#Lincolnshire show

[bryonyashaw]

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Family day out

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[ultimate-torchwood-monthly]

And here are our finalists!

The finals will consist of 66 polls to be released over a length of time to be decided by this poll starting on August 16th (to give me time to actually make all the polls lmao). Each finalist will go up against each other and whichever audio wins the most matches and points will be crowned the ultimate Torchwood monthly! May the best monthly win!

[ltwilliammowett]

The anti seasick ship SS Bessemer Saloon Steamship

The SS Bessemer Saloon Steamship- SS Bessemer for short - was an experimental Victorian passenger side wheel steamer designed to counteract seasickness and operated between Dover and Calais. Her inventor was Sir Henry Bessemer.

Bessemer Saloon Steamer, 1874

In 1868, Bessemer, who suffered from severe seasickness, developed the idea of a ship whose passenger cabin - the saloon - was to be suspended on a gimbal and mechanically held horizontally, thus levelling out the swell and sparing the occupants from the ship's movements. Sounded too good to be true, but more on that later. He patented this ingenious idea in December 1869 and after successful trials with a model in which the levelling was carried out by hydraulics controlled by a helmsman observing a spirit level, Bessemer founded a limited company, the Bessemer Saloon Steamboat Company Limited, which was to operate steamships between England and France. Capital of 250,000 pounds was used to finance the construction of a ship, the SS Bessemer, whose chief designer was the naval architect Edward James Reed.

SS Bessemer, by Henry Spernon Tozer 1874

And so she was built by Earle's Shipbuilding in Hull. She bore the shipyard number 197 and was launched on 24 September 1874. As already mentioned, she was a paddle steamer with four buckets (two buckets each on port and starboard, one forward and one aft). She had a length of 106.68 m (350 feet), a width on deck of 12.19 m (40 feet), an outside width over the bucket boxes of 19.81 m (65 feet), a draught of 2.26 m (7 feet 5 inches) and a gross register tonnage of 1974 tonnes. What also characterised her was that she was completely identical fore and aft, she had two bridges and two wheels, which simply made her faster and more manoeuvrable in both directions. Her maximum speed was about 17.4 knots.

The inner saloon was a room 70 feet long (21 metres) and 30 feet wide (9.1 metres), with a ceiling 6.1 metres above the floor, Moroccan-covered seats, partitions and spiral columns of carved oak and gilded panels with hand-painted murals. The press liked to call it the floating clubhouse. However, the swinging saloon was only intended for first class passengers. The second class, on the other hand, did not enjoy this and had to make do with cabins on the sides of the hull.

Harper's Weekly Interior Pages showing the newly building ultra Luxury Bessemer Channel Steam-Ship, 1874

The disaster begins

On 21 October 1874, the Bessemer had her first misfortune. She had just arrived in Hull to be fitted out when she was driven ashore in a storm. She was refloated and found to be undamaged, which was not entirely true, as would later become apparent.

In March 1875, the ship sailed on a private trial voyage from Dover to Calais. During this voyage she is said to have steered well and even had a top speed of 18 knots. Her swinging saloon is also said to have worked excellently. However, things didn't go so smoothly because on arrival in Calais, a paddle wheel was damaged when she crashed into the pier because it didn't react to the rudder at slow speed.

The first and only public voyage took place on 8 May 1875, with the ship sailing with her revolving cabin locked (some observers suggested this was due to the ship's severe instability, but Bessemer attributed this to lack of time to repair the previous damage). The ship was operated by the London, Chatham and Dover Railway. After two attempts to enter the harbour, it again crashed into the Calais pier, this time destroying part of it. Calais billed the company £2800 for the damage.

The Bessemer Saloon-Ship running foul of Calais Pier. Illustrated London News, 1875

Due to the poor performance, investors lost confidence and the company was dissolved in 1876. On 29 December 1876, the Bessemer ran aground on Burcom Sand in the Humber upstream of Grimsby, Lincolnshire, after the removal of the swivelling saloon and other extensive alterations. She was refloated and taken to Hull. The Board of Trade's investigation into the grounding found that the captain was at fault. His certificate was suspended for three months.After removal, the designer Reed had the saloon cabin taken to his home, Hextable House, Swanley, where it was used as a billiard room. When the house was later converted into a women's college, Swanley Horticultural College, the saloon was used as a lecture theatre, but was destroyed by a direct hit when the college was bombed during the Second World War.

The Saloon as a lecutre theatre

The ship was then docked in Dover until it was sold for scrapping in 1879.

The Theory of the Top. Volume IV, by Felix Klein, Arnold Sommerfeld, London, 2010

The Nautical Magazine for 1874

Sir Henry Bessemer, F.R.S.: An Autobiography, 1905

The Gale, The Times. No. 28140. London. 23 October 1874. col E, p. 8.

