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Christie, Dinah
Dinah (Barbara) Christie. Singer, comedienne, b London 29 Dec 1942. Daughter of the British-Canadian actors Robert and Margot Christie, she was taken to Canada at two. She began her career at 17, singing to her own guitar accompaniment in Toronto folk clubs and night spots. Later she studied voice with Portia White. After taking roles at the Stratford Festival and on CBC TV, she starred in 1965 at Toronto's Theatre in the Dell in Ding Dong at the Dell, the first of many revues in which she has appeared with Tom Kneebone. She came to national attention as a singing host 1965-6 for CBC TV's controversial public-affairs program 'This Hour Has Seven Days'. Further nightclub and stage engagements followed. Among the latter: Spring Thaw (1967, on tour), Mavor Moore'sThe Best of All Possible Worlds (CBC TV 1968), Your Own Thing (off Broadway, 1968), The Satyricon (Stratford 1969), and Annie Get Your Gun (as Annie, Rainbow Stage, 1973).
Her revues with Kneebone have included Oh Coward! (1970), Non-Stop Britain (1971-3), The Apple Tree (1973, recorded for the Trillium label, TR-2000), An Evening with Noel Coward and Cole Porter (1973) and An Evening with Tom Kneebone and Dinah Christie (1977). The duo has been seen across Canada and in the USA, performed on CBC radio, and appeared in pop presentations with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Hamilton Philharmonic, London SO (Orchestra London Canada), and the TS.
Christie also has had a busy TV career as a comedienne (CHCH TV's 'Party Game' 1970-80, CTV's 'Check It Out' 1985-8), singer (a CBC 'Superspecial' in 1980), and/or host (CBC TV's 'Dress Rehearsal' in 1978, Global TV's 'Dinah Christie Presents Canada' in 1983, and many charity telethons during the 1980s). She has performed in one-woman shows (eg, at Old Angelo's in 1979 and the Talk of Toronto in 1982) and appeared in productions of Supporting Cast (Teller's Cage, Toronto, 1982) and Hometown (Hamilton Place 1983). In 1984 she was host for the province of Ontario's 'Bicentennial Showcase,' which toured to 26 communities. Her musical Ruthie, based on the life and songs of Ruth Lowe (see 'I'll Never Smile Again'), was presented by Kneebone's Smile Theatre Co in 1990.
