Gilbert's Temper Broke Up The Panto
GILBERT: Hia Lifa and
Strife. By Hoskoth Pearson, Methuen. 25. 276 pages.
GILBERT
and Sullivan
together were the pin- tomime horse of Victorian England. They moved to
incomparable gether with
grace and precision. Euch half was filled with jealousу of the other. Their quarrels were fierce.
two dif- '
W. S. GILBERT
Perhups, If the names had come in ferent order, Sullivan would not have teen so touchy. But nobody who puts down Pearson's biography of Gil- bert will doubt that, in that event, the break in the partnership would have come earlier. Or that
GD-
bert would have initiated
it.
Gilbert inherited 12 shocking temper from both of his ill-matched parents. When his father used to call at his son's house on Sunday, he knew very well that it was useless to knock at the door, There were no servants to hear-and there was a bell, audible all over the house.
No reply
TL
by GEORGE
MALCOLM THOMSON
THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 1957.
BOOK
THE Horse PAGE
MR. WILSON PROBES THE MISFITS
by RICHARD_LISTER+++++++
by a chain of helpers, Aljast A BIT OFF THE MAP AND OTHER STORIES. By Angus
he crossed the Persian frontier.
Is his extraordinary story true? That it strains credulity is certain. That it has been heavily
edited and cuti likely. That it generates Its own- power, to
convinco will bo acknowledged by anyone who reads this impressive and grip- plng norrative of survival and escape.
1
THE TESTIMONY OF THE SPADE, By Gooffrey
Bibby. Collins, 30s. 448
pages.
BOTH amusing and dramalle,
Wilson. Socker and Warburg. 131. 6d. 193 pagos,
THIS WEEK OUR RECORD COLUMNIST IS THE BIGGEST NEWS IN HIS OWN COLUMN
by Cyril Stapleton
X7ELL, we're back. The band that everyono sald had got the sack has been rejuvenated re-formed donationalised-and is now back on radio every Saturday at 1.10 p.m. under private ownership,
[R ANGUS WILSON'S was the first big literary MANGUS SU's War the war, and with the W ushered in for us the new successful post-war shock subject-class.
take in their
an
hls off-beat
a
During the months we've been off the air, the Show. a shot in the arm in the shape of Band has received fresh, young, and enthusiastic players.
A British Crossword
Puzzle
4
THE
Ganging Up
THE Old Brigade of the pop song world are determined not-to-go. down without a fight. Remember how Ding Crosy scor- ed his first major recording suc- cess in a long time with "True And how he had the
Old
in their place David and I help of Princess Graco (neo are trying out an informal Kelly) on 17
Characteristically, the "off-the-cuff brand, of pre- Groaner set something of Bentation.
precedent. Under the unremil
ng assault from the new teen- age stars of Show Business, the crerking veterans are ganging up in sheer self-preservation.
With the
yoounger prize specimens of writers since John observation in the other stories.
Mr Angus Wilson Kingsley Amis, characters with
defines his Osborne, John Braine-class
sharp car for has their turns of speech and
Not that all the old facos Along with B.B.C. pPID. usurped the place once held relentless cataloguing of their
Several ducer John Browell, we by acx, for this they simply social hablis and class foibles. have disappeared.
This is perhaps En danger of of our old boys are still have evolved a new formula stride. But becoming a trick, which would around as indeed are the for our "Saturday Show." these young men represent make his social analyses seem Stargazers, the Show Band
Gone are the .neripted Love"? ordinary healthy heartless and his wit cruel. the story of Qe discoveries
-(London Express Service). Singers, and David Jacobs comedy and comedians and not inconsiderable sales-boosing by witch archaeologists have phenomenon which recurs pieced together the story of regularly in our social his- the Europe from 15800 BC to the tory; they belong to Viking Age. A story with many
now class (the state- ecernirle characters, e.g., a hard-
In this case) drinking Danish king who put educated his archaeologists into uniform; thrusting tislly up into a British Crimean martinet who the class above them, and
of modern any longer, you'd bring an became the father
excavation: action against me."
and a Norwegian one may confidently predict a lot of angry faimer who refused to part with that after
ship found on his bashing about they will Gilbert's wit wan real the Viking
land. Fascinating introduction settle (of Beerbohm Tree's Hum- to the subject,
down comfortably into the positions that it was let he said
have captured. funny without being vul- ill-natured. gar) but often His relations with women were complex; happy with his docile, wife; flirtatious with countless pretty young women; intensely puritani cal in the theatre. When
young
#
Hussar officer
boasted of the favours of a member of the Patience cast, Gilbert went to im- mense pains to extract a recuniation.
AS FAR AS MY FEET WILL CARRY ME. By J. M. Bouer, Deutsch, 15s. 254 pagos
-(London Express Service).
FICTION SHELF
-by PHILIP OAKES-
THE LONELY WOMEN, By Gerda Rhoads. Wingate, 13. Od.