London, Chatham & Dover Railway Company

[hikaruchen]

I’ll keep the king when you are gone away. I’ll keep him safe from the dark things that wait. — King by The Amazing Devil

INPRNT | COMMISSION INFOS

-

Some details for archaeology nerds (Here we go again AHAHAHA)

First of all the costume Alfred wears in this pic is BY NO MEANS historical accurate, but if we really want to be 100% accurate then to my knowledge there’s a high chance that Alfred wouldn’t be wearing dresses gowns at all (whoever decided to make Alfred wear those pretty cough dresses cough in the show I wish your family to prosper for all eternity YOU’RE A HERO), so instead I just chose to design whatever clothes I want and add some Anglo-Saxon elements in it :)

1. Alfred’s earrings

Took inspiration from the 7th century Anglo-Saxon/Frankish crystal ball, now in Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. Here’s the thing, I know English men (and the monarchs) don’t wear earrings until the 16th century and earrings weren’t even popular during the Anglo-Saxon period, but once I saw Charles I wearing pearl earrings in his portrait I just can’t help but put something pretty on Alfred’s ears as well lol…Sadly I can’t find the exact size of this one but the official site says that it was used as a pendant/an amulet! Probably for pagan practices though, but it’s pretty, isn’t it? :D

2. Patterns on Alfred’s gown

Taken from the patterns on the Bewcastle Cross in Cumbria (which used to belong to Northumbria, built in around the 7th to early 8th century, aka the period Bede lived in.

3. The woven band

The pattern is taken from the Laceby band found in Laceby, Lincolnshire, dated to early 7th century. It seems both Scandinavians and Anglo-Saxons enjoy wearing tablet-woven bands? Saw this kind of things a lot in viking clothes reconstruction as well.

4. …Whatever this is

From fol. 34r in Book of Kells, the famous Celtic gospel book completed in Ireland circa 800 AD. As you can see I got lazy during drawing this lol but the illustrations in the original manuscripts are really impressive!

Now I don’t know if this is a good news or not but I’ve still got like…six wips for alhtred in hand…Good god of arts DELIVER ME

[concerningwolves]

sometimes folklore collectors and scholars get kind of... snarky, is a good way to put it, when a particular tale gets repeated in more than one place. Or they act as if the fact this tale has been copied makes it somehow less "real", and get hung up on trying to ascertain which is the oldest and therefore "truest" version of that tale. There's this story I adore about a well-meaning brownie who wanted to help a farmer herd his sheep, but got confused and herded in a hare as well. This story has been collected from the Isle of Man, and has also been collected from (I think – don't have the books to hand) Lincolnshire and Sussex. The first time I read it, the recorder had a very "it's probably stolen from another place though which just shows that this county doesn't come up with its own folklore" attitude. which made me very sad.

Like.... people love stories. we love making stuff up for all sorts of reasons. Sometimes these reasons are "they genuinely thought it was magic" and sometimes it's "this is a good way of keeping children away from dangerous bodies of water". and other times it's pure imagination. For some people studying folklore though, this notion seems very uncomfortable because they want to think of folklore as a sort of. magical and quaint set of beliefs attached to a specific image of the past, or to a specific (often idealised) place. But I don't think the idea that maybe someone heard a story and decided to lie and say it happened to someone they knew nearby instead, or totally invented said story, makes it any less folklore. Actually I'd say that's deeply true to the "folk" part of folklore.

Also I just get really happy when I see certain tales I recognise pop up again from other sources. that is my dear friend <3

[scotianostra]

Robert the Bruce was born in Turnberry Castle, Ayrshire on 11th July 1274.

Well where do we start with this one? I think the majority of us know about Robert and how he led us to victory at Bannockburn so I will put a bit background together of his immediate family.

His mother Marjorie, Countess of Carrick, I think nowadays the term we would use, and it's quite appropriate , is battle-axe. According to what has been written about her she held his father, Robert de Brus, 6th Lord of Annandaleprisoner until he agreed to marry her, it was through his mother that he drew most of his Scottish ancestry. The marriage must have worked for as well as Robert they had 7 more children.

After the Battle of Methven his wee brother Nigel de Brus was captured at Kildrummy Castle and was taken to Berwick to be hanged, drawn and beheaded for high treason, he was protecting Robert's wife, Elizabeth, his daughter Marjorie, his sisters Christina and Mary Bruce, and Isabella MacDuff, Countess of Buchan and helped them escape, although they were later captured by Balliol's army and handed over to Edward I. Nigel was executed for high treason by being hanged, drawn, and quartered in September 1306 at Berwick-upon-Tweed by the English. Two of his other brothers, Alexander and Thomas were also judicially murdered at Carlisle on Februaey 17th 1307 after being captured at Loch Ryan Galloway in 1207, after landing an invasion force consisting of eighteen galleys trying to take land from Dungal MacDouall, who was a supporter of the Comyns,.

