Before We Forget: Episode 1 'Music Hall : Britain's first pop music'

Hello and welcome to Before We Forget, a look into the movements and influences and people that shape our culture today. (I can be found here https://twitter.com/ForgetPodcast and here [email protected])

On this podcast, Alison Young and I talk about Music Hall's riotous beginnings, its eventual glide into respectable mass entertainment and a little bit about how Music Hall is still very much with us.

Our guide for today was Alison Young. Her Music Hall blog, linked below has been a wonderful resource and is superbly written and researched.

https://musichallalice.wordpress.com/about/

Alison is also Secretary for the British Music Hall Society

http://britishmusichallsociety.com/

Recording with the London Music Hall Choir was a real delight. Here is a recording of a rehearsal wot I made.

https://roastedlikeasaltherring.bandcamp.com/album/ed-hicks-the-london-music-hall-choir-rehearsal

http://londonmusichallchoir.co.uk/

If you happen to be in London, Abney Park Cemetery is a surprisingly tranquil stroll where many Music Hall stars are laid to rest.

https://abneypark.org/music-hall

Music Hall War

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_Hall_Strike_of_1907

Brixton and Music Hall

https://brixtonblog.com/2020/07/brixton-music-hall-history-can-you-help/

https://loughboroughroadsw9histories.wordpress.com/

BMHS's Resident historian Peter Charlton helped behind the scenes. We talked a lot about music hall outside of London, its Lancashire tradition especially. With all the talk of chairmen overseeing preceedings and the folk tradition, it is content for another planned podcast episode. In the meantime, here is an article he did for another huge and deeply engaging Music Hall resource.

http://www.arthurlloyd.co.uk/LionComiques.htm

http://www.arthurlloyd.co.uk/

For folks who want to know a little bit more about Fred Barnes, information is a little sparse but everything about him is fascinating.

Here is the British Music Hall Society's precis on Fred

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDSfKfbXk6w

Christopher Green impersonates Fred magnificently

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDRAKVXO7fU&t=412s

And a little more information on the plays based on Fred's life

https://www.wiltons.org.uk/whatson/434-music-hall-monster-the-insatiable-mr-fred-barnes

A full pantomime for the uninitiated

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFYcdNKwXvc

A Spotify playlist

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5YZlihliwq1k330mjxhVf4

Music Credits

Down at the Old Bull and bush

London Music Hall Choir (2021)

https://roastedlikeasaltherring.bandcamp.com/album/ed-hicks-the-london-music-hall-choir-rehearsal

Florrie Forde (1903)

https://archive.org/details/CollectedWorksOfFlorrieForde/DownAtTheOldBullAndBush1903.mp3

She was poor but she was honest

Cyril Smith (1949)

https://archive.org/details/78_she-was-poor-but-she-was-honest_cyril-smith-david-miller_gbia0019054b

Following in Father's Footsteps

Vesta Tilley (1906)

https://archive.org/details/CollectedWorksOfVestaTilley

Variety bandbox (1950)

Philip Slessor / Roin Richmond

https://archive.org/details/variety-bandbox-22-jan-1950

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