Showbiz angels are becoming rarer so let’s hear it for Gillian Geddes, a talented singer-pianist prepared to put her money where her heart is. This former cabaret performer turned promoter last night in a bold bid to preserve the art-form she loves. Her friends think she’s crazy, her advisors feel she’s overpaying her musicians and her bank manager is keeping his fingers crossed — but she’s determined to bring cabaret back to the Knightsbridge room that fostered it for more than 20 years.

Ms Geddes acted swiftly after hearing invitations to hire the venue, which closed when the building changed hands last summer. “I’m doing this because London needs a central home for cabaret,” she said. “I first heard Richard Rodney Bennett here, and US artists like Dave Frishberg and Blossom Dearie, Marion Montgomery, Mose Allison and Larry Adler. Every major capital needs its cabaret venue, a place for intelligent, sophisticated, witty words and music. This is ours, and it should not be allowed to die.”

Gillian argues a good case, as well she might as a successful barrister. She was called to the bar after years of singing in one, as resident at the Pine Bar of the Britannia Hotel in Grosvenor Square.

A few more late-night visitors would have been welcome at Knightsbridge, where Nicola Emmanuelle’s group had to contend with a crowd-sapping combination of cold weather, Ground Zero seventh-anniversary blues and Stevie Wonder playing the 02 Arena. Impervious to all this, she bounded on stage with a song in her heart and her trio at the ready.

A delightful Hackney-born girl whose South African family have stage connections, she’s a crowdpleaser whose sunny personality comes across in her vocals. Her standards (Let’s Face the Music and Dance, I’m Old-Fashioned, Mean to Me) moved from gentleness to power with no visible effort, and her timing was relaxed at every tempo. Her diction was impeccably clear, too, as in Everything Happened to Me, the great Matt Dennis song about always having picnics when it rains and holding parties when the guy upstairs complains.

Behind her, pianist Alex Webb, bassist Gary Crosby and drummer Syemi Di were as impeccable as their snappy tuxedos.

Tammy Weis, 18 Sept. New artist each Thursday until Christmas (08456 027 127, geddesentertainmen