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Elsie Fogerty
Anne Elizabeth "Elsie" Fogerty (16 December 1865 – 4 July 1945) was a British teacher who departed from the customary practice of “voice and diction” also called elocution. At that time “Voice and Diction” focused entirely on the mouth and nasal cavity to produce speech sounds. Fogerty’s technique ended up focusing on the entire body and voice to produce speech. At first, she used just the lungs to resonate the sound, but soon included the whole body, because she discovered that posture and movement also affected speech. It ultimately became known as the “Body and Voice” technique. /sup> She was founder and principal of the Central School of Speech and Drama in London from 1906 to 1942. /sup> Early years The daughter of engineer and architect Joseph Fogerty FRIBA (d. 1899) and his wife, Hannah Cochrane (d. 1910), both of Limerick, Fogerty was born in Sydenham, south London on 16 December 1865. An only child, she was privately educated and in 1883 trained a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sydenham, London
Sydenham () is a district of south-east London, England, which is shared between the London boroughs of Lewisham, Bromley and Southwark. Prior to the creation of the County of London in 1889, Sydenham was located in Kent, bordering Surrey. Historically, the area was very affluent, with the Crystal Palace being relocated to Sydenham Hill in 1854. Today, Sydenham is a diverse area, with a population of 28,378 (2011 census) and borders Forest Hill, Dulwich, Crystal Palace, Penge, Beckenham, Catford and Bellingham. History Originally known as Shippenham, Sydenham began as a small settlement, a few cottages among the woods, whose inhabitants grazed their animals and collected wood. In the 1640s, springs of water in what is now Wells Park were discovered to have medicinal properties, attracting crowds of people to the area. Sydenham grew rapidly in the 19th century after the introduction of the Croydon Canal in 1809 which linked the Grand Surrey Canal to Croydon and a reservoir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swiss Cottage
Swiss Cottage is an area of Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden, England. It is centred on the junction of Avenue Road and Finchley Road and includes Swiss Cottage tube station. Swiss Cottage lies north-northwest of Charing Cross. The area was named after a public house in the centre of it, known as "Ye Olde Swiss Cottage". History Toponymy According to the ''Dictionary of London Place Names'' (2001), the district is named after an inn called ''The Swiss Tavern'' that was built in 1804 in the style of a Swiss chalet on the site of a former tollgate keeper's cottage, and later renamed ''Swiss Inn'' and in the early 20th century ''Swiss Cottage''. Urban development The district formed part of the ancient parish of Hampstead. It developed following the Finchley Road Act 1826, which authorised construction of Finchley New Road and Avenue Road, with ''The Swiss Tavern'' built at the junction of the new roads. The former Swiss Cottage station was opened by the Metro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marda Vanne
Marda "Scrappy" Vanne (born Margaretha van Hulsteyn;One source, a close friend, spells her name "Margueretha". 27 September 1896 – 27 April 1970) was a South African actress who found fame in London. Early life Margaretha was born in Pretoria, South African Republic to Sir Willem and Lady van Hulsteyn. Willem was born in The Netherlands in 1865 and emigrated to South Africa at the age of fifteen. He became a leading lawyer in Johannesburg and later a member of the South African Parliament for many years. During the South African War, he became an advisor to Lord Milner, the Governor of the Cape Colony, and was knighted by King Edward VII in 1902. She was briefly married to politician Johannes Gerhardus "Hans" Strijdom, but the couple divorced within a year. Strijdom later went on to serve as Prime Minister of South Africa from 1954-58. In 1914, Vanne met Isaac Rosenberg in Cape Town, who was on a visit to South Africa. He took a shine to her and drew a charcoal sketch of he ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ann Todd
Dorothy Ann Todd (24 January 1907 – 6 May 1993) was an English film, television and stage actress who achieved international fame when she starred in 1945's '' The Seventh Veil''. From 1949 to 1957 she was married to David Lean who directed her in 1949's ''The Passionate Friends'', 1950's ''Madeleine'' and 1952's ''The Sound Barrier''. She was a member of The Old Vic theatre company and in 1957 starred in a Broadway play. In her later years she wrote, produced and directed travel documentaries. Early years Todd was born in Hartford, Cheshire. Although latterly claiming to be born in 1909, 1911 census records show her born in 1907 and christened in March 1907. Her Scottish-born father Thomas was a salesman, and her London-born mother Constance a housewife. She had a younger brother Harold Brooke (who took their mother's maiden name), who became a screenwriter of light comedies. After the family moved to London, Todd was educated at St. Winifrid's School, Eastbourne, Susse ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frederick Piper
Frederick Piper (23 September 1902 – 22 September 1979) was an English actor of stage and screen who appeared in over 80 films and many television productions in a career spanning over 40 years. Piper studied drama under Elsie Fogerty at the Central School of Speech and Drama, then based at the Royal Albert Hall, London. Never a leading player, Piper was usually cast in minor, sometimes uncredited, parts although he also appeared in some more substantial supporting roles. Piper never aspired to star-status, but became a recognisable face on the British screen through the sheer volume of films in which he appeared. His credits include a number of films which are considered classics of British cinema, among them five 1930s Alfred Hitchcock films; he also appeared in many Ealing Studios productions, including some of the celebrated Ealing comedies. Stage career Born in London, England in September 1902, Piper worked as a tea merchant before starting his acting career on the st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. Late in his career, he had considerable success in television roles. His family had no theatrical connections, but Olivier's father, a clergyman, decided that his son should become an actor. After attending a drama school in London, Olivier learned his craft in a succession of acting jobs during the late 1920s. In 1930 he had his first important West End success in Noël Coward's '' Private Lives'', and he appeared in his first film. In 1935 he played in a celebrated production of ''Romeo and Juliet'' alongside Gielgud and Peggy Ashcroft, and by the end of the decade he was an established star. In the 1940s, together with Richards ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Irene Mawer
