My friend Pauline Stroud, who has died of cancer aged 92, started her acting career with a starring role in the film Lady Godiva Rides Again in 1951. Pauline played Marjorie Clark, who, having taken the role of Godiva in a local town parade, is persuaded to take part in the Miss Fascination Soap beauty contest. Other contestants were played by Joan Collins, Jean Marsh and Diana Dors, and the film also featured Stanley Holloway, George Cole and Sid James.
Ward Swingle, who has died aged 87, first had the idea of singing the works of JS Bach to the scat syllables of jazz in the early 1960s, during a quiet moment as a backing singer for recordings in Paris. The American-born musician – he was also a fine pianist – had been introduced to that world by the French jazz vocalist Christiane Legrand. She subsequently became lead soprano for Les Swingle Singers, the first of his lineups to provide one of the most distinctive sounds in popular music.
May 31st 2012 would have been Alfred Delller’s 100th Birthday: a magical evening in Boughton Aluph Church as Mark Deller presented a selection of his favourite recordings of his father, and that unique voice was heard again in the glorious venue which still hosts Stour Music, itself celebrating 50 Years of fabulous music-making this year. It has always been a source of sadness to me that I didn’t join The Deller Consort until after Alfred’s death – I would so love to have met him and heard him sing in person.
Thespian overload this week as I climbed to my usual seat in Royal Court via the bar…and found myself in the presence of Steven Moffat and Sue Vertue, at some private party or other...
Today’s high winds meant that several tube stations were closed due to overcrowding. I was travelling to Highbury and Islington and many of the stations around Kings Cross were affected, so when we reached my chosen stop it took us a full twenty-five minutes to exit the station as we shuffled along endless platforms and corridors at snail’s pace.
Against my better judgement I am trying it make sense of technology again today. What is Google +? I seem to have fallen into it because YouTube kept blocking my innocent wanderings through cyberspace in order to demand that I change my user name – and then refusing to allow me to oblige until I joined Google.
In view of the present need for massive vocal projection in open air concerts when the amplification system suddenly fails, I think it is time to investigate the training methods at the renowned School for Scaffolders
