1.
Music hall
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Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era circa 1850 and lasting until 1960. It involved a mixture of songs, comedy, speciality acts. The term is derived from a type of theatre or venue in which such entertainment took place and these theatres were designed chiefly so people could consume food and alcohol and smoke tobacco in the auditorium while the entertainment took place. This differed somewhat from the type of theatre, which until then seated the audience in stalls with a separate bar-room. By the mid-19th century, the halls cried out for many new, as a result, professional songwriters were enlisted to provide the music for a plethora of star performers, such as Marie Lloyd, Dan Leno, Little Tich, and George Leybourne. Music hall did not adopt its own unique style, the halls had recovered by the start of the First World War and were used to stage charity events in aid of the war effort. Music hall entertainment continued after the war, but became popular due to upcoming Jazz, Swing. Licensing restrictions had also changed, and drinking was banned from the auditorium, a new type of music hall entertainment had arrived, in the form of variety, and many music hall performers failed to make the transition. Deemed old fashioned and with the closure of many halls, music hall entertainment ceased, Music hall in London had its origins in entertainment provided in the new style saloon bars of public houses during the 1830s. These venues replaced earlier semi-rural amusements provided by fairs and suburban pleasure gardens such as Vauxhall Gardens and these latter became subject to urban development and became fewer and less popular. The saloon was a room where for a fee or a greater price at the bar, singing, dancing. The most famous London saloon of the days was the Grecian Saloon, established in 1825, at The Eagle,2 Shepherdess Walk. According to John Hollingshead, proprietor of the Gaiety Theatre, London, this establishment was the father and mother, later known as the Grecian Theatre, it was here that Marie Lloyd made her début at the age of 14 in 1884. It is still famous because of an English nursery rhyme, with the somewhat mysterious lyrics, Up and down the City Road In and out The Eagle Thats the way the money goesPop goes the weasel. Another famous song and supper room of this period was Evans Music-and-Supper Rooms,43 King Street, Covent Garden and this venue was also known as Evans Late Joys – Joy being the name of the previous owner. Other song and supper rooms included the Coal Hole in The Strand, the Cyder Cellars in Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, the music hall as we know it developed from such establishments during the 1850s and were built in and on the grounds of public houses. In a theatre, by contrast, the audience was seated in stalls, an exception to this rule was the Britannia Theatre, Hoxton which somehow managed to evade this regulation and served drinks to its customers. Though a theatre rather than a hall, this establishment later hosted music hall variety acts
2.
Juggling
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Juggling is a physical skill, performed by a juggler, involving the manipulation of objects for recreation, entertainment, art or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling, Juggling can be the manipulation of one object or many objects at the same time, using one or many hands. Jugglers often refer to the objects they juggle as props, the most common props are balls, clubs, or rings. Some jugglers use more dramatic objects such as knives, fire torches or chainsaws, the term juggling can also commonly refer to other prop-based manipulation skills, such as diabolo, devil sticks, poi, cigar boxes, contact juggling, hooping, yo-yo, and hat manipulation. The words juggling and juggler derive from the Middle English jogelen, there is also the Late Latin form joculare of Latin joculari, meaning to jest. In the 21st century, the term juggling usually refers to toss juggling, david Levinson and Karen Christensen describe juggling as the sport of tossing and catching or manipulating objects keeping them in constant motion. Juggling, like music, combines abstract patterns and mind-body coordination in a pleasing way, the earliest record of juggling is suggested in a panel from the 15th Beni Hasan tomb of an unknown Egyptian prince, showing female dancers and acrobats throwing balls. Juggling has been recorded in early cultures including Egyptian, Nabataean, Chinese, Indian, Greek, Roman, Norse, Aztec. Juggling in ancient China was an art performed by some warriors, one such warrior was Xiong Yiliao, whose juggling of nine balls in front of troops on a battlefield reportedly caused the opposing troops to flee without fighting, resulting in a complete victory. In Europe, juggling was an acceptable diversion until the decline of the Roman Empire, Jugglers in this era would only perform in marketplaces, streets, fairs, or drinking houses. They would perform short, humorous and bawdy acts and pass a hat or bag among the audience for tips, some kings and noblemen’s bards, fools, or jesters would have been able to juggle or perform acrobatics, though their main skills would have been oral. In 1768, Philip Astley opened the first modern circus, a few years later, he employed jugglers to perform acts along with the horse and clown acts. Since then, jugglers have been associated with circuses, in the early 19th century, troupes from Asia, such as the famous Indian Jugglers referred to by William Hazlitt, arrived to tour Britain, Europe and parts of America. In the 19th century, variety and music hall theatres became more popular, performers started specializing in juggling, separating it from other kinds of performance such as sword swallowing and magic. The Gentleman Juggler style was established by German jugglers such as Salerno, rubber processing developed, and jugglers started using rubber balls. Previously, juggling balls were made from balls of twine, stuffed leather bags, wooden spheres, solid or inflatable rubber balls meant that bounce juggling was possible. Inflated rubber balls made ball spinning easier and more readily accessible, soon in North America, vaudeville theatres employed jugglers, often hiring European performers. In the early to mid-20th century, variety and vaudeville shows decreased in popularity due to competition from motion picture theatres, radio and television, Music and comedy transferred very easily to radio, but juggling could not
3.
