dhermann1
I'll Lock Up
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I get regular emails from the Sons of the Desert, the club for Laurel and Hardy devotees. This was received today. It's a fascinating history of a typical British Music Hall, that just happened to be the place where the great Stan Laurel launched his performing career. It's a fun read.
The Oldest Music Hall in Britain
The Britannia and The Grand Panoptican
If you are walking on the uneven pavements of the Trongate at the far end of Argyle Street in Glasgow and you are tempted to keep your eyes fixed firmly on the ground, look up. You will be treated to buildings whose architecture rivals the best in towns and cities across Europe. Judith Bowers looked up and saw an Italianate building hiding behind a layer of flaking blue paint. The ground floor was a shop. The upper floors were used as store rooms. For years in the 90’s Judith tried to get access to the top floors. The owners refused her entry. But a plaque on the side wall caught her eye.. It had a faded picture of the outside of the building with the words ’Britannia Music Hall 1857-1938’ This started her on her quest. Due to Judith’s single-mindedness and her dedication she did gain access and has let Glaswegians and, indeed the world, into one of Glasgow’s well kept secrets.
In amongst debris of all kinds, cardboard boxes, layers of dust emerged the bones of the Britannia Music hall built and designed by Thomas Gildard and Robert MacFarlane. The theatre opened in 1857.The outline of a wooden balcony was evident, supported by pillars. The different colours of flaking paint betrayed the era in which the Music Hall had been vibrant. Further exploration turned up old programmes, bill posters, cigarette packets (Bar One, Wild Woodburn, Smith’s Studio, Ogden’s Guinea Gold and Capstan Navy Cut.). There were Balmoral Matches, clay pipes, Murray’s Ale. Painted notices like ‘Daily From 2-30,’ ‘Good Acts Wanted’ were unearthed – all telling a tale of times past about the Britannia Music Hall.
In the early days the audience was entirely male. No woman would dream of entering the devil’s house. Those who could afford it could have a seat in the stalls at the front. It was standing only at the back and in the balcony. The men were packed in and one could imagine the smell of damp clothes, drink, sweat and urine that would clog the air.
The acts were generally coarse. The churchmen and the ‘good’ folk of Glasgow had every right to fear that the music hall encouraged sin and immoral behaviour. In the early days prostitutes soon discovered it was much more comfortable to ply their trade in the warm recesses and dark corridors of the Hall. By about 1860 the owner, James Brand, decided to encourage the whole family to enjoy his shows. To make the theatre more comfortable he put long wooden benches into the balcony. At a later date cushions were added. to the front of the balcony. Men were encouraged to put on clean clothes and discard their working togs. In an effort to prevent the prostitutes from entering, he made it clear that no lady could enter without a gentleman partner. Because of the improvements as many as 1500
would attend a show and would push so hard that there was no space between a man and his neighbour. The actors had to produce a good act for it only needed a few disgruntled people to shout their disapproval to start a torrent of verbal abuse and a hurling of vegetables and other missiles onto the stage. It is easy to imagine the atmosphere when most of the 1500 lit up their cigarettes and pipes. The air became so thick with smoke that at times the audience could not see the stage and the actors could not see the audience!
Who then entertained the crowd in the nineteenth century?
In 1866 Dan Leno, aged 5, came to the Britannia with his artiste parents. His act was a show stopper. He danced, did acrobatic tricks, tumbled and sang. He was small for his age and the audience took him to their hearts, He continued to make a name for himself in Music Halls throughout Britain. In 1880 he returned to The Britannia as a 5’3” man. By this time he had won competitions as a Clog Dancer. The audience loved him. They were part of the act when they stamped their feet in time to the music. They were watching a man who had won The Silver Champion’s Clogging Belt on numerous occasions. In 1885 The Britannia audience was treated to a contest between the American clogger, John Williams and Dan Leno. Both were masters of the art and the audience experienced a display of heart stopping dancing.
In 1885 Vesta Tilley appeared in The Britannia. She was famed for impersonating men. She would strut on the stage as a soldier, a sailor or a policeman. Her songs still echo down the ages. One of the best known, ‘I’m following in father’s footsteps’. Marie Loftus was a different character. She dressed up in a gym slip and acted as a school girl. So popular was she that the entrance fee was doubled from 3d. Those who couldn’t get in, blocked the Trongate to such an extent that the police had to be called to clear the road.
The Britannia saw many, many acts – minstrels, comics, magicians, contortionists,,,, Names that are well known to-day include Harry Lauder who entertained Glaswegians for a week on the Britannia stage. Charles Coburn filled the theatre with his rendering of “The man who broke the bank at Monte Carlo” and” Two lovely black eyes”.
