Dame Vera Margaret Lynn ("née" Welch; 20 March 1917 – 18 June 2020) was an English singer and actress. Lynn was born in East Ham, Essex. She began performing in public at age seven and she started using her grandmother's maiden name (Lynn) as her stage name. Her first radio broadcast was in 1935 with the Joe Loss Orchestra. At this time she was being featured on records released by dance bands including those of Loss and of Charlie Kunz. 