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Ethel Coleridge
Ethel Coleridge (14 January 1883 – 15 August 1976) was an English actress, best known for her roles in the original Aldwych farces in the 1920s and 1930s. Life and career Coleridge was born Ethel Coleridge Tucker in South Molton, Devonshire, and educated at Bristol University. At the age of 22 she appeared onstage for the first time as a member of the chorus in ''Carmen''.Miss Ethel Coleridge, ''The Times'', 18 August 1976, p. 14 Over the next fifteen years she acted in a wide range of touring companies, and finally made her West End debut in a cast led by Gladys Cooper, in a revival of ''My Lady's Dress'' by Edward Knoblock; she played several roles in the piece, including Mrs Moss, "a stout, elderly, motherly type". Following this she was cast as Nancy Sibley in a revival of Knoblock and Arnold Bennett's ''Milestones''. Over the next six years she played character roles in plays ranging from earnest drama to farce, and in 1926 she was recruited by Tom Walls for what becam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West End Theatre
West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes"West End"in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, Along with New York City's Broadway theatre, West End theatre represents the highest level of Theatre of the United Kingdom, commercial theatre in the English-speaking world. Seeing a West End show is a common tourist activity in London. Prominent screen actors, Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and World cinema, international alike, frequently appear on the London stage. There are approximately 40 theatres in the West End, with the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, opened in May 1663, the oldest theatre in London. The Savoy Theatre—built as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan—was entirely lit by electricity in 1881. Society of London Theatre, The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) announced that 201 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thark (play)
''Thark'' is a farce by the English playwright Ben Travers. It was first given at the Aldwych Theatre, London, the fourth in the series of twelve Aldwych farces presented at the theatre by the actor-manager Tom Walls between 1923 and 1933. It starred the same cast members as many of the other Aldwych farces. The story concerns a reputedly haunted English country house. Investigators and frightened occupants of the house spend a tense night searching for the ghost. The piece opened on 4 July 1927 and ran for nearly a year. Travers made a film adaptation, which Walls directed in 1932, with most of the leading members of the stage cast reprising their roles. Background The actor-manager Tom Walls produced the series of Aldwych farces, nearly all written by Ben Travers, and starring himself and Ralph Lynn, who specialised in playing "silly ass" characters. Walls assembled a regular company of actors to fill the supporting roles, including Robertson Hare, who played a figure o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Second Best Bed
''Second Best Bed'' is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Tom Walls and starring Walls, Jane Baxter and Veronica Rose. The screenplay was by Ben Travers, based on an earlier story of his. The screenplay concerns a newly married couple who soon run into domestic difficulties when the wife refuses to obey her husband's every order. Cast * Tom Walls as Victor Garnett * Jane Baxter as Patricia Lynton * Veronica Rose as Jenny Murdoch * Carl Jaffe as Georges Dubonnet * Greta Gynt as Yvonne * Edward Lexy as Murdoch * Tyrell Davis as Whittaker * Mae Bacon as Mrs Whittaker * Ethel Coleridge as Mrs Knuckle * Davy Burnaby as Lord Kingston * Martita Hunt as Mrs Mather * Gordon James as Judge * Charlotte Leigh as Miss Boolbread * Denier Warren as umpire * Peter Bull as tennis match spectator Production It was an independent production made at Shepperton Studios with sets were designed by the art director Walter Murton. Walls and Travers had worked together on the Aldwych f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Penny Paradise
