Dion Titheradge (30 March 1889 – 16 November 1934) was an Australian-born actor and writer of revues, plays and screenplays.

Early life

Dion Titheradge was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Australia in 1889, son of the actor George Sutton Titheradge. He was brother of the actress Madge Titheradge.Death of Mr. Dion Titheradge

The Argus (Melbourne) ''The Argus'' was an Australian daily morning newspaper in Melbourne from 2 June 1846 to 19 January 1957, and was considered to be the general Australian newspaper of record for this period. Widely known as a conservative newspaper for most of i ...

, 19 November 1934. Via

National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...

. His early career was as an actor. His first appearance on stage was in 1908 at the Theatre Royal, Newcastle-on-Tyne, in ''The Woman of Kronstadt'', and he then toured Australia and New Zealand playing various roles. In 1910 he was a member of

Lewis Waller William Waller Lewis (3 November 1860 – 1 November 1915), known on stage as Lewis Waller, was an English actor and theatre manager, well known on the London stage and in the English provinces. After early stage experience with John Lawrence T ...

's company, touring with him in the play ''Bardelys the Magnificent''. Titheradge appeared with Waller in September–October 1912 at Daly's Theatre, New York, in ''

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1216–1281 ...

''. Also in New York, he played Harry Anson in '' The Whip'' at the

Manhattan Opera House The Manhattan Center is a building in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Built in 1906 and located at 311 West 34th Street, it houses Manhattan Center Studios, the location of two recording studios; its Grand Ballroom; and the Hammerstein Ballroo ...

from November 1912 to April 1913; he appeared in ''Life'' by Thompson Buchanan at the same theatre from October 1914 to March 1915, and in ''The Harp of Life'' by J. Hartley Manners at the

Globe Theatre The Globe Theatre was a Theater (structure), theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 at Southwark, close to the south bank of the Thames, by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men. It was ...

from November 1916 to May 1917.Dion Titheradge
at the

Internet Broadway Database The Internet Broadway Database (IBDB) is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. It was conceived and created by Karen Hauser in 1996 and is operated by the Research Department of The Broadway League, a trade asso ...

Writer

Writing became important in his subsequent career. Titheradge and Kenneth Duffield, of South Australia, created a successful West End

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatre, theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketch comedy, sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural pre ...

in London in 1920 and, before Duffield returned to Australia in 1922, they produced several more revues including ''A to Z'', ''Puss Puss'', ''Snap'' and ''Pot Luck''.Dion Titheradge
Australian Variety Theatre Archive, accessed 11 September 2016. The song "And Her Mother Came Too", of which he wrote the lyrics, became famous; the music was by

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

, and it was first heard in ''A to Z'', which opened at the

Prince of Wales Theatre The Prince of Wales Theatre is a West End theatre in Coventry Street, near Leicester Square in London. It was established in 1884 and rebuilt in 1937, and extensively refurbished in 2004 by Sir Cameron Mackintosh, its current owner. The theatre ...

on 11 October 1921. It was sung by

Jack Buchanan Walter John Buchanan (2 April 1890 – 20 October 1957) was a Scottish theatre and film actor, singer, dancer, producer and director. He was known for three decades as the embodiment of the debonair man-about-town in the tradition of George Gr ...

. Also famous was his sketch "Dinner Napkins" (also known as "Double Damask"), heard in

Noel Gay Reginald Moxon Armitage (15 July 1898 – 4 March 1954) known professionally as Noel Gay. was a British composer of popular music of the 1930s and 1940s whose output comprised 45 songs as well as the music for 28 films and 26 London shows. She ...

's show ''Clowns in Clover'' (1927). Titheradge wrote many plays, often using the pen-name 'Geoffrey Warren'. His play ''Loose Ends'', by 'Geoffrey Warren', was first performed at the

Duke of York's Theatre The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster, London. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre until her death in 1935. Designed by ...

in London from 19 April 1926, where it ran for 81 performances, transferring to the

Shaftesbury Theatre The Shaftesbury Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Shaftesbury Avenue, in the London Borough of Camden. It opened in 1911 as the New Prince's Theatre, with a capacity of 2,500. The current capacity is 1,416. The title "Shaftesbury Theat ...

from 7 June. It was reported in ''The Stage'' that Dion Thitheradge announced to the audience after the first performance that 'The author is not in the audience', an accepted phrase indicating that the author was on the stage."Loose Ends". ''The Stage'', 22 April 1926, p 18. He directed and appeared in the play in New York where it ran for 40 performances from 1 November 1926 at the Ritz Theatre. Titheradge played the part of Malcolm Forres and Brenda Fallon was played by Molly Kerr in both London and New York. ''Loose Ends'' was later (1930) made into a film of the same title. His play ''The Crooked Billet'', a murder mystery, ran for 168 performances from 13 October 1927 at the

Royalty Theatre The Royalty Theatre was a small London theatre situated at 73 Dean Street, Soho. Established by the actress Frances Maria Kelly in 1840, it opened as Miss Kelly's Theatre and Dramatic School and finally closed to the public in 1938.

in London, and was made into a film of the same name (1929). He wrote the

screenplay A screenplay, or script, is a written work produced for a film, television show (also known as a '' teleplay''), or video game by screenwriters (cf. ''stage play''). Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of w ...

s for the films '' Mr. Bill the Conqueror'' (1932) and '' Dangerous Ground'' (1934).

Family

Titheradge married Margaret Ann Bolton in 1909 in New South Wales; their children were Meg and the writer Peter Dion Titheradge (1910–1989).Dion Titheradge
Titheradge family history, accessed 22 September 2016. They divorced in 1927, and he married the actress Madge Stuart in 1928. He died in London in 1934.

References

External links

* * *
Plays by Dion Titheradge on Great War Theatre
{{DEFAULTSORT:Titheradge, Dion 1889 births 1934 deaths People from Melbourne 20th-century Australian male actors 20th-century Australian dramatists and playwrights Australian screenwriters 20th-century Australian screenwriters Australian male dramatists and playwrights