In 1906 the new owner, Mr. A.E. Pickard reopened the theatre under the new name “The Britannia and the Grand Panoptican”. He used The Panoptican for many things. There were freak shows like, The Smallest Man in Existence, The Human Trunk, Lucy Moore the American Fat Lady (claimed to weigh 48 stones) and The Ugliest Woman on Earth. At one time The Panoptican became a cinema. However, the most memorable person to make his debut on the professional stage at The Panoptican was a young Stan Laurel. At 16, Mr Pickard gave him a slot on the Friday ’Go As You Please’ show at the Panoptican. His Father was quite unaware that his son was performing in his spare time. On seeing Mr Jefferson (Stan’s Father ) passing the theatre he invited him in. John McCabe in his book “The Comedy world of Stan Laurel, tells how Stan’s Father described the experience.
“Very soon Stan’s number billed as an extra turn went up. On he came wearing a pair of baggy trousers( new trousers of mine with the patches added) and also my best frock coat and silk hat……He got a very good reception, finishing up to loud applause and even shouts of Encore. The shouts brought him back and he beamed the now popular Laurel smile, but in bowing he spotted me! Giving a subdued yell of horrified astonishment, he dropped my topper which thereupon rolled towards the footlights. Stan pursued it, tried to grab it and in doing kicked it accidentally into the orchestra where one of the musicians made a rush to retrieve it, and stepped on it crushing it thoroughly! Then Stan made a dash for the exit but his luck was out. As he ran off he made contact with a steel hook fixed in the wings for a trapeze act and the hook ripped off half the skirt of my beautiful frock coat.”
These unrehearsed accidents brought the house down and launched Stan on the career that made him a cherished artist in the duo Laurel and Hardy.
The latest performance at the Panoptican was a Christmas music hall performance by Judith and her loyal friends in 2008. The audience sat in a partly restored theatre, were treated to hot chocolate and mince pies and an old music hall entertainment. I think the ghosts of the past were there shouting at the performers and stamping their feet. The atmosphere was full of abandoned laughter and enjoyment. The Panoptican, the oldest Music Hall in Britain, was alive once more. It is no longer one of Glasgow’s hidden secrets but is rapidly becoming one of Glasgow’s irreplaceable treasures.
The End
Marjory MacKellar.
The Oldest Music Hall in Britain
The Britannia and The Grand Panoptican
If you are walking on the uneven pavements of the Trongate at the far end of Argyle Street in Glasgow and you are tempted to keep your eyes fixed firmly on the ground, look up. You will be treated to buildings whose architecture rivals the best in towns and cities across Europe. Judith Bowers looked up and saw an Italianate building hiding behind a layer of flaking blue paint. The ground floor was a shop. The upper floors were used as store rooms. For years in the 90’s Judith tried to get access to the top floors. The owners refused her entry. But a plaque on the side wall caught her eye.. It had a faded picture of the outside of the building with the words ’Britannia Music Hall 1857-1938’ This started her on her quest. Due to Judith’s single-mindedness and her dedication she did gain access and has let Glaswegians and, indeed the world, into one of Glasgow’s well kept secrets.
In amongst debris of all kinds, cardboard boxes, layers of dust emerged the bones of the Britannia Music hall built and designed by Thomas Gildard and Robert MacFarlane. The theatre opened in 1857.The outline of a wooden balcony was evident, supported by pillars. The different colours of flaking paint betrayed the era in which the Music Hall had been vibrant. Further exploration turned up old programmes, bill posters, cigarette packets (Bar One, Wild Woodburn, Smith’s Studio, Ogden’s Guinea Gold and Capstan Navy Cut.). There were Balmoral Matches, clay pipes, Murray’s Ale. Painted notices like ‘Daily From 2-30,’ ‘Good Acts Wanted’ were unearthed – all telling a tale of times past about the Britannia Music Hall.
In the early days the audience was entirely male. No woman would dream of entering the devil’s house. Those who could afford it could have a seat in the stalls at the front. It was standing only at the back and in the balcony. The men were packed in and one could imagine the smell of damp clothes, drink, sweat and urine that would clog the air.