Arguably the most famous of his siblings was Edward Bruce, if you have been paying attention you will remember his part in fighting with Robert at Bannockburn, he later went and fought in Ireland and indeed became King for a short time but lost his life in the Battle of Faughart, the, it's said the victor John de Bermingham then took his head to England to be put on display before Edward II.

Robert's sisters, Christina and Mary, as I said earlier were captured after the siege at Kildrummy, along with Isabella MacDuff, now Isabella crowned the Bruce at Scone, it was tradition that the MacDuffs performed the crowning of Scottish monarchs, Isabella arrived the day after Robert had been crowned but the Bruce agreed to second crowning as otherwise some would see the ceremony as irregular, not being performed by a MacDuff.Isabella was imprisoned in cages for four years of Isabella, Edward Longshanks is said to have commanded "Let her be closely confined in an abode of stone and iron made in the shape of a cross, and let her be hung up out of doors in the open air at Berwick, that both in life and after her death, she may be a spectacle and eternal reproach to travellers."

The sisters faired a wee bit better, Isabel Bruce became Queen of Norway as the wife of King Eric II., so escaped the First War of Scottish Independence. Christina and Mary, also captured after Kildrummy, were sent into solitary confinement at a Gilbertine nunnery at Sixhills in Lincolnshire. Mary Bruce was given the same treatment as Isabella MacDuff, but held at Roxburgh Castle.. The sisters sspent eight years as English prisoners, and returned to Scotland in October 1314 as part of the ransom for the Humphrey de Bohun, Earl of Hereford, who was taken prisoner after the Battle of Bannockburn.

There is not a great deal of detail about the other sisters, Margaret married one Sir William de Cairlyle. Lady Elizabeth Bruce married Sir William Dishington of Ardross, in Fife, and finally Matilda, (Maud) Bruce married Hugh 4th Earl of Ross.

Robert was married twice in his life, first to Isabella of Mar, who died in 1296, , with whom he had a daughter Marjorie, from whom the Stewart dynasty was to trace its lineage. His second wife was Elizabeth de Burgh, with whom he had five children – Margaret, Matilda, David, John (who died in infancy) and Elizabeth. His eldest son succeeded his father as King David II of Scotland.

The photo shows Isabella MacDuff and King Robert I in “The Crowning of Bruce” part of an exhibition at Edinburgh Castle.

[ayamos]

Sad boy Colin in this new still🥲

[copperbadge]

TIME. FOR. CHEESE BELT.

[ID: Three photos from "Pick & Cheese", a conveyor-belt cheese bar in London. The top two images show individual helpings with their pairings and crackers; according to my notes these are, left, Cornish Gouda from Giel Spiering in Cornwall, paired with clotted cream fudge, and right, Cote Hill Blue from Lincolnshire, paired with a flapjack (a kind of oat-and-fruit cake). The bottom image is a photograph from my seat at the bar, showing all the cheese on the conveyor belt, in dishes topped with bell glasses that have numbered tags attached to identify what's what. The conveyor belt is shiny, lined with marble, and beautiful.]

[heavenlybackside]

We’re on our way! ✈️

Super excited to be heading to East Kirkby Air Show this morning…we’ll see you soon 🔜

#airshow #eastkirkby #plane #ddaydarlings #lincolnshire #justjane #lancasterbomber #lincoln #aviation #heritage 🤎

[bitchysoulwasteland]

Doctor Stephen Strange x Reader

Warnings; slight angst, alcohol abuse.

Summary: you and Stephen had been together before the crash. He then went to the Karmar Taj, leaving you behind. You moved on. Or did you?

You and Stephen had been married for a few years when the ‘accident’ happened. Then, he pretty much disappeared for best part of a year after several arguments over things that neither of you could actually remember, and he was gone, like a feather on the wind.

Did he regret it? Of course he did. He’d left the love of his life behind because he was too damn egotistical to ask for help.

Did you regret it? Yes. You regretted every argument you both had and every word you didn’t say to him and every bad word you did.

But, you couldn’t dwell on the disappearance of your husband. Instead, you went back to England, got a flat and tried to disassociate yourself with America in general. You continued your career as an actress and began working for the BBC, doing some shows for ITV and a film for Paramount.

You had been back in England for four years when you landed the role of The Doctor on Doctor Who, a favourite show of yours growing up. You were absolutely ecstatic and filming had been completed for the first series with you in it within six months.

But now, you had to say goodbye to the role as you had just filmed the regeneration scene. Little did you know that this would be Stephen’s motivation to find you.

Since you had left without any note whatsoever, Stephen had assumed that you had died or never wanted to see him again, but that all changed when he saw that episode…

Peter sat in the Avengers common room in the tower watching Doctor Who on BBC America. It was the airing of the final episode of the season and the regeneration of The Doctor. It was the end of the episode and The Doctor (you) was in the middle of a monologue when Stephen walked into the room, seeing you on the screen and hearing your voice for the first time in years.