Pimlico
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Pimlico /ˈpɪmlᵻkoʊ/ is a small area within central London in the City of Westminster. Like Belgravia, to which it was built as an extension, Pimlico is known for its garden squares. At Pimlicos heart is a grid of streets laid down by the planner Thomas Cubitt beginning in 1825. The area has over 350 Grade II listed buildings and several Grade II* listed churches, in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the Manor of Ebury was divided up and leased by the Crown to servants or favourites. In 1623, James I sold the freehold of Ebury for £1,151 and 15 shillings, the land was sold on several more times, until it came into the hands of heiress Mary Davies in 1666. Marys dowry not only included The Five Fields of modern-day Pimlico and Belgravia, understandably, she was much pursued but in 1677, at the age of twelve, married Sir Thomas Grosvenor. The Grosvenors were a family of Norman descent long seated at Eaton Hall in Cheshire who until this auspicious marriage were, through the development and good management of this land the Grosvenors acquired enormous wealth. At some point in the seventeenth or early eighteenth century. While its origins are disputed, it is clearly of foreign derivation, supporting this etymology, Rev. Brewer describes the area as a district of public gardens much frequented on holidays. According to tradition, it received its name from Ben Pimlico and his tea-gardens, however, were near Hoxton, and the road to them was termed Pimlico Path, so that what is now called Pimlico was so named from the popularity of the Hoxton resort. In 1825, Thomas Cubitt was contracted by Lord Grosvenor to develop Pimlico, the land up to this time had been marshy but was reclaimed using soil excavated during the construction of St Katharine Docks. Cubitt developed Pimlico as a grid of white stucco terraces. The largest and most opulent houses were built along St Georges Drive and Belgrave Road, lupus Street contained similarly grand houses, as well as shops and, until the early twentieth century, a hospital for women and children. Smaller-scale properties, typically of three storeys, line the side streets, an 1877 newspaper article described Pimlico as genteel, sacred to professional men… not rich enough to luxuriate in Belgravia proper, but rich enough to live in private houses. Its inhabitants were more lively than in Kensington… and yet a cut above Chelsea, although the area was dominated by the well-to-do middle and upper-middle classes as late as Booths 1889 Map of London Poverty, parts of Pimlico are said to have declined significantly by the 1890s. Through the late century, Pimlico saw the construction of several Peabody Estates, charitable housing projects designed to provide affordable. Proximity to the Houses of Parliament made Pimlico a centre of political activity, prior to 1928, the Labour Party and Trades Union Congress shared offices on Eccleston Square, and it was here in 1926 that the general strike was organised. Completed in 1937, it became popular with MPs and public servants
4.