''Penny Paradise'' is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Carol Reed and starring Edmund Gwenn, Betty Driver and Jimmy O'Dea. Plot The film is set in Liverpool, where tugboat captain Joe Higgins, believing he has won £20,000 on the football pools, resigns from his job and throws a party in a local public house where family and friends – some of whom have an eye on a share of the winnings – gather to celebrate his good luck. Higgins pays court to the widow Clegg who he has been wooing, while his daughter Betty is targeted by a chancer who wants her money. The party grinds to a halt with the arrival of the hapless Pat, Higgins' Irish first mate on the tugboat, who is forced to admit that he forgot to post the winning pools coupon. There now seems no reason for celebration, but Higgins is mollified when his former employer offers him the captaincy of the best tugboat on the River Mersey, a position to which he had long aspired. Cast * Edmund Gwenn as Joe Hig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Feather Your Nest
''Feather Your Nest'' is a 1937 British musical comedy film directed by William Beaudine and starring George Formby, Polly Ward and Enid Stamp-Taylor. It contains Formby's signature tune, Leaning on a Lamp-post. Plot A worker at a gramophone record factory surprisingly creates a hit song, " Leaning on a Lamp-post". Cast * George Formby as Willie Piper * Polly Ward as Mary Taylor * Enid Stamp-Taylor as Daphne Randall * Val Rosing as Rex Randall * Davy Burnaby as Sir Martin * Jack Barty as Mr Chester * Clifford Heatherley as Randall's valet * Frederick Burtwell as Murgatroyd * Ethel Coleridge as Mrs Taylor * Jimmy Godden as Mr Higgins * Moore Marriott as Mr Jenkins * Syd Crossley as Police Constable * Frank Perfitt as Studio manager * Frederick Piper as Green * Mike Johnson as Charlie * Leonard Sharp as Mr. Peabody * Harry Terry as Furniture Thief * Hal Walters as Man Outside Furniture Shop * Edie Martin as Blanche Critical reception *''Halliwell's Film Guid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Keep Your Seats, Please
''Keep Your Seats, Please'' is a 1936 British comedy film directed by Monty Banks and starring George Formby, Florence Desmond and Alastair Sim. It marked the film debut of the child star Binkie Stuart. The film was made by Associated Talking Pictures. The film, which features Formby's most famous tune, " When I'm Cleaning Windows", follows a farcical plot based on the 1928 Russian satirical novel ''The Twelve Chairs'' by Ilya Ilf and Yevgeni Petrov. Plot George Withers learns he is supposed to inherit some valuable jewels from his aunt, and enlists the aid of his dubious lawyer to ensure he gets them. It transpires the stones are hidden in the lining of one of six antique chairs, and his aunt has left instructions for her nephew to purchase the chairs at auction. But unfortunately they are sold separately, as he arrives too late to bid. Cast * George Formby as George Withers * Florence Desmond as Florrie * Gus McNaughton as Max * Alastair Sim as A. S. Drayton * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lonely Road (film)
''Lonely Road'' is a 1936 British crime drama film directed by James Flood and starring Clive Brook, Victoria Hopper, Nora Swinburne, and Malcolm Keen. It was shot at Ealing Studios in London. The film was released in the United States as ''Scotland Yard Commands''. The film was based on the 1932 novel '' Lonely Road'' by Nevil Shute, who had visualised the chief character as the actor Clive Brook and had sent a copy of the novel to Brook. Shute visited the studio, and was pleased to see the film made (though the payment for film rights ''was not large by American standards''). Plot Commander Malcolm Stevenson proposes to Lady Anne, which surprises her, as she thought they were only friends. She also thinks he is too restless to settle down. While speeding half-drunk in his car, an " Auburn Supercharger," he ends up stuck in sand on a beach, where he stumbles upon some smugglers. Before he is knocked unconscious, one of the men mentions carpet sweepers, of all things. After rec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laburnum Grove
''Laburnum Grove'' is a 1936 British comedy film directed by Carol Reed and starring Edmund Gwenn, Cedric Hardwicke and Victoria Hopper. It was based on the 1933 play of the same name written by J. B. Priestley. Gwenn, Ethel Coleridge, Francis James, James Harcourt and David Hawthorne all repeated their roles from the play's original 1933-34 West End production, which had been directed by Hardwicke. Plot summary To rid himself of his sponging relatives a man tells them he is really a forger which causes them to leave. His wife believes he is joking, but he has in fact allowed the truth to slip out and now he is in danger of being arrested. Cast * Edmund Gwenn as Mr. Radfern * Cedric Hardwicke as Mr. Baxley * Victoria Hopper as Elsie Radfern * Ethel Coleridge as Mrs. Baxley * Katie Johnson as Mrs. Radfern * Francis James as Harold Russ * James Harcourt as Joe Fletten * David Hawthorne as Inspector Stack * Frederick Burtwell as Simpson Novelisation In 1936, Heineman ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plunder (1931 Film)
