Shani Wallis
Born (1933-04-14) 14 April 1933 (age 93)
Tottenham, London, England
Citizenship United Kingdom
United States
Alma mater Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupations Actress, singer
Years active 1952–2006, 2026[1]
Spouse
Bernie Rich
​
​
(m. 1968; died 2016)​
Children 1

Shani Wallis (born 14 April 1933[2]) is an English retired actress and singer, who has worked in theatre, film, and television in both her native United Kingdom and in the United States. A graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, she is known for her roles in the West End and Broadway and for the role of Nancy in the 1968 Oscar-winning film musical Oliver!

Writer and critic Kenneth Tynan has described her as "the English Judy Garland".[3]

Biography

Wallis was born in Tottenham, London,[2] and made her first stage appearance at the age of four. She studied ballet and dance before gaining a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.[4]

She made her theatrical debut in a lead role as young princess Maria in Call Me Madam at the London Coliseum in March 1952.[4] Wallis sprang to global fame when appearing as Nancy in the Oscar-winning[2] musical film Oliver! in 1968,[5] starring alongside Oliver Reed as Bill Sikes, Ron Moody as Fagin, Jack Wild as the Artful Dodger, and Mark Lester as Oliver.[2] Afterwards, Wallis received an offer to star in the television series The Brady Bunch, but turned it down because she wanted to do more musicals.[2]

Wallis is a naturalised citizen of the United States, where she has lived for more than 40 years. She married her agent, Bernie Rich, on 13 September 1968;[3] the couple have one daughter and two granddaughters.[2] Wallis is a patron of the theatre charity The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America.[6]

Wallis made a surprise appearance at a recording of Britain's Got Talent at the age of 92, singing "As Long as He Needs Me". Her performance was cut from the broadcast but was watched widely on YouTube and the show Britain's Got Talent Unseen. [7]

Selected credits

Features

Year Title Role Notes
1956 Ramsbottom Rides Again Joan Ramsbottom
The Extra Day Shirley
1957 A King in New York Cabaret Singer
1968 Oliver! Nancy
1973 Arnold Jocelyn
Terror in the Wax Museum Laurie Mell
1986 The Great Mouse Detective Lady Mouse (voice)
1992 Round Numbers Binky
1995 The Pebble and the Penguin narrator
2006 Mojave Phone Booth Greta (voice)

Television films

Year Title Role
1957 A Santa for Christmas
1964 Once Upon a Mattress Lady Larken
1976 Mayday at 40,000 Feet Terry Dunlanp
1995 Columbo: Strange Bedfellows Gwen

Selected TV

Year Title Role Notes
1959 Frankly Howerd The Pianist
1960 Val Parnell's Spectacular Episode: "Johnnie Ray Sings"
1961 Two of a Kind Performer
1963–1964 The Garry Moore Show
1965 The Dean Martin Show Performer singing "I'm a Girl" and "How Are Things in Glocca Morra?"
1965 The Red Skelton Hour Performer episode singing "I'm Old Fashioned" and singing/dancing "Pass Me By"
1966 Mickie Finn's Herself
1968 The Harry Secombe Show
1969-1970 This Is Tom Jones
1971 Night Gallery Miss Danton Segment: "The Doll"
1973 Gunsmoke Stella Silks 2 episodes
1975 Police Story Janet Stiles Episode: "Headhunter"
1977 Charlie's Angels Ellen Jason Episode: "Angels in the Wings"
1981 Fantasy Island Wife in towel Episode: "Cyrano/The Magician"
1989 Murder, She Wrote Olivia Waverley Episode: "Night of the Tarantula"
2000 One World Ms. Cosgrove Episode: "Roots"
2004 The Young and the Restless Frances the Governess
2026 Britain's Got Talent Contestant

Theatre

  • Call Me Madam, (1952), London Coliseum (as Princess Marie)
  • Wish You Were Here, (1953), London Casino
  • Happy As a King, (1953), Princes Theatre, London (as Juliet)
  • Wonderful Town (1954), London Casino (as Fay Tomkin)
  • Irma La Douce (1961), Lyric Theatre (title role)
  • Fine Fettle (1959), Palace Theatre
  • Green Room Rags (1954), Princes Theatre
  • The Dave King Show, (1956), London Hippodrome
  • Aladdin, (pantomime), (1955), Streatham Hill Theatre (as Aladdin)
  • King Cole (pantomime, 1962), Palace Manchester (as Miranda)
  • Bells Are Ringing (1958), Princess Theatre, Melbourne[8]
  • Bus Stop (1958), Golders Green Hippodrome (as Cherie)
  • You'll Be Lucky, (1954), Adelphi Theatre with Lauri Lupino Lane
  • Cowardy Custard (1989), Theatre Royal Bath
  • A Time for Singing (1966), Broadway Theater
  • Finian's Rainbow (1958), New Shakespeare Theatre
  • 42nd Street, (1985), Drury Lane Theatre
  • Follies (1990), Long Beach Civic Light Opera, 20th Anniversary Revival (as Sally Durant Plummer)
  • Always (1997), Victoria Palace Theatre

Recordings

  • Call Me Madam – original London stage recording (1952)
  • Wish You Were Here – original London stage recording (1953)
  • Shani! EP (1960) – Philips BBE 12337 ("Personality", "Please Don't Say No", "Don't Take Your Love Away from Me", "There Goes My Heart")
  • A Time for Singing (1966) – original Broadway cast recording
  • I'm a Girl! LP (1967) – Kapp Records KS-3472
  • Look to Love LP (1967) – Kapp Records KS-3527
  • Oliver! (1968) – original film cast recording
  • As Long As He Needs Me LP (1968) – Kapp Records KS-3573
  • The Girl from Oliver LP (1969) – Kapp Records KS-3606

References

  1. ^ https://www.classicfm.com/music-news/videos/original-nancy-oliver-shani-wallis-britains-got-talent/
  2. ^ a b c d e f "I would have liked a bit more from my career after Oliver says Shani Wallis". sundaypost.com. 5 January 2018.
  3. ^ a b Robertson, Peter (1 January 2018). "Oliver! turns 50: What happened to Shani Wallis who played Nancy?". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
  4. ^ a b "Unsung heroines - Shani Wallis". musical-theatre.net. 4 July 2015. Archived from the original on 27 February 2001.
  5. ^ Tims, Anna (3 December 2012). "How we made: Mark Lester and Ron Moody on Oliver!". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
  6. ^ "Our Treasured Patrons", The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America (online). Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  7. ^ https://playbill.com/article/watch-oliver-film-star-shani-wallis-recreates-her-as-long-as-he-needs-me-on-britains-got-talent
  8. ^ Princess Theatre, Melbourne theatre programme (1958)