Irene Mawer (13 March 1893 – 1 December 1962), was an English exponent of mime; drama; voice; and mime in education. She was later known as Irene Dale and Irene Perugini. Mawer was a co-founder of the Ginner-Mawer School of Dance and Drama (1916-1954) together with Ruby Ginner, and sole founder of the Institute of Mime. Early life and education Irene Rose Mawer was born in 1893, in Wandsworth, on the outskirts of London, England - at that time a wealthy and prosperous area. Her father, Henry (Harry) Mawer, was a Yorkshireman, and her mother, Rosina Alberta Mawer (nee Turner), was originally from Devon. As a child at home, Mawer was almost always alone, and her favourite pastime was to make up little plays and act them out around the house and in the garden. As an adult, she remembered these games and used them as a basis for teaching mime to infants, known at Ginner-Mawer as 'Bobblies'.The Link, Vol 1, No 4, July 1925, p 39 Mawer attended Putney High School for Girls, whe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alison Leggatt
Alison Joy Leggatt (7 February 1904 – 15 July 1990) was an English character actress. Career Born in the Kensington district of London, Leggatt trained under Elsie Fogerty at the Central School of Speech and Drama, then based in the Royal Albert Hall, London. Leggatt spent the early part of her career primarily on the stage. Her performance in Miles Malleson's ''The Fanatics'' in 1927 launched her, according to ''The New York Times'', as "one of the most promising theatrical newcomers of her generation". Other stage work included the original 1931 Drury Lane production of ''Cavalcade'' by Noël Coward. Her first major film credit was as Aunt Sylvia in ''This Happy Breed'' (1944), Noël Coward's homage to the British working class. She was known for playing a variety of disapproving in-laws, motherly landladies, nosy neighbours and helpful housekeepers. She played opposite Petula Clark three times, in ''Here Come the Huggetts'' (1948), ''The Card'' (1952) and ''Goodbye, Mr. Chips ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Laurie
John Paton Laurie (25 March 1897 – 23 June 1980) was a Scottish actor. In the course of his career, Laurie performed on the stage and in films as well as television. He is perhaps best remembered for his role in the sitcom ''Dad's Army'' (1968-1977) as Private Frazer, a member of the Home Guard. Laurie appeared in scores of feature films with directors such as Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Powell, and Laurence Olivier, generally playing memorable small or supporting roles rather than leading ones. As a stage actor, he was cast in Shakespearean roles and was a speaker of verse, especially of Robert Burns. Early life John Paton Laurie was born on 25 March 1897 in Dumfries, Dumfriesshire to William Laurie (1856–1903), a clerk in a tweed mill and later a hatter and hosier, and Jessie Ann Laurie (''née'' Brown; 1858–1935). Laurie attended Dumfries Academy (a grammar school at the time), before abandoning a career in architecture to serve in the First World War as a member of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, (; 14 April 1904 – 21 May 2000) was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the British stage for much of the 20th century. A member of the Terry family theatrical dynasty, he gained his first paid acting work as a junior member of his cousin Phyllis Neilson-Terry's company in 1922. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art he worked in repertory theatre and in the West End before establishing himself at the Old Vic as an exponent of Shakespeare in 1929–31. During the 1930s Gielgud was a stage star in the West End and on Broadway, appearing in new works and classics. He began a parallel career as a director, and set up his own company at the Queen's Theatre, London. He was regarded by many as the finest Hamlet of his era, and was also known for high comedy roles such as John Worthing in ''The Importance of B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Fox (actor)
William Hubert Fox TD (26 January 1911 – 20 September 2008) was a British character actor and writer. He enjoyed early success on the stage playing juvenile roles. After a six-year interruption for military service in the Second World War, his acting career did not reach the heights of his early years. Early life Fox was born in Manila in the Philippines, the son of a successful trader who operated across the South China Sea. His parents travelled extensively, and whilst still an infant he had visited Madrid, Paris and London. In 1916 Fox was sent to preparatory school, then attended Haileybury public school. He was expected to go on to Oxford University and thence into the petroleum industry; this was not to be. Fox read an advertisement in ''The Times'' inviting people to audition for the Central School of Speech and Drama, which had been founded by Elsie Fogerty and was at that time based at the Royal Albert Hall, London. He won a scholarship, but since he was from a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peggy Ashcroft
Dame Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft (22 December 1907 – 14 June 1991), known professionally as Peggy Ashcroft, was an English actress whose career spanned more than 60 years. Born to a comfortable middle-class family, Ashcroft was determined from an early age to become an actress, despite parental opposition. She was working in smaller theatres even before graduating from drama school, and within two years she was starring in the West End. Ashcroft maintained her leading place in British theatre for the next 50 years. Always attracted by the ideals of permanent theatrical ensembles, she did much of her work for the Old Vic in the early 1930s, John Gielgud's companies in the 1930s and 1940s, the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre and its successor the Royal Shakespeare Company from the 1950s, and the National Theatre from the 1970s. While well regarded in Shakespeare, Ashcroft was also known for her commitment to modern drama, appearing in plays by Bertolt Brecht, Samuel Beck ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
