Shirley Bartlett is a slight and modest woman whose demeanour belies her star-studded past.

She lives a quiet life at Moorland Garden Nursing Home in Yelverton, but there is a big clue to the fascinating life she lived in the fifties to seventies when she was make-up artist and hairdresser to the stars of small and large screen.

Hidden away in one of the many rooms at the home is a corner of her bedroom covered in photographs signed by the likes of Burt Bacharach, Barbra Streisand, Julie Andrews and Jimmy Tarbuck.

These, mostly famous singing acts of the seventies were very grateful to Shirley (maiden name Muslin) for ensuring they looked their very best on stage and in front of the cameras and expressed their gratitude to her in messages and signed photos.

Shirley was one of the largely unsung army of make-up artists and hairdressers who help create the on-stage personas so beloved by audiences. Her contribution to her craft was recognised by a nomination for an ‘Emmy’ award – a National Academy of TV Arts & Sciences award for ‘outstanding achievement in make-up' on ‘This is Tom Jones in 1969’ – a special.

Shirley was head of make-up for ATV (Associated Television – ITV for London and the Midlands) at Elstree Studios, London, before it moved to Newark. She met and then married ATV’s head cameraman Dennis, who has now passed away.

She also has a full autograph book of her clients with a myriad of performers – mostly famous actors, singers and band members who entertained from the 1950s to 1970s including on ATV’s biggest Saturday night programme - the Muppet Show.

Julie Andrews wrote on her photo: ‘To dear Shirley with much love and so many thanks’. Jimmy Tarbuck’s photo says: ‘To a dear friend with my fondest love and many thanks’. Shirley would even receive personalised Christmas cards from her clients.

Burt Bacharach wrote: ‘Thank you for making me look much better in this picture than I deserved to look and for looking much better on the show’. Roger Moore thanked Shirley for ‘making me look so pretty’.

Barbra Streisand wrote: ‘I appreciate your talent which makes my work easier’. Actor Richard Griffiths said: ’Thank you for being so kind and helping make life bearable on terrible studio days’.

Shirley’s niece Ruth Brighton said: “Barbra was one of Shirley’s favourites. She said she was lovely to work for and down-to-earth. She’s very proud of her job when she was responsible for what these stars looked like and they trusted her to look their very best. But Shirley is always very modest about her work – saying it was ‘just her job’ and she described working with Barbra Streisand as ‘just fiddling with her hair’.

“She was especially close to Julie Andrews and was considered a friend by many of her clients. She knew Gene Kelly who wrote her a letter asking her to dinner with two staff from Air France, which she accepted. He was filming an advert for Air France.

“She is rightly very proud of her Emmy nomination which is on her wall with her gallery and the stars knew she was one of the best at her job.”