Lynsey de Paul
English singer-songwriter (1948–2014)
Lynsey de Paul (born Lyndsey Monckton Rubin; 11 June 1948 – 1 October 2014) was an English singer-songwriter and record producer. After initially writing hits for others, she had her own chart hits in the UK and Europe in the 1970s, starting with UK top 10 single "Sugar Me", and became the first British female artist to achieve a number one with a self-written song (in 1972 in Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands). She represented the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977 alongside Mike Moran with the song "Rock Bottom", finishing in second place and scoring another chart-topping hit in Switzerland, and had a successful career as a songwriter, record producer, actress and television celebrity.
Early life
Lyndsey Monckton Rubin was born to Meta (née de Groot) and Herbert Rubin, a property developer. They were a Jewish family with a Dutch, Austrian and German background, and had one other child, John (born 1944). She studied classical music with a tutor from the Royal Academy of Music. She attended South Hampstead High School followed by Hornsey College of Art, now part of Middlesex University. After graduating, De Paul began designing record cover sleeve and poster artwork, notably for two albums by The Pipkins (who had an international hit with "Gimme Dat Ding"). De Paul later revealed that she and her brother suffered physical abuse at the hands of their father. In one incident as a student aged 19, de Paul was concussed for two days following a fight with her violent father, prompting her to leave her comfortable family home for a two-roomed flat above an Indian restaurant near her college.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Lynsey de Paul” as english singer-songwriter (1948–2014). Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the people & ideas register because the source frames it as english singer-songwriter (1948–2014). Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 29, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q463221. VIAF identifies the subject as 90708830. The Library of Congress control number is n80143616. 4 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1948, 2014, 1972 and 1977.
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This entry incorporates text from “Lynsey de Paul” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.