“Time’s up for me, isn’t it, girl?” You said to the TARDIS. “We’ve had fun, huh? Cybermen, Daleks… Just promise me one thing. Whoever the next Doctor is, keep ‘em in check, don’t let the next one do anything stupid… And one last, very important thing…” the doctor turned to the camera, “run fast, have fun, be brave enough to make a change and…” she looked directly into the camera, “Don’t forget about me.”

You gave a sad smile before regeneration began, lasted a few moments, and ended, the next doctor now onscreen.

Peter and the other Avengers were holding back tears as the credits rolled.

“I don’t want another Doctor.” Peter muttered as Stephen left the room, tears falling.

That’s when Stephen began searching. He googled your name before realising that you were still using ‘Strange’ as your last name. He called anyone he could think of, and when he was ready to give up, he phoned your sister, who gave him your address.

Eventually, he found you. He created a portal and appeared in front of the beach house you were living in on the shoreline of Lincolnshire. He walked up to the front door and knocked, half waiting for a maid or a butler to answer.

Inside the house, you sat, a wine glass in hand, the bottle nearly empty, silence filling the room. You had found that the only way you could take your mind off of Stephen was with immeasurable amounts of red wine and vodka. The house was an absolute state, since you hadn’t bothered to hoover in the last three weeks, you hadn’t polished the wooden drawers or the tv unit and about the only thing you had done was the washing up, but even that had to get to the point where you had nothing clean to eat or drink from. Shoes littered the hallway, everything from stilettos to your favourite white converse.

“Two minutes!” You yelled.

Begrudgingly, you stood up and began quickly throwing your shoes in your bedroom and putting the wine bottle and glass in the kitchen. You made yourself look vaguely presentable before you answered the door.

Your eyes widened when you saw Stephen standing in front of you, a cape on his shoulders. It took everything you had not to slam the door and start crying. Instead, you steeled your nerves and squared your shoulders. “Stephen, what’re you doing here?” Your resolve broke nearly as quickly as you had created it. You leaned against the wall and looked at him with tired eyes.

“I saw your show. Doctor Who, the last episode…”

“Did you like it?”

“Yeah, I did...”

“You didn’t answer my question, Stephen.” You said, letting him in before you both went into the kitchen.

“Honestly? I thought you wanted nothing to do with me after what happened. I thought you’d just… cast me aside. I mean, come on, what self respecting twenty four year old would want to be with someone who’s both fifteen years older than them and was utterly useless?”

You put your hands on his chest before sliding one up into his hair. “Me. That’s who. You shouldn’t have assumed that, Stephen. When I married you, I said I’d be here for you whatever happened. So, guess what?”

“What?” Stephen smirked, knowing exactly where this was going.

“You’re stuck with me, whether you like it or not.”

“You really mean that, don’t you?”

“Yeah. And besides I think I may have an alcohol problem.” You say, not meeting his eyes for the last part of it.

From then, you and Stephen were together again and were both hell bent on making up for lost time.

[bryonyashaw]

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𝙎𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙮𝙘𝙖𝙮 -

The family and I had a lovely time in the sun (and rain) while staying in the caravan at (was has become) one of our annual summer activities.

There was a music festival on too - where my mum grinded up against a fake Robbie Williams - called Grange Fest so it was a whole afternoon and evening of various tribute acts and a DJ Set! Always fun to watch. Other activities wise we went to a kids disco, there was a nearby park to play in, Arcade and a little water area with sand to keep them busy.

On site at The Grange there is a range of on-park activities, including fishing and golf, as well as cafes, bars and even take-away restaurants.

The kids weren't fussed by the evening entertainment as by 8pm after a long day playing they were done in but loved being able to have the freedom to play safely in the sand and park. Featured here are some happy photos but it wouldn't be a typical staycay without kids having their tantrums!

📌 𝘈𝘭𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘙𝘰𝘢𝘥, 𝘔𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘦.

[ultimate-torchwood-monthly]

[usafphantom2]

25th July, 1939. First flight of the twin engined Avro Manchester bomber at Ringway. Due to the RAF’s urgent need for modern aircraft, an initial order had been placed for the type before the two prototypes flew, but its entry into service was delayed by a Luftwaffe raid against Avro’s Trafford Park factory. The first operational sortie flown by Manchesters eventually took place against Brest in February 1941.

During the aircraft’s development, it had become clear that its complex Rolls Royce Vulture powerplants were not only chronically unreliable, but failed to produce their designed performance. Manchesters struggled to reach altitudes above 10,000 feet, leaving them vulnerable to flak and fighters, and proved incapable of flying for any distance on one engine. Around 30 aircraft are believed to have been lost due to engine failure during the type’s brief career.