The acts were generally coarse. The churchmen and the ‘good’ folk of Glasgow had every right to fear that the music hall encouraged sin and immoral behaviour. In the early days prostitutes soon discovered it was much more comfortable to ply their trade in the warm recesses and dark corridors of the Hall. By about 1860 the owner, James Brand, decided to encourage the whole family to enjoy his shows. To make the theatre more comfortable he put long wooden benches into the balcony. At a later date cushions were added. to the front of the balcony. Men were encouraged to put on clean clothes and discard their working togs. In an effort to prevent the prostitutes from entering, he made it clear that no lady could enter without a gentleman partner. Because of the improvements as many as 1500
would attend a show and would push so hard that there was no space between a man and his neighbour. The actors had to produce a good act for it only needed a few disgruntled people to shout their disapproval to start a torrent of verbal abuse and a hurling of vegetables and other missiles onto the stage. It is easy to imagine the atmosphere when most of the 1500 lit up their cigarettes and pipes. The air became so thick with smoke that at times the audience could not see the stage and the actors could not see the audience!
Who then entertained the crowd in the nineteenth century?
In 1866 Dan Leno, aged 5, came to the Britannia with his artiste parents. His act was a show stopper. He danced, did acrobatic tricks, tumbled and sang. He was small for his age and the audience took him to their hearts, He continued to make a name for himself in Music Halls throughout Britain. In 1880 he returned to The Britannia as a 5’3” man. By this time he had won competitions as a Clog Dancer. The audience loved him. They were part of the act when they stamped their feet in time to the music. They were watching a man who had won The Silver Champion’s Clogging Belt on numerous occasions. In 1885 The Britannia audience was treated to a contest between the American clogger, John Williams and Dan Leno. Both were masters of the art and the audience experienced a display of heart stopping dancing.
In 1885 Vesta Tilley appeared in The Britannia. She was famed for impersonating men. She would strut on the stage as a soldier, a sailor or a policeman. Her songs still echo down the ages. One of the best known, ‘I’m following in father’s footsteps’. Marie Loftus was a different character. She dressed up in a gym slip and acted as a school girl. So popular was she that the entrance fee was doubled from 3d. Those who couldn’t get in, blocked the Trongate to such an extent that the police had to be called to clear the road.
The Britannia saw many, many acts – minstrels, comics, magicians, contortionists,,,, Names that are well known to-day include Harry Lauder who entertained Glaswegians for a week on the Britannia stage. Charles Coburn filled the theatre with his rendering of “The man who broke the bank at Monte Carlo” and” Two lovely black eyes”.
In 1906 the new owner, Mr. A.E. Pickard reopened the theatre under the new name “The Britannia and the Grand Panoptican”. He used The Panoptican for many things. There were freak shows like, The Smallest Man in Existence, The Human Trunk, Lucy Moore the American Fat Lady (claimed to weigh 48 stones) and The Ugliest Woman on Earth. At one time The Panoptican became a cinema. However, the most memorable person to make his debut on the professional stage at The Panoptican was a young Stan Laurel. At 16, Mr Pickard gave him a slot on the Friday ’Go As You Please’ show at the Panoptican. His Father was quite unaware that his son was performing in his spare time. On seeing Mr Jefferson (Stan’s Father ) passing the theatre he invited him in. John McCabe in his book “The Comedy world of Stan Laurel, tells how Stan’s Father described the experience.
“Very soon Stan’s number billed as an extra turn went up. On he came wearing a pair of baggy trousers( new trousers of mine with the patches added) and also my best frock coat and silk hat……He got a very good reception, finishing up to loud applause and even shouts of Encore. The shouts brought him back and he beamed the now popular Laurel smile, but in bowing he spotted me! Giving a subdued yell of horrified astonishment, he dropped my topper which thereupon rolled towards the footlights. Stan pursued it, tried to grab it and in doing kicked it accidentally into the orchestra where one of the musicians made a rush to retrieve it, and stepped on it crushing it thoroughly! Then Stan made a dash for the exit but his luck was out. As he ran off he made contact with a steel hook fixed in the wings for a trapeze act and the hook ripped off half the skirt of my beautiful frock coat.”
These unrehearsed accidents brought the house down and launched Stan on the career that made him a cherished artist in the duo Laurel and Hardy.
The latest performance at the Panoptican was a Christmas music hall performance by Judith and her loyal friends in 2008. The audience sat in a partly restored theatre, were treated to hot chocolate and mince pies and an old music hall entertainment. I think the ghosts of the past were there shouting at the performers and stamping their feet. The atmosphere was full of abandoned laughter and enjoyment. The Panoptican, the oldest Music Hall in Britain, was alive once more. It is no longer one of Glasgow’s hidden secrets but is rapidly becoming one of Glasgow’s irreplaceable treasures.
The End
Marjory MacKellar.
*Edit* - I should point out that by the mid 20th Century, the rivet-throwing had ceased! At least I think it had... Also, being a Laurel & Hardy fan, I am rather proud that my home country provided Stan with the venue for his first public performace, and also that the audience gave him a rousing reception!