Harry Lauder
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Sir Henry Harry Lauder was a Scottish music hall and vaudeville theatre singer and comedian, and a substantial landowner. He was perhaps best known for his long-standing hit I Love a Lassie and he was described by Sir Winston Churchill as Scotlands greatest ever ambassador. He became a worldwide figure promoting images like the kilt. Other songs followed, including Roamin in the Gloamin, A Wee Deoch-an-Doris, by 1911, Lauder had become the highest-paid performer in the world, and was the first Scottish artist to sell a million records. He raised vast amounts of money for the war effort during World War I and he went into semi-retirement in the mid-1930s, but briefly emerged to entertain troops in World War II. By the late-1940s he was suffering from periods of ill-health. John Lauder, was a descendent of the barons, the Lauders of the Bass. Lauders father moved to Newbold, Derbyshire in early 1882 to take up a job designing china, upon his death, Isabella, left short of money, moved the family to Arbroath. Education beyond the age of 11 then requiring payment, Harry worked part-time at the flax mill to fund that. On 19 June 1891, at age 21, Lauder married Ann, daughter of James Vallance, Lauder often sang to the miners in Hamilton who encouraged him to perform in local music halls. While singing in nearby Larkhall, he received 5 shillings—the first time he was paid for singing and he received further engagements including a weekly go-as-you please night held by Mrs. Christina Baylis at her Scotia Music Hall/Metropole Theatre in Glasgow. She advised him to experience by touring music halls around the country with a concert party. The tour allowed him to quit the coal mines and become a professional singer, Lauder concentrated his repertoire on comedic routines and songs of Scotland and Ireland. By 1894 he had turned professional and performed local characterisations at small, Scottish and northern English music halls, but had ceased the repertoire by 1900. In March of that year, Lauder travelled to London and reduced the heavy dialect of his act which according to a biographer, Dave Russell and it was during this time that he became a Freemason. He was initiated on 28 January 1897 in Lodge Dramatic, No.571 and he remained an active Freemason for the rest of his adult life. Lauder then made a switch from music hall to variety theatre, the following year, he performed a private show before Edward VII at Sandringham, and in 1911, he again toured the United States where he commanded $1,000 a night. In 1912, he was top of the bill at Britains first ever Royal Command Performance, in front of King George V, during the First World War Lauder promoted recruitment into the services and starred in many concerts for troops at home and on the western front
5.
Burns and Allen
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Burns and Allen was an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife, Gracie Allen. They worked together as a comedy team that entertained vaudeville, film, radio. The duo met in 1922 and married in 1926, Burns was the straight man and Allen was a silly, addle-headed woman. The duo starred in a number of movies including Lambchops, The Big Broadcast, after their radio shows cancellation, Burns and Allen reemerged on television with a popular situation comedy, which ran from 1950 to 1958. Burns and Allens radio show was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 1994 and their TV series received a total of 11 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and produced what TV Guide ranked No.56 on its 1997 list of the 100 greatest episodes of all time. Burns wrote most of the material and played the straight man, Allen played a silly, addle-headed woman, a role often attributed to the Dumb Dora stereotype common in early 20th-century vaudeville comedy. Early on, the team had played the roles until they noticed that the audience was laughing at Gracies straight lines. In later years, each attributed their success to the other, the Burns and Allen team was not an overnight sensation. We were a good act, Burns said, but we were not headliners or stars or featured attractions. We were on the bill with them, there would be a star or two stars and a featured attraction, and then we would come — fourth billing in an eight-act show. Their career changed direction when they made their first film, in the early days of talking pictures, the studios eagerly hired actors who knew how to deliver dialogue or songs. The most prolific of these studios was Warner Bros. whose Vitaphone Varieties shorts captured vaudeville headliners of the 1920s on film, Burns and Allen earned a reputation as a reliable disappointment act. So it went with their film debut and they were last-minute replacements for another act and ran through their patter-and-song routine in Lambchops. After a restoration, the film was released on DVD in October 2007, Paramount Pictures used its East Coast studio to film New York-based stage and vaudeville stars. Eddie Cantor, Fred Allen, Ethel Merman and Smith and Dale were among the top acts seen in Paramount shorts, in 1932, Paramount produced an all-star musical comedy, The Big Broadcast, featuring the nations hottest radio personalities. Burns and Allen were recruited, and made such an impression that they continued to make guest appearances in Paramount features through 1937, most of these used the Big Broadcast formula of an all-star comedy cast. In 1935 the team starred in a pair of low-budget features, Here Comes Cookie. At RKO, Fred Astaire succeeded in his efforts to make a musical feature without Ginger Rogers, and their names appeared with Astaires before the title
6.