What the Bilming industry does to a simple America giri. A cautionary tale told in B ple- ture pros. As appealing as a long, shrill gossip under the hair driers.
But Gilbert Senior persis tently ignored the bell and went on hammering at the door, cursing when there was no reply, stamping off in a rage, and refusing to
THE ITALIAN WIFE. By call again for several weeks.
Eyre and Emyr Humphreys, Gilbert's mother WUS
Spottiswoode. 15%. Ruefully tangled relationship between a even more unpleasant.
magazine politically ambitious, double Drawing on
LEMENS FORELL 19 the publisher,
his suffering second measure of pugneity, Gil-
nume assumed for reasons wife and his. Idealistic young bert hnd military longings of safely, by the German offeer son. A cold novel, that goes which
who told Bauer this story frustrated
through the appropriate motions, escape from u Siberian lead but never coines to life. when the Crimean War
mine on the Bering Strait. Forell end came abruptly to an
and his fellow-convicts lived and
only partly underground waiting for the THE CHILD OF FORTUNE. day when lead poisoning would By F.. Abercrombie. Gollant. assunged by a militia cap-
16a. The sad story of how put an end to their misery,
well-born English Lady taincy in the Royal Aber-
for a young deenshire Highlanders.
possessed by love American with odd eyes,
were
were
of
was
12
they
14
15
16
08
19
Mr Angus Wilson is much more compllented. He surveys the English social scene with the puritan disgust of an culsider (he is a South African). He observer that it is riddled with unhappiness, which is caused, in his diagnosis, by the shifting habits and sands of old class values leaving ahy number of people lying about not knowing they who they are and where belong. He has a great nose for these pockets of bad gases and opens them up with the literary equivalent of a surgeon's seal- pel.
DIFFERENT TYPES
A Bit Oft The Map is another collection of his case histories. Take the first and longest, which gives its name to the volume, as An example. It probca different ypes of the misfits end the squeezed-out, living under social which they hardly pressures, understand.
Kennle a decorative splv, s in starch of the Higher Truth. He hopes to find it with the Crowd" a gang of young, lower- middle-class Intellectuals.
Finally, on Hampstead Heath, he runs into a poor old dotly cut-colonel (rtd.), who think he knows the secret of life, and One day. In 1940 Forell made
and tries to explain it. But his form a bid for freedom. Three years He was vastly litigious. And two months later he arrived the smile of a fallen angel. All of dolliness doesn't make sense Toole, the actor, arriving at home in Munich. In the interval very intense and written in what to Kennie, and he gets his head
des-bashed in for his pains. Gilbert's country
he had wandered with Siberian the publishers nervousty house,
as "rich, supple, con and escaped Husslanerlbe
This long story is the best in nomads Just! said: "Here I am at
criminals. He had been passed voluted prose," You are right the present collection, but admirers will find several other I was afraid if I put it off from one hiding place to another to expect the worst.
VIGNETTES OF LIFE
WHY THE
HOUSECLEANING ?
THIS IS
SUNDAY!
"YOUR FOLKS ARE
COMING TO
INSPECT THE
HOUSE, AND YOU KNOW HOW THEY
NOTICE
THINGS!
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
129
30
2
31
ACROSS
1 Clean up the undergrowth (3). 4 Varsity exam (8).
& Bundle of stická (5),
16 Step on 17 (3)
12 Gront speaker 10). 14. Littio.Mary1:42). 17 Wine plani (4),
10 Very much alike (7), 20 Belleven (7).
Does it never wound true? (4). Effects reductionis (7). 21 Glussy fabric (0),
29 Like a chestnut? (5). 30 A large one please (6). 31 Dropping of? (D). Mr Drood? (5).
32
1 Capital place (8)..
DOWN
2 Stormed about? (8).
3 May make a clean sweep (3).
6 Plant disease (4).
10 No single answer WIN
do here
7 That dog the complar? (0),
9 Framework ((7).
11 Kosestays (6),
13 Cordial Bourer (7).'
15 Entomb (9).
20 Cruelling test (8).
10 Make a pront (4)
20 Epithet for
[6].
a shop.
comellnes
We feel that at lunchtime on Saturdays people who are getting ready to go to football matches
or have
just sat down for a midday men are more inclined to listen to music than a lot of chatter.
Time will prove whether our guess is right.
Who would have thought a couple of years ago that those arstwhile idols of the young, Johnnie Ray and Frankie Laine, would have found it necessary?
But you can buy the two for a single the price of one on Philips record "Good Evening Friends" ani "Up Above My on the vocal duo As the entire Show Bond Is Hend" ond travelling the length and Ray and Leine prove that they breadth of Britain on an eight- can still match the kids for work tour, with the biggest vitality.
It may only be coincidence package show ever put on the
own Joan Refan and road, we have recorded our first that our
have come up eight breadcasts in advance. We Max Bygravce
"Good shall be
**ve" back
on with the name idea on
for Decca November 30,
Evening Friends" After all, it's a small world.
