Brinsworth House in Twickenham was today visited by the Duchess of Sussex; The house is exclusively home to ex-entertainers and their spouses Former residents include Norman Wisdom, Leslie Grantham and Thora Hird Current residents include Mona Hammond and Richard O’Sullivan “My life,” he sighed. “In the old days, these acrobatic troupes, they were all very cruel, even to their own children, so they could learn the tricks quick, put them on the stage and make money out of them. I had a jaunting car and two girls dressed up as Irish colleens. THE first to totter up to meet me on the arm of a smiling nurse was 76-year-old Stan Stafford, billed in variety as ‘The Silver-Voiced Navvy,’ who had been a mainstay of demented Lancashire comedian Frank Randle’s stock company in the 1940s and early 50s. Brinsworth House provides residential and nursing care for a maximum of 36 residents. I was taught by other members of the act. Jill played blue-rinsed battleaxe Phyllis Pearce in Coronation Street for several years until she died in 1997. Downstairs, waiting patiently in the bar which is lined with many photographs of famous … He blamed “booze and women” for the way his life had turned out but was scornful, unrepentant, humorous and defiant. Picture were: Dicky O. Penny Forsyth Healthwatch Richmond visited in June 2016 reporting that Brinsworth House was a well-run home with good systems in place to care for the residents and that these worked to a high standard. Kim Rayner I do know they separated before 1935 and he lived with another lady named Phyliss but as to her last name I have no idea. After a while, when we were playing a place called the Old Swan in Liverpool, that was a new picture house, and on a Friday night a chappie  came up to me and said: ‘You Mr Moss?’ I said: ‘Yes.’ ‘Could I speak to you?’  I said: ‘Yes, come in our dressing room.’ He came in and he said ‘There’s my card: Sidney Carter.’ [Carter was an early British cinema mogul]. She was sure I’d ruined her but I said ‘I haven’t.’ She even pawned her jewelry. The charity’s care home supports 36 residents who are former entertainers and artists, with activities coordinator, Jay Crank, saying Meghan Markle had made them "feel truly uplifted". The charity’s care home supports 36 residents who are former entertainers and artists, with activities coordinator, Jay Crank, saying Meghan Markle had made them "feel truly uplifted". He said he could offer me twelve weeks and asked me how much did I want. Oh, we were buying new cars every five minutes! . The Duchess of Sussex arrives for a visit to the Royal Variety Charity’s care home, Brinsworth House, in Twickenham, south-west London (Andrew Matthews/PA) Meghan joined residents at Brinsworth House when they had a festive sing-a-long of carols led by West End singer Cassidy Janson. I thought to myself that that this was no good. Comedian Hylda Baker (“She knows y’know”) lived out her last days at Brinsworth in 1986 and cherubic Charlie Drake said “Goodbye, my darlings!” in 2006. “I started doing child impressions, then someone told me I was a comedienne. I’ve never touched a saxophone since I retired.”. Have you ever heard of Coram, the ventriloquist? Coming back from his studio one day he was run over and died about three days later. Another man in the troupe at that time was Stan Laurel. He then returns to America in 1914 on the ship Adriatic. “ ‘You’re on,’ they’d say, because a lot of them were white elephants, these theatres; they didn’t do much business. They brought in a contract with seals and tapes and . ‘Still too much,’ he says. I was born in Weymouth. Discover the homes and lives of 1930s musicians who lived and worked in Twickenham and Whitton. “But I’ve no regrets. Look at her now.’ I’ve never been happy offstage. In the old days there were the speciality acts, the acrobats, the ‘risley’ acts – that is, spinning boys and girls on their feet; juggling them, so to speak while they lie down. The house is exclusively home to ex-entertainers and their spouses Former residents include Norman Wisdom, Leslie Grantham and Thora Hird I had no other skill, so eight years prior to coming here I worked for a Jewish clothing firm – charming people – as a packer, folding ladies’ and children’s clothes. . It ended my career. This isn’t widespread now, but in those days it was. Even Nellie Wallace had to work in a soubrette dress. I was dressed beautifully and had all this make-up on, but somebody said ‘He’s got hands like a navvy,’ so that’s how the navvy character started. So any help you maybe able to give me would be really appreciated. It wasn’t sophisticated cross-talk stuff, it was more in the music hall tradition. Jack Wilson of the fantastic dancing act Wilson Keppel and Betty also ended his days in contentment among fellow-pros at Brinsworth. He was top of the bill when we went to Australia and he said: ‘Get out all your old gags.’ They used to say our act was rather American; a bit like, say, George Burns and Gracie Allen. “Sometimes my wife assisted me. “People say music hall is completely dead. He was only a little feller, around my height. They could see the comedy, and after that, of course, I went from concert parties to the halls. I’ll pay for them but I shan’t show them unless we need to. I’ve been a naughty boy. Past residents have included Dame Thora Hird, Charlie Drake, Alan “Fluff” Freeman, Dame Edna Everage’s sidekick Madge (Emily Perry) and comedienne Hylda Baker. If you get the picture and Index to that even you will see him standing next to Pavlova. Brinsworth House, the home for retired members of the light entertainment industry in Twickenham, Middlesex, recently lost two of its most famous residents, the … I was with the Ando troupe in America about five years, then we came to England during the Russo-Japanese War. There was no cinema. I have been searching for many years for my Great Uncle Mr Albert Edward Rayner who went under the name of Dan Rayner. Being funny always seemed to come easily to me. A lot of people think music hall and variety was like that television show The Good Old Days at the City Varieties in Leeds, with a chairman introducing the acts and banging a hammer. She makes people laugh. Unfortunately I have not been able to find when or where he died. I do hope you can help in my search for my Great Uncle. I said: ‘Well I don’t know if Miss Santoi will or not, but I’d better take responsibility and say yes.’. Meghan Markle joked that she felt "very pregnant" during her visit to Brinsworth House, a nursing home supported by Royal Variety Charity, today. If anyone has copyright or permission issues, please contact me. That man’s got a £60,000 mortgage on a theatre here and another £60,000 or £70,000 on the one across the road. He was also, I later discovered, the half-brother of John Major who in 1972 was already a Young Conservative and 18 years away from being Prime Minister of Great Britain. “I married the youngest member of the act. Brinsworth House stands as a place of safety, peace, happiness and tranquility. Our musical director used to say to people when we were in the pub: ‘Look at her. Juggling or acrobatics. BRINSWORTH’S top of the bill for me was 72-year-old tenor and pioneer of cine-variety Tom F. Moss, who had been billed as ‘The Caruso of the Halls,’ a description he pinched from an earlier performer, Harry Fragson, conveniently murdered in 1913. Major’s father, music hall and circus performer Tom Major Ball, is thought to have fathered at least five children by four different women over a 42-year period. Meghan was welcomed to Brinsworth House – affectionately known as the Old Pro’s Paradise – in Twickenham, south-west London, by the charity’s chairman, Giles Cooper. Dan however chose to return to England. I would love to hear any information you may have found out about him. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex visits the Royal Variety Charity's residential nursing and care home at Brinsworth House on December 18, 2018 in Twickenham, England. If we didn’t do it properly we used to get kicked in the shins, clouted in the face, and we daren’t speak to anybody, not even the landladies of the digs we used to stay in. I worked a few weeks ago in Rotherham in one of the clubs.”. The normal faces were pictured - including Dicky O, who looks rather well. I was about six years old. I let it go and he said he would wire me the next day. We were playing little picture houses and we had a job to get in. Very famous pub, it was. In the Elliott Savonas there were seven of us, all on saxophones, playing the whole range of the instrument, from the largest down to the smallest. The cruelty used to be wicked. The Registered Nurses and trained Health Care Assistants Assistants are supported by the catering and laundry personnel who help to provide a warm, friendly and relaxed atmosphere. ” in it ? “I used to work a la Nellie Wallace without the comedy make-up