Margot Fonteyn

Margot Fonteyn was born as Margaret Hookham in England in 1919. Many consider her to be the greatest English ballerina of all time. She received the title of Dame when she was 35 from Britain’s Queen. Fonteyn had a sparkling career and encouraged artists of all kinds to share their ideas to find deeper meaning in their work.

The young Margaret signed up for ballet classes when she was very young. She joined Britain’s Royal Ballet while still a teenager. Her exceptional talent was clear to see and by 1939, she was the star of her ballet company. She wowed TV audiences with her role as Aurora in Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty. Her breathtaking grace helped bring ballet to new audiences.