Meanwhile I am getting-a groat kick
of meating
ont
many of the people who have Double Whiskey?
been such fervent fans over the year.
For instance, there is the man who stopped his car in the the middle of
trafle in Plymouth'e main street,
He rushed over and sald: "It
you, isn't it?"
I said: “Yes”
THE Charles McDevitt Sidfie
Group was thrown out of ittle gear somewhat when
out Nancy Whiskey struck an her own. They had all stoked "Freight Train" to succes-t Ginger Nancy naturidly got most credit,
WAS
Charles-made no recrel-of-the- fact that he was seeking a
he and He said: "I knew it whs," got replacement
his car and back into
drove endarrassed by the number of
End the applicants and the nway!
none thet
Was realisation
Then a letter arrived
asked, "Why," t "dont you audition my friend?
And then there was the dear suitable, 21 To a German, It wouldn't in old thing who said. "Forgive
mo for recognising you-con. I'.' Belfast.". have your autograph?"
Arvo (0),
24 Sound asleep) (3),
25 Often crooked (5). 24 The blunt endi (3), 28 Gult relative (4).
FRIDAY'S CROSSWORD~Acrom: 3 Squander, 8 Ivan, D. Misnomer,
11 Intrudes, 13 USSR. 15 Alphabet, 18 Lonesome. 19 Ends, 21 Fetor
d. 25 Saturday, 26 Spare a) Dime, 21 Distine. Down: 1 Mimi, 3 Mart, 4 Cuki, 5 Awns & Damas, 7 Raver. 9 Marul, 10.Seven, 23 Nyiem, 14 some 18 Bored. 17 Tesly, 19 Eat, 20. Daten, 21 Free, 22. Tape, 23 Rein, 24 Deer.
Inspecting The New House
I REMEMBER WHEN SHE GOT
THAT DRESS — SEEMS LIKE
ONLY YESTERDAY!
Or the girl who said to Des. O'Connor: "Don't waste your time telling Jokes you've got
singeT the figure to be besides you shake your legs just right"
By Harry Weinert
KR. EVERYTHING AROUND HERE IS AUTOMATIC — THIS IS THE ONLY EXERCISE SHE GETS /*
from
"NONE OF THESE
LOCKS SEEM
TO WORK.
WHERE'S
YOUR
SCREWDRIVER?.
·BEWARE OF THE VISITOR WHO IS
"HANDY WITH TOOLS."
ست.
NATURALLY, THE GIRLS ARE INTERESTED IN THE ROOMY CLOSETS—AND
THE CONTENTS.
T
AND IT'S WITHIA COMMUTING-
DISTANCE
TO TRAINS
AND BUSES/"
SURPRISE
VISIT.
SHIRLEY DOUGLAS
She doesn't really know what kime -but I think she'll fit in with your music....'
Barbers Douglas flew over to Man- meet the Skimers in chester. They listened were conquered,
and
Barbara had been singing professionally in a show, She even know Ruby Murray and Ronnie Carol, who lived around the corner in Belfast, That area is obviously very productive of warblers of alt types.
McDovili, by authority vested In him as Skifter-in-chier, got Miss Douglas to sign a contract fast-then promptly renamed her.
"We'll call her Shirley Douglas," he explains, "I just seems to sound botter."
THE TOP MEN
Paul Anka. "DIANA"
Columbia. (1)
"LAST TRAIN TO SAN FERNANDO." Johung Duncan. Columbie. (2)
"TAMMY."
Debbie
Reynolds. Vogue-Còtul.
"THE ONLY CRITICISM, I
HAVE TO OFFER IS THE
HOUSE SHOULD
FACE THE OTHER WAY --
10-155
COFR 1987 BY GENERAL FEATURES
CORP. TM-WORLD RIGHTS RESERVED.
SOME JOKER ALWAYS DISCOVERS SOMETHING — SUCH AS HOT WATER IN THE COLD" TAP AND COLD WATER IN THE "HOT" TAR
JUSTA SMALL DETAIL- HARDLY WORTH BRINGING UR
(0)
"ISLAND IN THE BUN."
Kerry Belafonte. RCA.
(0)
"LOYE LETTERS IN
"YOU CAN'T MISS IT— IT'S THE NEW HOUSE |WITH THE DIRT LAWAL”.
THE SAND." It Boone, Londoa, (3)
"WATER
WATER" } "HANDFUL OF SONGS"!| Tony Steele. Decca. (4).
"WITH
ALL MY
"HEART:"· Peljila Clark,
Pyc-Nixa: (5)
**THAT'LL S *BE THE
DAY." Crickets. Vogue- Coral:(0)
**ALL* BILOOK UP."
Elvi Presley. HM.V.
(10)
10 "LET'S
HAVE.
PARTY." ENIs Presley.
THE NEIG
"BORHOOD IS, CULTIVATED
RCA