Portrait of Sophie Ellis-Bextor

Birthday profile

Sophie Ellis-Bextor

Sophie Ellis-Bextor, English singer-songwriter

Born
April 10, 1979
Age in 2026
47
Zodiac sign
Aries
Birth year
1979

About Sophie Ellis-Bextor

Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor (born 10 April 1979) is an English singer and songwriter. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s as the lead vocalist of the indie rock band theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo and achieved success beginning in the early 2000s. Her music is mainstream pop and dance with influences of disco, nu-disco, and 1980s electronic music. In 2000, Ellis-Bextor collaborated with Italian DJ Spiller on "Groovejet (If This Ain't Love)", which reached number one in the United Kingdom and in 2015 became the UK's biggest-selling vinyl single of the millennium so far. Her debut solo studio album, Read My Lips, was released in 2001 and peaked at number two on the UK Albums Chart. It was certified double platinum by the BPI, and sold 1.5 million copies worldwide. Three of its four singles—the Cher cover "Take Me Home", "Murder on the Dancefloor", and double A-side "Get Over You" / "Move This Mountain"—reached the top three in the UK. Its follow-up Shoot from the Hip (2003) reached number 19 in the UK and spawned two top ten singles, "Mixed Up World" and "I Won't Change You". Ellis-Bextor's third studio album, Trip the Light Fantastic (2007), peaked at number seven in the UK and its lead single "Catch You" reached the top ten. Her fourth studio album, Make a Scene (2011), and its third single "Bittersweet" achieved top 40 positions in the UK. Whilst signed to Cooking Vinyl, she released a trilogy of albums produced by Ed Harcourt: the folk-influenced Wanderlust (2014), the Latin-infused Familia (2016), and the Japanese-inspired Hana (2023). She experienced a resurgence in popularity when "Murder on the Dancefloor" was featured in the 2023 film Saltburn, which led to the song matching its original peak of number two on the UK Singles Chart. Her eighth studio album Perimenopop was released under Decca Records in September 2025 to critical praise.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Sophie Ellis-Bextor was born

Sophie Ellis-Bextor was born in 1979. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1979

  • #1 song"My Sharona" – The Knack
  • Top movieKramer vs. Kramer
  • Top TV showLaverne & Shirley
  • Best-selling bookThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports moment"Miracle on Ice" (1980 — actually)
  • Top headlineIran hostage crisis begins
  • Technology milestoneSony Walkman released — portable music goes mainstream
  • Defining fadSony Walkman — portable music revolution
  • Notable inventionSony Walkman
  • World population4.38 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderJimmy Carter
  • Sports championPittsburgh Pirates (World Series)
  • Also wonSeattle SuperSonics (NBA)
  • U.S. population225.1M

1979 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Sophie Ellis-Bextor's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19792026
Gas$0.86$3.45/gal
Average home$62,900$435,000
Average income$19,554$67,500
Minimum wage$2.90$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$2.51$11.95
Postage stamp$0.15$0.73
Population225.1M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.