Wilson, Keppel and Betty
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Wilson, Keppel and Betty formed a popular British music hall and vaudeville act in the middle decades of the 20th century. They capitalised on the fashion for Ancient Egyptian imagery following the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, the sand dance that formed the highlight of their act was a parody of postures from Egyptian tomb paintings, combined with references to Arabic costume. The dance itself was a routine performed on a layer of sand spread on the stage to create a rhythmic scratching with their shuffling feet. The act was performed to the familiar Egyptian Ballet, by Alexandre Luigini. Jack Wilson was born in Warrington in Lancashire as John William Wilson, during World War I Wilson served with the Royal Navy following which he travelled to Australia, where he joined Colleanos Circus in 1920. Joe Keppel was born in County Cork in Ireland as John Joseph Keppel, in 1912 he joined the Royal Navy, but was discharged after 5 months as being unfit. After making his way to Australia he joined the Royal Australian Navy in 1914 and was discharged as unfit after almost two years, on travelling to Australia he also joined Colleanos Circus, where he teamed up with Jack Wilson. In 1920 the duo travelled to Canada where they toured in a tap dancing act. By 1928 they were performing as The Bus Boys and in this year Kansas-born chorus girl Betty Knox joined the act at Des Moines, Iowa. She is said to have married mechanic Donald Knox in 1923 and to have divorced him after a brief marriage and their daughter Jean Patricia Knox was born in 1923 in Salina, Kansas. She was to be brought up by her grandparents for the next 14 years while her mother worked firstly in a line and then with Wilson. The act came to Britain to appear at the London Palladium for a few weeks in 1932 and she was among the first to report the suicide of Hermann Göring. Their Cleopatras Nightmare routine was performed in 1936 in Berlin and condemned by Joseph Goebbels as indecent, in the UK they were regarded as one of the best speciality acts – acts designed to balance and support the star of a variety programme. Typically these acts would last about ten minutes, and be repeated twelve times a week in variety theatres all over the country, a fine example of the Cleopatras Nightmare routine can be seen in the Harold Baim film Starlight Serenade. Knoxs daughter, Patsy Knox, took over as Betty in 1942, the trio, in its various line-ups, appeared at the Royal Variety Performance in 1933,1945 and 1947. In 1950 they appeared at the London Palladium on the bill as Frank Sinatra. They toured all over the world, performing at shows in London, Europe, Las Vegas, India and they finally retired in 1962 after a performance in Great Yarmouth. Betty Knox died in 1963 at her home in Düsseldorf in Germany, Jack Wilson moved into Brinsworth House, a retirement home for showbusiness personalities, where he died in 1970
7.
Pantomime
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Pantomime, is a type of musical comedy stage production, designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, generally during the Christmas and New Year season and, to a lesser extent. It is a form of theatre, in which the audience is expected to sing along with certain parts of the music. Pantomime has a theatrical history in Western culture dating back to classical theatre. It developed partly from the 16th century commedia dellarte tradition of Italy, as well as other European and British stage traditions, such as 17th-century masques, an important part of the pantomime, until the late 19th century, was the harlequinade. Outside Britain the word pantomime is used to mean miming. The Roman pantomime drew upon the Greek tragedy and other Greek genres from its inception, although the art was instituted in Rome, the English word came to be applied to the performance itself. Music was supplied by flute and the pulse of an iron-shod shoe, performances might be in a private household, with minimal personnel, or else lavish theatrical productions involving a large orchestra and chorus and sometimes an ancillary actor. The dancer danced all the roles, relying on masks, stock poses and gestures, Pantomime differed from mime by its more artistic nature and relative lack of farce and coarse humour, though these were not absent from some productions. Precursors of pantomime also included the masque, which grew in pomp, the development of English pantomime was also strongly influenced by the continental commedia dellarte, a form of popular theatre that arose in Italy in the Early Modern Period. Each scenario used some of the stock characters. These included the innamorati, the vecchi such as Pantalone, and zanni such as Arlecchino, Colombina, Scaramouche, Italian masque performances in the 17th century sometimes included the Harlequin character. In the 17th century, adaptations of the characters became familiar in English entertainments. From these, the standard English harlequinade developed, depicting the eloping lovers Harlequin and Columbine, pursued by the girls father Pantaloon and his comic servants Clown, in English versions, by the 18th century, Harlequin became the central figure and romantic lead. The basic plot of the harlequinade remained essentially the same for more than 150 years, tavern Bilkers, by John Weaver, the dancing master at Drury Lane, is cited as the first pantomime produced on the English stage. The same year he produced a pantomime on the subject of Perseus, after this, pantomime was regular feature at Drury Lane. In 1717 at Lincolns Inn, actor and manager John Rich introduced Harlequin into the theatres pantomimes under the name of Lun and he gained great popularity for his pantomimes, especially beginning with his 1724 production of The Necromancer, or, History of Dr. Faustus. These early pantomimes were silent, or dumb show, performances consisting of only dancing, spoken drama was only allowed in London only in the two patent theatres until Parliament changed this restriction in 1843
8.