With various modifications improving reliability during 1941, it’s possible that the problems with the Vulture could have been resolved in time, but it was not to be. With Rolls-Royce now fully focused on the Merlin engine, it was decided to test a new variant of the Manchester, which itself was a fundamentally sound design, powered by four of these instead. This would ultimately result in the Avro Lancaster, which shared many of its predecessor’s components.

Production of the Manchester was curtailed after only 200 had been produced; more than half were lost on operations or in accidents. The type flew its final sortie with Bomber Command in June 1942, serving on for a few more months as a conversion trainer for the Lancaster.

Pictured:

1) Avro Manchester first prototype at Ringway. A central tailfin was soon introduced to correct instability. This would be removed on later production examples, which featured the larger outer fins used on the Lancaster.

📷 baesystems.com

2) Manchester Mark I of 207 Squadron in flight, showing the early tail configuration.

📷 IWM CH 17291

3) Manchester IA flying over Lincolnshire in November 1941. The lineage to the Lancaster is clear in this image.

📷 IWM CH 3890

4) A 2000lb bomb about to be loaded into an Avro Manchester, probably of No. 207 Squadron, circa April 1942. The capacious bomb bay of the type would prove an asset for its successor.

📷 IWM HU 107781

[paralleljulieverse]

Come taste the wine... : 70th anniversary of Julie Andrews's 'cabaret debut' at the Café Dansant, Cleethorpes, 3 performances Easter, 14-17 April, 1954

This week, seventy years ago, Julie Andrews made her official 'cabaret debut' at the Café Dansant in Cleethorpes. While not a major milestone in the traditional sense -- and one that seldom features in standard Andrews biographies -- the Cleethorpes appearance was nevertheless a significant event in the star's early career.

For a start, it was Julie's first appearance in cabaret -- the theatrical genre that is, not the Broadway musical which is a whole other Julieverse story. Characterised by sophisticated nightclub settings with adult audiences watching intimate performances, cabaret emerged in fin-de-siècle Paris before expanding to other European cities such as Berlin and Amsterdam (Appignanesi, 2004). Imported to Britain in the interwar years, cabaret offered a more urbane, adult alternative to the domestic traditions of English music hall and variety with their family audiences and jolly communal spirit (Nott, 2002, p. 120ff).

Julie's debut in cabaret was, thus, a significant step in her professional evolution towards a more mature image and repertoire. By 1954, Julie was 18, and well beyond the child star tag of her earlier years. Under the guidance of manager, Charles Tucker, there was a calculated strategy to reshape her stardom towards adulthood.

The maturation of Julie's image had begun in earnest the previous summer with Cap and Belles (1953), a touring revue that Tucker produced as a showcase for Julie, comedian Max Wall, and several other acts under his management. Cap and Belles afforded Julie the opportunity to shine with two big solos and a number of dance sequences. Much was made in show publicity of Julie's new "grown up" look, including the fact that she was wearing "her first off-the-shoulder evening dress" ('Her First Grown-Up Dress', 1953, p. 4). The Cleethorpes cabaret was a further step in this process of transformative 'adulting'. Indeed, it was something of a Cap and Belles redux. Not only was Max Wall back as headline co-star, Julie even wore the same 'grown up' strapless evening gown. In keeping with a cabaret format, though, Julie was provided a longer solo set where she sang a mix of classical and contemporary pop songs including "My Heart is Singing", "Belle of the Ball", "Always", and "Long Ago and Far Away" ('Cabaret opens', 1954, p. 4). That Julie should have chosen Cleethorpes for her cabaret debut might seem odd to contemporary readers. Today, this small town on the north Lincolnshire coast is largely regarded as a somewhat faded, out-of-the-way seaside resort. In its heyday of the mid-twentieth century, however, Cleethorpes was a vibrant tourist hub that attracted tens of thousands of holidaymakers each year (Dowling, 2005). With several large theatres and entertainment venues, Cleethorpes was also an important stop in the summertime variety circuit, drawing many of the era’s big stars and entertainment acts (Morton, 1986).

The Café Dansant was one of Cleethorpes' most iconic nighttime venues, celebrated for its elegant suppertime cabarets and salon orchestras. Opening in the 1930s, the Café was a particularly popular haunt during the war and post-war era when servicemen from nearby bases danced the night away with locals and visiting holidaymakers to the sound of touring jazz bands and crooners (Dowling, 2005, p. 129; Ruston, 2019).

