Lena Zavaroni

Lena Zavaroni (* November 4, 1963 in Rothesay, Scotland, † October 1, 1999 in Cardiff, Wales) was a British singer, who began her career as a child star.

Childhood and discovery

Lena Zavaroni was born as a child of musicians in Scotland. Her father Victor Zavaroni was guitarist and her mother a singer. Lena began singing at the age of two years. Her grandfather was an Italian immigrant. In 1973, she was discovered by the British music producer Tommy Scott, who spent the holidays in her birthplace. He heard in the band of her father and her uncle.

Singing career

In 1974 she made ​​her first appearance in a British TV show for young talents. After successful appearances on the show her first album Ma, He's Making Eyes At Me was published. The album reached the eighth place in the UK album charts. She has since become the youngest performer who brought an album in the UK top ten. Appearances on the BBC's Top of the Pops followed. In the same year, she performed alongside Frank Sinatra and Lucille Ball at a charity concert in Hollywood. Followed by appearances in American television shows and an appearance at the White House, U.S. President Gerald Ford in the U.S. She received a recording contract, chart success did not materialize, however.

In London she attended the Italia Conti Academy, a traditional English theater school. From 1979 to 1982 she was given its own television show on the BBC under the title Lena Zavaroni and Music. Between 1974 and 1982 published Lena Zavaroni a total of seven albums, with their debut album was the most successful.

Later years

Since the age of 13 years, Lena Zavaroni was suffering from anorexia nervosa. During her time at the theater school their body weight fell to 25 kg. The disease was continued during the 1980s and ended her career early. In 1989 she got married. However, the marriage lasted only 18 months. In the same year of their marriage her mother died from an overdose of sedatives. A house fire destroyed all the memorabilia from her show career. After the failed marriage, she moved to Hoddesdon, to live near her father and his second wife. They lived in seclusion of social assistance.

In the course of her illness, she was treated with drugs and received electroconvulsive therapy to defeat the disease. All treatments were unsuccessful in the long run and Lena also suffered from depression. In September 1999 she was admitted to the University Hospital of Cardiff, to be operated in psychosurgery. Three weeks after surgery, she died at the age of 35 from pneumonia. She weighed when she died, only 32 kg.