''Welsh Rarebit'' is a British

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transm ...

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a com ...

broadcast from

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

between February 1940 and December 1952. The title was taken from the dish of the same name. The show's most lasting legacy remains its closing song, "

We'll Keep a Welcome "We'll Keep a Welcome" is a popular song composed by Mai Jones with lyrics by Lyn Joshua and Jimmy Harper in 1940. It was introduced in the BBC radio variety show ''Welsh Rarebit'' and remains strongly associated with Wales. Jones joined the BBC ...

Program synopsis

Billed as "a programme of variety and topicalities", it began life as a monthly 30-minute feature in the BBC's wartime Forces Programme, and was designed for the entertainment of armed forces personnel, in particular for those whose home was in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, but quickly became popular generally, and from June 1941 – when production was taken over by Mai Jones, who was also responsible for such other entertainment shows as ''Saturday Starlight'' – ''Welsh Rarebit'' also featured from time to time in the schedules of the

BBC Home Service The BBC Home Service was a national and regional radio station that broadcast from 1939 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 4. History 1922–1939: Interwar period Between the early 1920s and the outbreak of World War II, the BBC ...

. Although chiefly a variety show, the programme also included such regular features as

Eynon Evans Evan Eynon Evans (18 May 1904 – 1989) billed as Eynon Evans and also known as E. Eynon Rees, was a Welsh writer and film actor of the 1950s, mainly known for his radio and television work. During the 1940s he appeared on the BBC radio vari ...

playing "Tommy Troubles" and ''Dai's Letter to the Forces'', a sentimental reflection of life in Wales read by Lyn Joshua.

Stars

''Welsh Rarebit'' featured a host of Welsh entertainers, many of whom became household names; regulars included Wyn Calvin,

Maudie Edwards Elizabeth Maud Edwards (16 October 1906 – 24 March 1991), professionally known as Maudie Edwards, was a Welsh actress, radio broadcaster, comedian, dancer and singer, best remembered for having spoken the first line of dialogue in soap ...

, Eynon Evans, Vera Meazey,

Gladys Morgan Gladys Mabel Morgan (7 November 1898–16 April 1983) was a Welsh people, Welsh comedian, billed variously as the 'Queen of Comedy' or 'the Queen of Laughter', and was renowned for her toothless, ear-splitting, infectious laugh. Biography Ea ...

, Ossie Morris,

Harry Secombe Sir Harold Donald Secombe (8 September 1921 – 11 April 2001) was a Welsh comedian, actor, singer and television presenter. Secombe was a member of the British radio comedy programme ''The Goon Show'' (1951–1960), playing many characters, m ...

Stan Stennett Stanley Llewelyn Stennett (30 July 1925 – 26 November 2013) was a Welsh comedian, actor and jazz musician. Biography Stennett was born in Pencoed, Bridgend. During World War II, he served in the army and also worked as an entertainer. He ...

, Ann Walters, Albert and Les Ward. At its peak the programme attracted 12 million listeners and remains one of the most popular entertainment shows to have been produced from Wales.

Later production

The wartime programmes came to an end in December 1944, but ''Welsh Rarebit'' returned on

Saint David's Day Saint David's Day ( cy, Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Sant or ; ), or the Feast of Saint David, is the feast day of Saint David, the patron saint of Wales, and falls on 1 March, the date of Saint David's death in 589 AD. The feast has been regularly celebra ...

1948 in the

BBC Light Programme The BBC Light Programme was a national radio station which broadcast chiefly mainstream light entertainment and light music from 1945 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 1. It opened on 29 July 1945, taking over the ...

and ran (now as an hour-long weekly show) from then until July 1951, with a final "Christmas Special" edition being broadcast in December 1952.

External links

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Notes

BBC Home Service programmes BBC Light Programme programmes BBC Radio comedy programmes British variety radio programmes Welsh radio programmes 1940 radio programme debuts 1957 radio programme endings {{UK-radio-show-stub