By 1954, the Café was starting to show its age, and incoming new management decided to shutter the venue for several months to undertake a luxury refurbishment (‘Café Dansant closed', 1954, p. 3). A gala re-opening was set for the Easter weekend of April 1954, just in time for the start of the high season (‘Café Dansant opens', 1954, p. 8). Opening festivities for the Café kicked off with a lavish five hour dinner cabaret on the evening of Wednesday, 14 April. Julie was “one of the world famous cabaret stars" booked for the gala event, and she received considerable promotional build-up in both local and national press (‘Café Dansant opens', 1954, p. 8). There was even a widely circulating PR photo of Julie boarding the train to Cleethorpes at London's Kings Cross station. In the end, Max Wall was unable to appear due to illness, and Alfred Marks -- another Tucker artist and former variety co-star of Julie's (Look In, 1952) -- stepped in at short notice. Rounding out the bill were several other minor acts, including American dance duo, Bobby Dwyer and Trixie; novelty entertainers, Ruby and Charles Wlaat; and magician Ericson who doubled as cabaret emcee.

Commentators judged the evening a resounding success. The "Cafe Dansant has got away to a flying start, after probably the biggest opening night ever seen in Cleethorpes," effused one newspaper report (Sandbox, 1954, p.4). Special mention was made of Julie who “received a great reception when she sang a selection of old and new songs, accompanied at the piano by her mother” (‘'Café Dansant reopening’, 1954, p. 6). 

Following her performance, Julie joined the Mayor of Cleethorpes, Mr Albert Winters, in a cake-cutting ceremony and mayoral dance. Decades later, Winters recalled how he still “savour[ed] the memory of snatching a dance with the young girl destined to be a star… [S]he seemed very slim and frail,” he reminisced, “but she was a great dancer and I thoroughly enjoyed myself” (Morton, 1986, p. 15).

Julie stayed on in Cleethorpes for two more performances on Thursday 15 and Saturday 17 April respectively, before returning to London with her mother on Easter Sunday, 18 April. The very next day she commenced formal rehearsals for Mountain Fire, Julie's first dramatic 'straight' play and another step in her professional pivot to more adult content (--also, time permitting, the subject of a possible future blogpost).

A final noteworthy aspect about the Cleethorpes appearance is that it was during this weekend that Julie made the momentous decision to go to America to star in The Boy Friend. In what has become part of theatrical lore, Julie had been offered the plum role of Polly Browne in the show's Broadway production sometime in February or March of 1954 while she was appearing in Cinderella at the London Palladium. To the American producers’ astonishment --- and manager Tucker’s horror -- Julie was initially reluctant to accept, fearful of leaving her home and family. She prevaricated for weeks. Finally, while she was in Cleethorpes, Julie was given an ultimatum and told she had to make her decision.

In her 1958 serialised memoir for Woman magazine, Julie recounts:

“Mummie and I went to Cleethorpes to do a concert. It was a miserable wet day. From our hotel I watched the dark sea pounding the shore with great grey waves. I was called to the downstairs telephone. “Julie,” said Uncle Charles [Tucker]‘s voice from London, “they can’t wait any longer. You’ll have to make your mind up NOW.” I burst into tears. “I’ll go Uncle,” I sobbed, “if you’ll make it only one year’s contract instead of two. Only one year, please.” … Against everyone’s judgment and wishes I got my way…None of us knew that if I’d signed for two [years], then I should never have been free to do Eliza in My Fair Lady. And never known all the happiness and success it has brought me” (Andrews, 1958, p. 46).

The Cleethorpes ultimatum even found its way into an advertising campaign that Julie did for Basildon Bond stationery in 1958/59, albeit with the telephone call converted into a letter for enhanced marketing purposes. Framed as a choice between going to America and the “trip [that] changed my life” or staying at home in England “and go[ing] on in pantomime, concerts, and radio shows—the mixture as before,” the advert highlighted the “sliding door” gravity of that fateful Cleethorpes weekend (Basildon Bond, 1958). What would the course of Julie's life been like had she said no to Broadway and opted to remain in the UK?

It is a speculative refrain that Julie and others have made frequently over the years. “If I’d stayed in England I would probably have got no further than pantomime leads,” she mused in a 1970 interview (Franks, 1970, p. 32). Or, more dramatically: “Had I remained in London and not appeared in the Broadway production of The Boy Friend…who knows, I might be starving in some chorus line today” (Hirschorn, 1968).

In all seriousness, it's doubtful that a British-based Julie would have faded into professional oblivion. As biographer John Cottrell quips: "that golden voice would always have kept her out of the chorus” (Cottrell, 1968, p. 71). Nevertheless, Julie's professional options in Britain during that era would have been greatly diminished. And she certainly wouldn't have achieved the level of international superstardom enabled by Broadway and Hollywood. Who knows, in a parallel 'sliding door' universe, our Julie might have gone on playing cabarets and end-of-pier shows in Cleethorpes...

Sources

Andrews, J. (1958). 'So much to sing about, part 3.' Woman. 17 May, 15-18, 45-48.

Appignanesi, L. (2004). The cabaret. Revised edn. Yale University Press.

Basildon Bond. (1958). 'I had 24 hours to decide, says Julie Andrews'. [Advertisement]. Daily Mirror. 6 October, p. 4.