''Plunder'' is a 1931 British comedy film directed by and starring Tom Walls. It also features Ralph Lynn, Winifred Shotter and Robertson Hare. It was based on the original stage farce of the same title, and was the second in a series of film adaptations of Aldwych farces by Ben Travers, adapted in this case by W. P. Lipscomb, and was a major critical and commercial success helping to cement Walls's position as one of the leading stars of British cinema.McFarlane p.21-22 It was made at British and Dominion's Elstree Studios. The film's sets were designed by the art director Lawrence P. Williams. Cast * Ralph Lynn as Darcy Tuck * Tom Walls as Freddie Malone * Winifred Shotter as Joan Hewlett * Robertson Hare as Oswald Veal * Doreen Bendix as Prudence Malone * Gordon James as Simon Veal * Ethel Coleridge Ethel Coleridge (14 January 1883 – 15 August 1976) was an English actress, best known for her roles in the original Aldwych farces in the 1920s and 1930s. Life and car ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rookery Nook (film)
''Rookery Nook'' is a 1930 film farce, directed by Tom Walls, with a script by Ben Travers. It is a screen adaptation of the original 1926 Aldwych farce of the same title. The film was known in the U.S. as ''One Embarrassing Night''. The film was very successful at the box office and led to a series of filmed farces. Synopsis Rhoda Marley seeks refuge overnight from a tyrannical stepfather in the house of Gerald Popkiss. He is alone there, as his wife is away; fearing a scandal he attempts to conceal Rhoda's presence from nosy domestic staff and his in-laws, with the help of his cousin Clive. Eventually all is explained, Gerald and his wife are reconciled, and Clive pairs off with Rhoda. Cast *Gerald Popkiss – Ralph Lynn* *Clive Popkiss – Tom Walls* *Rhoda Marley – Winifred Shotter* *Mrs Leverett – Mary Brough* *Harold Twine – Robertson Hare* *Gertrude Twine – Ethel Coleridge* *Putz – Griffith Humphreys* *Poppy Dickey – Doreen Bendix *Clara Popkiss – Margo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
When We Are Married
''When We Are Married'' is a three-act play by the English dramatist J. B. Priestley, described as "A Yorkshire Farcical Comedy". Written in 1934, it is set about thirty years earlier, and depicts the consequences when three middle-aged couples jointly celebrating their silver weddings are informed that they were not legally married. Background and premiere By 1938 J. B. Priestley had established himself as a dramatist, becoming, according to ''The Oxford Companion to Twentieth-Century Literature in English'', "one of the most highly regarded playwrights of his day". His earlier successes included ''The Good Companions'' (1931), '' Dangerous Corner'' (1932), '' Laburnum Grove'' (1933) and '' Time and the Conways'' (1937).Sutherland, John"Priestley, J. B." ''The Oxford Companion to Twentieth-Century Literature in English''. Ed. Jenny Stringer, Oxford University Press, 2005. Herbert, p. 1303 Priestley recalled the genesis of the play: While the play was in preparation the tit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Turkey Time (play)
''Turkey Time'' is a farce by Ben Travers. It was one of the series of Aldwych farces that ran nearly continuously at the Aldwych Theatre in London from 1923 to 1933. The story concerns two guests, staying at the Stoatt household for Christmas, who offer shelter to a pretty concert performer left stranded when her employer absconds, leaving his cast unpaid. The piece opened on 26 May 1931 and ran for 263 performances until 16 January 1932. A film adaptation of the play was made in 1933. Background ''Turkey Time'' was the ninth in the series of twelve Aldwych farces, and the seventh written by Travers. The first four in the series, ''It Pays to Advertise (play), It Pays to Advertise'', ''A Cuckoo in the Nest'', ''Rookery Nook (play), Rookery Nook'' and ''Thark (play), Thark'' had long runs, averaging more than 400 performances each. The next three were less outstandingly successful, the runs getting shorter with each production: ''Plunder (play), Plunder'' (1928, 344 performan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