Puss in Boots
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The oldest record of written history dates from Italian author Giovanni Francesco Straparola, who included it in his The Facetious Nights of Straparola in XIV–XV. Another version was published in 1634, by Giambattista Basile with the title Cagliuso, the tale was written in French at the close of the seventeenth century by Charles Perrault, a retired civil servant and member of the Académie française. The book was an instant success and remains popular, Perraults Histoires has had considerable impact on world culture. Puss in Boots has provided inspiration for composers, choreographers, the cat appears in the third act pas de caractère of Tchaikovskys ballet The Sleeping Beauty, for example, and makes appearances in other media, most famously the sequels to the animated film Shrek. Puss in Boots is a pantomime in the UK. The tale opens with the third and youngest son of a miller receiving his inheritance—a cat, at first, the youngest son laments, as the eldest brother gains the mill, and the middle brother gets the mules. The feline is no cat, however, but one who requests. Determined to make his masters fortune, the cat bags a rabbit in the forest and presents it to the king as a gift from his master, the cat continues making gifts of game to the king for several months. One day, the king decides to take a drive with his daughter, the cat persuades his master to remove his clothes and enter the river which their carriage passes. The cat disposes of his masters clothing beneath a rock, as the royal coach nears, the cat begins calling for help in great distress. When the king stops to investigate, the cat tells him that his master the Marquis has been bathing in the river and robbed of his clothing. The king has the man brought from the river, dressed in a splendid suit of clothes, and seated in the coach with his daughter. The cat then happens upon a castle inhabited by an ogre who is capable of transforming himself into a number of creatures, the ogre displays his ability by changing into a lion, frightening the cat, who then tricks the ogre into changing into a mouse. The cat then pounces upon the mouse and devours it, the king arrives at the castle that formerly belonged to the ogre, and, impressed with the bogus Marquis and his estate, gives the lad the princess in marriage. Thereafter, the cat enjoys life as a lord who runs after mice only for his own amusement. The Italian translation by Carlo Collodi notes that the tale gives useful advice if you happen to be a cat or a Marquis of Carabas and this is the theme in France, but other versions of this theme exist in Asia, Africa, and South America. Perraults The Master Cat, or Puss in Boots is the most renowned tale in all of Western folklore of the animal as helper, however, the trickster cat was not Perraults invention. In the Panchatantra, a collection of Hindu tales from the fifth century A. D. a tale follows a cat who fares much less well than Perraults Puss as he attempts to make his fortune in a kings palace
9.
Gracie Fields
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Dame Gracie Fields, DBE was an English actress, singer and comedian and star of both cinema and music hall. She spent the part of her life on the isle of Capri. Fields was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to entertainment in 1938, Fields was born Grace Stansfield, over a fish and chip shop owned by her grandmother, Sarah Bamford, in Molesworth Street, Rochdale, Greater Manchester. She made her first stage appearance as a child in 1905, joining childrens repertory theatre groups such as Haleys Garden of Girls and her two sisters, Edith and Betty and brother, Tommy, all went on to appear on stage, but Gracie was the most successful. Fields met the comedian and impresario Archie Pitt and they began working together, Pitt gave Fields champagne on her 18th birthday, and wrote in an autograph book to her that he would make her a star. Pitt began to manage her career and they began a relationship and their first revue was called Yes I Think So in 1915 and the two continued to tour Britain together until 1924. That year they appeared in the revue Mr Tower of London, with other shows By Request, Its A Bargain, Fields and Holloway first worked together on her film Sing As We Go in 1934 and the two remained close friends for the rest of their lives. Fields came to public notice in Mr Tower of London. Her career accelerated from this point with legitimate dramatic performances and the beginning of a recording career, at one point, Fields was playing three shows a night in Londons West End. She appeared in the Pitt production SOS with Gerald Du Maurier, Fields most famous song, which became her theme, Sally, was worked into the title of her first film, Sally in Our Alley, which was a major box office hit. She went on to several films initially in Britain and later in the United States. Regardless, she never enjoyed the process of performing without a live audience and she tried to opt out of filming, before director Monty Banks persuaded her otherwise, landing her the lucrative Hollywood deal. Fields demanded that the four films be filmed in Britain and not Hollywood, a reference to two other of her well-known songs, Walter, Walter, and Its the Biggest Aspidistra in the World. The famous opera star Luisa Tetrazzini heard her murdering an aria, Gracie decided to stay where I knew I belonged. She donated her house, The Towers,53 The Bishops Avenue, London, in 1939, she became seriously ill with cervical cancer. The public sent over 250,000 goodwill messages and she retired to her villa on Capri, after she recovered, she recorded a very special 78rpm record simply called Gracies Thanks, in which she thanks the public for the many cards and letters she received while in hospital. During World War II, she paid for all servicemen/women to travel free on public transport within the boundaries of Rochdale, Fields also helped Rochdale F. C. in the 1930s when they were struggling to pay fees and buy sports equipment. In 1933 she set up the Gracie Fields Childrens Home and Orphanage at Peacehaven and she kept this until 1967, when the home was no longer needed
10.
