28 Oct 1927 - 24 Jul 2025 (97 years)

Dame Cleo Laine, Lady Dankworth (born Clementine Dinah Hitching) was an English singer and actress known for her scat singing.

She was the wife of jazz composer and musician Sir John Dankworth and the mother of bassist Alec Dankworth and singer Jacqui Dankworth.

In 1946, Laine married George Langridge, a roof tiler, with whom she had a son, Stuart. The couple divorced in 1957. Her son predeceased her, in 2019, aged 72.

In 1958, she married John Dankworth and the couple had two children together. They were married until his death in 2010. On that day, Laine performed at a concert at The Stables to mark the venue's 40th anniversary. She then announced Dankworth's death at the end of the show.

Laine died at her home in Wavendon, on 24 July 2025, at the age of 97.