'Cabaret opens Café Dansant." (1954). Grimsby Daily Telegraph. 15 April, p. 4.

‘Café Dansant closed.' (1954). Grimsby Evening Telegraph. 28 January, p. 3.

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[rocketrecord]

From Jackie issues 497 and 498, published 14th and 21st of July 1973. Transcription under the cut because why not

PART ONE: THE first time I met Elton John's mother, Sheila, she was busy making baked beans on toast for everyone who was visiting his house, Hercules, on the Wentworth estate just outside London.

Elton quickly explained that baked beans on toast, no matter how successful he was these days, was still one of his favourite meals!

Elton's mother is now moving to a house nearby, so she doesn't have to travel so far to see him.

Also when Elton is away, as he frequently is these days, his mother always stays in his home to look after it for him.

Sheila remembers her son's expertise at cooking when he was younger. She may now still cook him a quick beans on toast, and John Reid his manager and friend may make the grander meals, but Elton used to be and still is an expert at baking.

"When he was at school and I was out at work I often used to come home and find the kitchen full of flour and pots and pans, and there were all these cakes!"

Elton's mother remembers too that he first started playing the piano at an amazingly early age.

"He was playing all the pop tunes when he was three. We used to send him to bed, then he'd get up and play at family parties. The funny thing is that I can't play the piano myself, but my father played old military music

"When he was a bit irritated as a baby my husband would let him beat on the piano -Elton's little legs used to be hanging from the piano stool! In those days, of course, you weren't allowed to perform in public before you were 13 years old. I think without that law he could have been a child star. He could have won several talent shows I'm sure.

"It was when he was about eight years-old that he lost interest in music totally because he had the wrong teacher, but I managed to find a new one when he was 10 or 11 years old and she let him play all the pop stuff. I think other people had been forcing him into the classics when all he wanted to do was play pop. It just seemed to go very, very well after that and he took an interest again."

Even now Elton's mother plays a part in his musical career.

He always plays me over tapes of new material that he and Bernie Taupin have put together, and asks me what I think would make the right single."

Elton has alwas been very close to his mother, and they were talking eagerly about the “grand opening” of his new swimming pool. The pool is beside his large lounge and has been almost a year in the making.

Sheila's favourite Elton John album? Appropriately it's called the Elton John album!

"I love sad music," she told me.

"'Elton's alwavs been a sensitive and thoughtful person, and this comes out in his songs-particularly on that album. I've always enjoyed a good cry at films and things.

Even her house was named after an Elton John song track, Hienton." It was gold lettered on wood and Sheila is so devoted to it, that it's being moved to her new home at the back of Elton's.

Another person in Elton's life is moving closer to him as well:

Bernie Taupin, the man who writes all the words in Elton's songs.

Until recently Bernie insisted on staying up at his little cottage in Lincolnshire but has now been persuaded to move nearer to Elton so they can work more easily.

When we met, Bernie and Elton were just preparing to go to France and record at the same chateau where they made their album Honky Chateau.

"There will be a lot more rock'n' roll on the next album." Elton assured me.

Elton always keeps a sense of humour when he's talking about himself.

I’m not exactly your thin. lean, lank pop star," he laughed. hated my hair when it was long. So I had it all cut short and just lately I've had some green streaks added to each side just above my ears.

I think that mould green and orange go together!

"I guess I see myself as cuddly - certainly not sexy! I imagine that's why the audiences never try to rip my clothes off. Mind you, it's lovely because I've always had. young fans, especially up North.”

Elton told me of a recent dinner he'd had with a hero of his--the famous American comedian Groucho Marx, who was one of the Marx Brothers, whose films are often seen on television. Groucho is the one with the large black hat, moustache and cigar and the funny walk.

"It was while I was over in California and was renting a house at Malibu Beach. He agreed to come to dinner and although it was 100 degrees outside, they said that as he was now an old man he'd want a log fire burning in-doors. So we had to light one.

"He sat down in the lounge in his coat and his beret and insisted on calling me John Elton. He was amazing - you never quite knew whether he was taking the mickey out of everything

"Then I also met another famous old screen star Mae West. She was incredible. She must be eighty if she's a day!"

At his home Elton keeps two dogs. Bruce, the alsatian and Brian, a spaniel, and he's bought his mother Sheila a Yorkshire terrier called Fanny.

Whenever you call there they're apt to come bounding in from the garden demanding attention-especially from Elton, because he has to be away from home so much, they like a lot of his time when he is there.

Usually when guests are at his house they have to be kept out of the way, but they were allowed to bound into the room on one big occasion recently. That was when David Cassidy, his lifelong friend Sam Hyman and Rod Stewart came to dinner.

"David has his own dogs," ex-plained Elton, "and he was delighted to meet mine. They immediately sensed he liked dogs and made a great fuss of him.”

