London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 11, 2025

Olivia Newton-John: Tributes as Grease star and singer dies aged 73

Olivia Newton-John: Tributes as Grease star and singer dies aged 73

Tributes have been paid from around the world to Olivia Newton-John, who has died from cancer aged 73.

The British-born Australian singer and actress was best known for playing Sandy in Grease, one of the most successful film musicals ever made.

Her Grease co-star John Travolta said she "made all of our lives so much better" while its director said: "What you see is what you get with her."

She died peacefully at her California ranch surrounded by family and friends.

An actress and musician, Newton-John achieved commercial success as a country singer and sold millions of records globally.

But it was her role as high school student Sandy in the film Grease that catapulted her to worldwide fame.

The musical was the biggest box-office hit of 1978, and gave Newton-John three huge hit singles, including You're The One That I Want and Summer Nights, both performed with co-star John Travolta.

And it was a catalyst for change in both her image and her musical direction - shedding her innocent, country-pop image.

Following the news of her death, scores of fans, as well as famous figures from the world of entertainment, shared heartfelt messages and memories.

Actress Stockard Channing - who played Rizzo in Grease - said: "I don't know if I've known a lovelier human being.

Newton-John soared to global fame playing girl-next-door Sandy in smash-hit musical Grease


"Olivia was the essence of summer - her sunniness, her warmth and her grace are what always come to mind when I think of her. I will miss her enormously."

Singer Rod Stewart called her "the perfect lady, gorgeous, with great poise and with a certain Aussie sophistication".

"Her spandex trousers in Grease were my inspiration for my 'Da ya think I'm Sexy' era," he added, referencing the iconic tight black outfit that she wore at the film's finale.

US television host Oprah Winfrey said her "positivity was just infectious". "You'll be missed, Olivia," she wrote. "Here's to the good times."

Travolta wrote on Instagram: "Your impact was incredible. I love you so much. We will see you down the road and we will all be together again."

"Yours from the first moment I saw you and forever!" he added, signing off: "Your Danny, your John!"

The film's director Randal Kleiser said he had been friends with Newton-John for 40 years and "she never changed, she was always exactly the way everyone imagines her".

"She was charming, lovely, warm... There are so many clichés you can say about her, but in her case it was all true."

Asked what his everlasting memory of her will be, he told BBC Radio 5 Live: "Hanging out with her at her ranch. Seeing the real Olivia which was exactly like the Olivia she projected. No cameras around, no people around... she was exactly the same and as loving as ever."

Didi Conn, who played Frenchy in Grease, told BBC's Newsnight: "She was such a humungous, big, big pop star and her persona was of this beauty... pure and sweet. In the movie we would call her Miss Goody Two Shoes, you know, but simmering under that façade of innocence was a hot mama ready to come out."

Other tributes came from singers Kylie Minogue, who called her an inspiration, and Dionne Warwick, who called Newton-John "one of the nicest people I had the pleasure of recording and performing with".

Australian rock legend John Farnham, a long-time friend and with whom Newton-John released her final studio album, said she would be "greatly missed" and "behind that iconic smile was a tenacious fighter".

Olivia Moore, who is currently playing Sandy in Grease in London's West End, broke the news to a shocked audience at the end of Monday evening's performance.


Newton-John was first diagnosed with cancer in 1992 and went on to become a leading advocate of cancer research. Her charity, the Olivia Newton-John Foundation, has raised millions of pounds to support research.

In a statement, the hospital that runs the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness and Research Centre in Melbourne - which was opened after the star's campaigning - said she "encouraged, inspired and supported" staff and patients every day.

"We are incredibly grateful for the special relationship we had with Olivia for many years. Her generous support and gift provided hope and changed the lives of thousands of cancer patients... She was the light at the end of the tunnel for many, many people."

Her efforts in the field were recognised by the Queen, who honoured her with a damehood in the 2020 New Year's Honours list.

In a statement posted to her social media channels, Newton-John's husband John Easterling said she had died on Monday, hailing her "a symbol of triumphs and hope for over 30 years, sharing her journey with breast cancer".

"Her healing inspiration and pioneering experience with plant medicine continues with the Olivia Newton-John Foundation Fund, dedicated to researching plant medicine and cancer."

In later years, Newton-John became a cancer campaigner which led to the opening of an institute named after her in Melbourne


Newton-John was born in Cambridge on 26 September 1948.

Her father had been a British spy during World War Two. Her mother was the daughter of the German Nobel laureate, Max Born, and had fled with her family when the Nazis came to power in 1933.

The family moved to Australia in 1954, where she was raised.

Her breakthrough came in 1971 when she released a Bob Dylan-penned track, If Not For You, which reached number seven in the UK charts and featured on an album of the same name.

She won four Grammy awards and scored seven US number one hits between 1974 and 1977.

While critics never warmed to her audience-friendly style of music, the star forthrightly dismissed the reviews.

"It annoys me when people think because it's commercial, it's bad," she told Rolling Stone. "It's completely opposite. If people like it, that's what it's supposed to be."

In 1978 she became a global star with the release of Grease. The film, set in the 1950s, told the story of Sandy's summer fling with John Travolta's Danny and the difficulties the relationship encounters. In the end the pair reconcile, with Sandy having transformed her appearance.

In 2019, after being diagnosed with breast cancer for the third time, she was asked by CBS News how she coped.

"It was consuming my day and after a time I went 'you know what', I need to enjoy my life so I'm going to eat a cookie if I want it," she said.

"Because the joy of life and everyday living has to be a part of that healing process as well. So I've chosen that path to be grateful and to feel good about things because the other side's not so good."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
×