on, but I had comedy clothes I used to rip off and I would have an evening dress on underneath. I do have a photo copy of an old theatre bill with my grandfathers name boldly written on it. Therefore we were never allowed to talk to anybody. “Then the Second World War came along and the Japs were against us so I couldn’t use a Japanese name or they’d shoot me. He was last that I can find in a play Dick Wittington at the Empire Theatre advertised in the a local paper in Durham in 1948. Everybody chased us, once the news got round. A manager of a cinema would say ‘I can’t pay that,’ so I’d say: ‘Tell you what, I’ll take over your films what you’ve booked. We girls wore lovely white wigs. He was looking for a publisher for his autobiography, and produced the dog-eared manuscript for my inspection. Some weeks I’d make £400 or £500. Sadly is seems he's been in poor mental health for a while now, following a major stroke. We had cars and a chauffeur with our names on his hat. Brinsworth House is a residential and nursing retirement home for theatre and entertainment professionals [1] in Staines Road, Twickenham, west London, England. Stephen. My partner would ask: ‘What do you do?’, “I’d answer: ‘I’m a dairy maid in a chocolate factory.’. Built in 1850, the care home has a number of lounges, a bar area, library, restaurant, television rooms and a hair salon. I saw the possibilities of putting a lot of Irish songs to the film and I suggested to my mother that we take the film. It’s from Frank Nolan, the manager of the cinema. Picture courtesy Brinsworth House.Below: Stan in his prime. Coming from a circus, I never had a home until I retired. I bluffed them in to it. I know he went to America twice and once to Australia and also once to South Africa. It’s a bit off the map, and that is why my mother didn’t like my going on the stage. But when I got to Australia they didn’t want that. They used to hit them and kick them and all sorts, even their own children. Comedian Hylda Baker (“She knows y’know”) lived out her last days at Brinsworth in 1986 and cherubic Charlie Drake said “Goodbye, my darlings!” in 2006. Sad-faced little Sidney Bernard Mizuta, also known as Alan Kaye, was a 76-year-old retired juggler and acrobat, and the story he had to tell involved what was child abuse by any definition. We played under the name of Alan Kaye and Gloria for quite a while. The house is owned and run by the Royal Variety Charity and has 36 bedrooms, six living rooms, a library, an in-house bar and stage, a staff of 64 and is set in 5 acres (2.0 hectares) of land. They asked me if I agreed to £1,750 for ten weeks. “Randle was successful in London in spite of what people say. I am hoping that maybe on your search you came across some info on Dan Rayner. Brinsworth House is a large detached property set in its own grounds and located close to local community facilities and public transport networks. I travelled a racehorse for two-and-a-half years and I used to make my stage entrance on this horse’s back. I went to America and worked there for three months in 1932. Sometimes I begin to feel sorry for myself and I have to think to myself: why? Built in 1850, the care home has a number of lounges, a bar area, library, restaurant, television rooms and a hair salon. On the halls we were accompanied by the pit orchestra as well. It was either work or workhouse in those days, so she gave us away – literally – gave us away to the owner of a Japanese troupe by the name of Ando. It was incredible. He’d tell you that himself. My partner was the straight man and he fed me with lines. Unknown. I got seven-and-sixpence and three bitters, and sixpence if there was an encore. couldn’t compete with me. He lives in Brinsworth House, a Home for those retired in the entertainment industry. “For about five months I thought I had ruined her. He said to her: ‘He’s a bloody liar, Marie. Famous people who have disappeared. There were all these Irish songs with real live people singing them. I started as a female impersonator on the halls. “I was with Frank for ten years,” said Stan. . All illustrations, except where specified, from Stephen Dixon Collection, acquired from various sources over a 40-year period and in many cases provided by the artists themselves in the 1970s. None of us did. My mother said: ‘Over my dead body’ . All text Copyright Stephen Dixon 2013. Brinsworth House is funded by the Royal Variety Charity, and Meghan and Harry attended the big Royal Variety show last month. After a while one of the sisters married out of the act and I took her place, and I worked with them for fifteen years. It was a very wonderful show. But I finally got on and I liked every bit of it. Then there were the other  jugglers, and the trapeze artists – what we called the dumb acts. Does anyone know the the title of the Leslie Sarony song that has the line “Oi ! “So when it comes to telling a story, like I’m telling you now, there’s nothing really to laugh about because it’s sordid. It’s a millionaire you’re talking about.’, “I told him: ‘Well, he’s been here and I’ve asked him for £2,000 for ten weeks.’ He called me a bloody liar; he roasted me. When I joined the saxophone band it took me three months to learn to play. I believe he worked the Music Halls but I do know for sure he worked with Fred Karno. Some have been created for a specific community, while others have evolved by chance, or through word of mouth, into care homes that cater for niche markets. When I first started with a troupe a chap used to teach us. He’s the general manager of New Century Pictures. Serge Ganjou, of the legendary adagio act The Ganjou Brothers and Juanita, was also a resident. I do believe he also did a radio show after 1935 for quite some time but do not know the name of that show. The rooms are named after famous people who pay a sponsorship fee to have titles such as The Norman Wisdom Room or The Brian Conley Room painted on doors. I discovered at the age of thirty that I could also sing tenor and baritone. you know what that is in show business, don’t you? The place costs £1.25m a year to run, and funding comes from several sources, most famously the Royal Variety Performance, for which Brinsworth House acts as the box office. I was working in one of Moss’s theatres with Bernie Delfont, who was doing a walloping act – a dancing act – this is the business word for a dancing act, a pro’s word. Music hall is coming back in the clubs, isn’t it? . I’ll rent the theatre.’. Appropriately labelled the Old Pro's Paradise, it can accommodate up to 40 residents who are cared for by a dedicated team of highly trained nurses and care assistants. ‘Tom F. Moss was indeed my half-brother, albeit forty years older than me,’ Sir John Major wrote to me, ‘and my family and I lived in his house in Brixton for some years in the 1950s.’ Sir John has amplified this comment in a brief section of his autobiography, and discussed further it in his book about music hall, My Old Man, including the moment when he realised that he and his middle-aged landlord shared the same father. Among famous entertainers who have been cared for at ... Mr Cooper said her work as an actress would mean she would be able to relate to the residents… Location: 72 Staines Road, Twickenham, tw2 5al My career has spanned sixty years. When I came back we always worked in music hall and variety, with an occasional revue. At Brinsworth House, The Duchess joined residents singing carols and making Christmas decorations, as she unveiled a traditional 'Royal plaque' which is proudly displayed on the entrance hall wall, not far from one marking the 1976 visit of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. Again any help would be appreciated. A question if you don’t mind. On … It was very common to have a funny woman and a straight man in the early days. I’m still young at heart – I don’t feel old at all. The Duchess of Sussex arrived at Brinsworth House in London, placing a hand on her baby bump as she took time to chat with residents over tea. I’ve got a marvellous memory. “I was born in London but started off performing in public when I was six years of age in America with a very famous circus – still going – the Five Ringling Brothers. He went to America in 1913 on the Lusitania and it shows at this time he is married. Contact us Monday morning New Century Buildings, Leeds. Brinsworth House, which is owned and managed by the charity, accommodates up to 36 residents who are cared for by a dedicated team of nurses and care assistants. “When I was ten years old I entered a competition at a fairground and won. Others who fared better financially but needed full-time medical care found a refuge there, too. I said: ‘If they will take a rent, we’ll have it.’ But we had to put a figure down. But the 36 residents at Brinsworth House enjoyed the festive activities today, including arts and crafts sessions and carols around the Christmas tree. So I changed it to Alan Kaye. “ ‘How is Miss Santoi?’ he asked and I told him she was fine; she’d gone out for a walk. Not completely. I didn’t know the film business. There were four brothers, and I married Harry Elliott. Alf of Bob and Alf Pearson (“We bring you melodies from out of the sky, my brother and I”) celebrated his 100th birthday at Brinsworth House in 2010. Lord Attenborough, whose widow Sheila, Lady Attenborough, resided at Denville Hall, was president. To tell the truth, I started my real career singing in pubs in Manchester. Name: Dame Hylda Baker Category: Comedienne Person Summary: English comedienne (1905-1986) Edit Person Summary Years of Residence: 1982 - 1986 Source: Book: Fade to Black Residence Summary: Comedienne spent remainder of life here after transferring from Brinsworth House. It could be Germany – the Winter Gardens, Berlin. . The last home of such notable entertainers as Dame Thora Hird, Alan "Fluff" Freeman and Charlie Drake, this brown-brick building sits back off a main road, belying the fact that it is actually set within an acre of land. Or Bransby Williams.”. And I carried on by myself, still making all that money. Don’t lie! I’ve used doves in my act, snakes – even a fox. The Entertainment Artistes' Benevolent Fund was founded in 1908. … We used to go into speakeasies and I met Legs Diamond in one of them. One of Brinsworth's newest residents is Emily Perry, known as Pat, who is better still famed for portraying Madge Allsop, the long-suffering best friend and bridesmaid to Dame Edna Everage. Everybody knew us. We very seldom smoke, you see, because of our nerves. She and Moss sometimes appeared together on stage as a comedy double-act. When he’d gone I said to the manager, Frank Nolan his name was, I said: ‘I’ve had this chap to see me. “When the real talkies came in my career went up and down. “Well, I’m afraid . IT IS known in the business as ‘the old pros’ paradise’ – appropriately enough, since most of its residents go directly from Brinsworth House to meet their Maker. Meghan was welcomed to Brinsworth House – affectionately known as the Old Pro’s Paradise – in Twickenham, south-west London, by the charity’s chairman, Giles Cooper. Including short biographies from famous residents to more forgotten names. “I worked all the time in the music halls,” she told me. So I just worked in evening dress over there. “When I first started, in the circus, I was a rider. The house was built in 1850 and houses a number of lounges, a bar, a library, a restaurant and even has its own theatre. Tell the truth, she were in the pub. He says: ‘Tom, I’ve got a telegram here. Edwin did a lot of work for this charity in his day. I used to get up at 5 o’clock in the morning, leave the digs and put in around five hours practice. I used to do quick changes and then we’d finish on the banjos because he was a very good banjoist and I learned just enough on the banjo to accompany him. – right in the face. topping bills here and there, and even as late as 1949 I was getting £450 some weeks. You it would appear maybe my last chance. Tom was quite a character, refreshingly different to the rest of the placid old-timers at Brinsworth. And we never looked back. I went on the halls and into revue and had a great singing act. Very bad.”. It works like this: in exchange for the funding, the EABF arranges for the winner of Britain’s Got Talent to appear on the Royal Variety Performance, which is seen by 150 million viewers worldwide. Mother had six children on her hands and in those days we didn’t get help from the Government. . I was a teacher, and I had to fight to get onto the stage. I do know he was married to a lady named Barbara Robinson and they had a son Conrad Paul Rayner but I have been unable to find any thing out about these two members of his family. The invitation followed a conversation between Giles Cooper and Prince Charles at the recent Royal Variety Performance in December, where Giles mentioned how much the residents had enjoyed their previous … We called it the double perch, because one goes this way and one goes that way and there’s a socket at the bottom where you could put a single pole in and the boss would lift us up, us only being kids, you see. “I was with the Elliott Savonas,” she told me. “Originally I started in the business when I was very young as a circus girl. Because it’s a sordid life, really, an acrobatic life. I had a long career but I retired many years ago.