Next Week: The dinner party with David and Rod.

PART TWO: THE pop dinner party of the year took place at Elton John's house 'Hercules? on the Wentworth estate in Surrey, just outside London.

There was Elton, and there was Rod Stewart and there was . . . David Cassidy!

It was Elton's idea to get all three pop stars together during David's recent tour. He'd met David in California last summer and the two singers have become close friends.

David's visit to Elton was the closest kept secret of his tour. And one of the biggest attractions was Elton's jukebox, which he keeps in his large games room at the front of the house. Elton keeps the jukebox stocked with the current top twenty in America and England as well as some golden oldies. And David especially liked playing those old Beatles favourites, like Love Me Do. Please, Please Me and Yellow Submarine.

Elton let me into a secret: "I had an idea during David's tour that it would be nice to join him up on stage and play the piano for him. It never worked out but I thought it was a way of showing him how much ! liked him and liked his work. A lot of people knock him but I think he's very talented.

However, Elton may yet write some songs for David.

"Now I've got a record company, which I've called Rocket Records. I'm producing and I've written a song for Kiki Dee. I'd always written for myself before, and now I'm starting to write for other people, I don't see why I shouldn't try and do something for David. In fact I've written three songs for Kiki, so Bernie, who writes the words, has had to imagine he's a girl for those songs!"

Rod Stewart had told Elton that he'd like to meet David so Elton thought the dinner would be a golden opportunity.

Another guest at the top level dinner party was David's friend since schooldays, Sam Hyman, who flew over to Britain for the last few days of the tour. Completing the party was Elton's friend and manager John Reid, who did all the cooking!

What was the menu? A good English meal of roast beef followed by strawberries and ice crear with coffee and pear brandy to finish. The guests had red wine with their main course. Elton says the evening was very high spirited with David not leaving until four in the morning!

"I think David is really great," said Elton.

"He really works as hard as a navvy, you know. He's certainly not an idiot. He knows me now, but when I first met him he was so paranoid: he'd shut himself in his house for a year and a half because he was scared to go out in case he got ripped to shreds!

"When he came down for dinner he was completely at home, playing records and joking although he was very tired because it was at the end of his tour. He did ask me to write something for him and I'd really like to.

"There is such an awful barrier because he is a pop star. You have either to be a heavy group like Led Zeppelin or a pop star.

But what people don't realise is that he's a very good musician. The reason why I'd have liked to have appeared with him is because I'd like to have made a gesture to show that I appreciate his talent. I hate these musical barriers in pop music.

Elton has been spending this month in America on holiday.

“I like to go out there to California for a rest once a year. I'lI probably see David again then, although he's started work on 'The Partridge Family' again which means he works eighteen hours a day- he has to go into the recording studios when he's finished up at the film set. As I said, he works amazingly hard.

"I love Los Angeles, just for a month.

I just sit by the pool, go surfing and once a day I go up to Sunset Strip and visit the most fabulous record shop in the world called Tower Records. It's like a warehouse and has all these piles of albums. It seems to have every record in the world, past and present.

"I mostly look for ridiculous things, spoken word records and things like that literally every day. I reckon to spend half an hour a day there. I think I hold the record for record buying there. 6,500 dollars worth in a day! That was on albums and tapes.

“I’ve got this record library at home and I fancy myself as an amateur dise jockey. I did the Noel Edmonds show last Christmas, Boxing Day actually and we did the show together. I really enjoyed that.

“I catalogue everything in my collection: cross filed and everything! I'm a terrible collector of things. Actually I'm the sort of person who's got 700 bottles of Marmite and the same of Windolene."

Elton remains one of the friendliest of pop stars. It is typical of him that he has befriended David Cassidy, because he knows that stardom can bring loneliness, and also jealousy from other musicians. He went out of his way to help David and the dinner invitation was typical, also the fact that he saw that Rod Stewart was there too.

When we met, Elton was wearing a plum velvet jacket with musical notes embroidered on it. He's known for his wild clothes: in fact he can be said to have been a leader in the brighter clothes approach to pop with his gigantic platform soles and heels, his dungarees, and now he promises the wildest pair of glasses ever seen on stage.

"They plug in and have the words ELTON across them in neon! I'd also like to get into funny things like padded suits. You see, I haven't really got the sexiest body in the world so I like to have comedy in my act.

"When I toured America last, I had a tap dancer called Legs Larry Smith who used to come on stage. He was the only person who kept me sane. I get terribly bored when things get too serious.

"I have a lady called Annie who makes all my clothes. I just tell her any ideas I have and she does some drawings for me to choose from."

On the little finger on his right hand he was wearing an enormous sparkling ring.

"That's what I call my Liberace ring. It was bought at Cartier's as a present for me and it's made of gold and diamonds. It's sparkly and it's fun!'

And that's just about how you could describe Elton himself!