Laurel and Hardy
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Laurel and Hardy were a comedy double act during the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema. The team was composed of thin Englishman Stan Laurel and heavyset American Oliver Hardy and they became well known during the late 1920s through the mid-1940s for their slapstick comedy, with Laurel playing the clumsy and childlike friend of the pompous Hardy. The duos signature tune is known variously as The Cuckoo Song, Ku-Ku and it was played over the opening credits of their films and has become as emblematic of the duo as their bowler hats. Prior to their being teamed up, both actors had well-established film careers, Laurel had appeared in over 50 films while Hardy had been in more than 250 productions. The two comedians had previously worked together as cast members on the film The Lucky Dog in 1921. However, they were not a team at that time and it was not until 1926 that they appeared in a movie short together. Laurel and Hardy officially became a team in 1927 when they appeared together in the silent short film Putting Pants on Philip and they remained with the Roach studio until 1940 and then appeared in eight B movie comedies for 20th Century Fox and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer from 1941 to 1945. After finishing their movie commitments at the end of 1944, they concentrated on performing in shows and embarked on a music hall tour of England, Ireland. In 1950, before retiring from the screen, they made their last film and they appeared as a team in 107 films, starring in 32 short silent films,40 short sound films, and 23 full-length feature films. They also made 12 guest or cameo appearances included the Galaxy of Stars promotional film of 1936. On December 1,1954, the pair made one American television appearance when they were surprised and interviewed by Ralph Edwards on his live NBC-TV program This Is Your Life. Since the 1930s, the works of Laurel and Hardy have been released in numerous theatrical reissues, television revivals, 8-mm and 16-mm home movies, feature-film compilations, in 2005, they were voted the seventh-greatest comedy act of all time by a UK poll of fellow comedians. The official Laurel and Hardy appreciation society is known as The Sons of the Desert which was named after a fictitious fraternal society featured in the Laurel, Stan Laurel was born Arthur Stanley Jefferson in Ulverston, Lancashire, England into a theatrical family. His father Arthur Joseph Jefferson was an entrepreneur and theatre owner in northern England and Scotland who. Arthur Jefferson secured Laurel his first acting job with the theatrical company of Levy and Cardwell. In 1909, Laurel was employed by Britains leading comedy impresario Fred Karno as a supporting actor, Laurel said of Karno, There was no one like him. In 1912, Laurel left England with the Fred Karno Troupe to tour the United States, Laurel had expected the tour to be merely a pleasant interval before returning to London, however, he migrated to the U. S. during the trip. In 1917, Laurel was teamed with Mae Dahlberg as an act for stage and film, they were living as common law husband
11.
