was a first cousin once removed of Queen Elizabeth II. His mother was a niece of the grandmother of King Charles (Queen Elizabeth).

Lord Litchfield was selected as the official photographer of the Royal Wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana in 1981.

Patrick Litchfield was chosen to take the official photographs of the Silver Wedding Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Phillips (the Duke of Edinburgh). The Queen and her husband also chose him as the official photographer of the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002.

Litchfield was one of the most prominent photographers in the UK and was often chosen to photograph the royal family up until his death in November 2005.

This was the same photographer who shot this image of Patti Boulaye.

Patti once said, 'I have met almost every member of the Royal Family.'

She also said of Princess Diana ''It was an honor to have met her many times and had a private lunch with her and the late Linda McCartney''. (Linda McCartney was the first wife of Paul McCartney).

In January 2016, Patti was honored with the 'Officer of the Most Excellent Order' of the British Empire (OBE) from Prince Charles (now King) at the Buckingham Palace. It was in recognition of her charitable work in the UK and Africa.

Boulaye's Charity Support for Africa, has founded healthcare clinics in both Nigeria and Cameron and also a school in Lesotho, in partnership with Prince Harry's charity -Sentebale.

THE FAITH OF A CHILD

BronzePage: You have lived a remarkable life and you have stayed consistently at the top and your star never stopped shining. Many of the celebrities who were very relevant at the time you shot to limelight have fallen off ....and we do not hear from them anymore. How did you stay very consistent without being overexposed or becoming irrelevant? What is the secret of your stay-power?

Patti Boulaye: I have always been diligent about my career. I work hard and I have never missed a show in fifty-five years. I make sure that I am totally reliable for producers, I am the first in and the last out. I am the best I can be at every task. For instance, when I wanted to play Carmen in “Carmen Jones” in the West End, I took lessons in singing Opera for six hard months before asking the director for an audition and went on to play the part for four years. I am creative and often produce my own shows which means that I am not always reliant on other producers. I review each opportunity that comes my way carefully and, this is important; I leave the decision as to whether I play the part or go with the project, up to God. He always leads me.

BronzePage: You were ''Nollywood before Nollywood''. Your movie 'Bisi Daughter of the River' was a trailblazer. You were way ahead of the curve. How did that role fall on your laps and do you have any intention of taking on more movie roles? Also why was there no follow-up to Bisi, Daughter of the River? Is there any reason why you left the Nigerian acting scene, especially now that Nollywood is exploding? Would you do a Nollywood movie, if you found the right role?

Patti Boulaye: I have made two other movies, I was the lead again in the British film “The Music Machine” and I played a part in the Helen Mirren movie “ Hussie”. Yes, I like filming and would do a Nollywood movie if I liked the part and the terms are right. I have been offered Nollywood movies, but have not accepted them to date for various reasons. The Producer of “Bisi Daughter of the River” saw me playing the female lead in “The Black Mikado” in the West End and cast me as Bisi.

Although the movie was a great success, the producers never got round to a follow up,....there was talk of a new Bisi production at the time. The success of the movie took everyone by surprise and the producers regretted killing off the main character "Bisi". Anyway, I was too young to have influence in the matter and my UK career had just rocketed..... I was making my first album.

BronzePage: What would you like us to plug for you? Any foundation? Your book?....

Patti Boulaye: I would love people to read my book “The Faith of a Child” which is published in hard-back by Kaleidoscope Publishing (TV Brain) or a paper back version can be found on Amazon. I am writing songs for my next album, which is based mainly on gospel, dance Afrobeat and I am hoping to find the right producer and musicians to collaborate with me.

MICHAEL JACKSON

Patti Boulaye was close to Michael Jackson. She said Michael Jackson thought she reminded him of Diana Ross. When they would meet, Michael Jackson would start to sing ''Aint No Mountain High Enough'' by Diana Ross and once again remind Patti how he thought she looked like Diana Ross.

Patti once said ' I first met Michael when he was 17, the Jackson 5 came to perform in England. I was singing with 'The Flirtation' -a girl group. That was when I was introduced to him. He was very shy...... I fell in love with his spirit when we talked.

Patti met him again when he came back to England for their mutual friend, Uri Geller's wedding renewal in March 2001. They met a few times after that.

Michael Jackson invited Patti to sing at his 45th birthday celebration.

Patti said it took a long time for her to come to terms with his death.

OTHER WORKS

After the musical-'Hair', Patti Boulaye featured in 'The Two Gentlemen of Verona'.

She got her first starring role in The Black Mikado. (It was under her birth name Patricia Ebigwei). She was also in 'Jesus Christ Superstar', then 'Carmen Jones', She did the musical, 'Sun Dance', which Patti wrote and produced. Patti was in the Fosters, in Dempsey in Makepeace, and in Brothers and Sisters. Then the BBC annual Christmas edition , 'Joy to the world' which featured legends like, Cliff Richards and Roger Moore.

Patti featured in the Shape Up and Dance Keep-fit albums. She was in a three-part series of Real Marigold Hotel.

On the Queen’s Golden Jubilee in 2002, Patti led a 5,000‑strong gospel choir down The Mall.

She was in the 2023 Christmas Special 'Would I lie to you?' and also When 80s TV Go Wrong and she was a recent guest on Good Morning Britain.

Patti Boulaye has done special shows such as Billie and Me, Diana and Me and Aretha and Me. She featured the songs of Billie Holiday, Diana Ross and Aretha Franklin. In each of these shows, she compares and contrasts her life with these legends and sings some of their famous songs as well as hers.

She also had her show: Me, Myself and I, Patti Boulaye.

She has done so much...there is no way to list all her achievements without leaving some out. This is why one must get a copy of her book : 'The Faith of a child'-he Autobiography of Patti Boulaye.

For the past 5 decades, Patti Boulaye has been very relevant and on top of her game. What an incredible feat!! What an Incredible woman! ...and she keeps going.