Shoreham-by-Sea
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Shoreham-by-Sea is a seaside town and port in West Sussex, England. The town has a population of 48,487 according to the 2011 census, the town is bordered to its north by the South Downs, to its west by the Adur Valley and to its south by the River Adur and Shoreham Beach on the English Channel. The town lies in the middle of the ribbon of development along the English south coast between the city of Brighton and Hove and the town of Worthing. Shoreham civil parish covers an area of 984.88 hectares and has a population of 19,175, Old Shoreham dates back to pre-Roman times. St Nicolas Church, inland by the River Adur, is partly Anglo-Saxon The name of the town has an Old English origin, the town and port of New Shoreham was established by the Norman conquerors towards the end of the 11th century. St Mary de Haura Church was built in the decade following 1103, the church is only half the size of the original – the former nave was ruinous at the time of the civil war although remnants of the original west façade survive in the churchyard to some height. Muslim scholar Muhammad al-Idrisi, writing c.1153, described Shoreham as a fine and cultivated city containing buildings, Shoreham Harbour remains in commercial operation to this day. Southdown Golf Club, Shoreham-by-Sea was founded in 1902, but ceased to operate in the 1940s, Shoreham Beach, to the south of the town, is a shingle spit deposited over millennia by longshore drift, as an extension to Lancing parish in the west. This blocks the flow of the River Adur which turns east at this point to discharge into the English Channel further along the coast at a point that has varied considerably over time. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the mouth of the river shifted eastwards which restricted trade to the port, in 1816, work had been completed to fix the position of the river in its present position, flowing into the sea between two piers. Once the harbour mouth was stabilised it was defended by Shoreham Fort which was built in 1857, converted railway carriages became summer homes around the start of the 20th century, and Bungalow Town, as it was then known, became home to the early British film industry. Shoreham Beach officially became part of Shoreham-by-Sea in 1910, the Church of the Good Shepherd, built in 1913, still stands. Along the Adur mud flats adjacent to Shoreham Beach sits a large collection of houseboats made from converted barges, tugs, mine sweepers, Motor Torpedo Boats etc. The seaside shingle bank of Shoreham beach extends further east past the mouth, forming the southern boundary of the commercial harbour in Southwick, Portslade. Transversed by the River Adur and with the downs and the sea nearby the area supports a diverse wildlife flora, the mudflats support wading birds and gulls, including the ringed plover which attempts to breed on the coastal shingle. The pied wagtail is common in the town in the winter months, insects include dragonflies over the flood plains of the river. The south and west facing downs attract at least 33 species of butterflies including an important population of the chalkhill blue butterfly on Mill Hill. The underlying rock is chalk on the downs, with alluvium in the old river channels, Shoreham Airport lies to the west of the main town and has been in private ownership since 2006
12.
Sussex
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Sussex, from the Old English Sūþsēaxe, is a historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. Brighton and Hove was created as an authority in 1997. Until then, Chichester was Sussexs only city, Sussex has three main geographic sub-regions, each oriented approximately east to west. In the south-west is the fertile and densely populated coastal plain, North of this are the rolling chalk hills of the South Downs, beyond which is the well-wooded Sussex Weald. The name derives from the Kingdom of Sussex, which was founded, according to legend, in 825, it was absorbed into the kingdom of Wessex and subsequently into the kingdom of England. It was the home of some of Europes earliest hominids, whose remains have been found at Boxgrove, in 1974, the Lord-Lieutenant of Sussex was replaced with one each for East and West Sussex, which became separate ceremonial counties. Sussex continues to be recognised as a territory and cultural region. It has had a police force since 1968 and its name is in common use in the media. In 2007, Sussex Day was created to celebrate the rich culture. Based on the emblem of Sussex, a blue shield with six gold martlets. In 2013, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles formally recognised and acknowledged the existence of Englands 39 historic counties. The name Sussex is derived from the Middle English Suth-sæxe, which is in turn derived from the Old English Suth-Seaxe which means of the South Saxons, the South Saxons were a Germanic tribe that settled in the region from the North German Plain during the 5th and 6th centuries. The earliest known usage of the term South Saxons is in a charter of 689 which names them and their king, Noðhelm. The monastic chronicler who wrote up the entry classifying the invasion seems to have got his dates wrong, the New Latin word Suthsexia was used for Sussex by Dutch cartographer Joan Blaeu in his 1645 map. Three United States counties, and a former division of Western Australia, are named after Sussex. The flag of Sussex consists of six gold martlets, or heraldic swallows, on a background, blazoned as Azure. Officially recognised by the Flag Institute on 20 May 2011, its design is based on the shield of Sussex. The first known recording of this emblem being used to represent the county was in 1611 when cartographer John Speed deployed it to represent the Kingdom of the South Saxons
