Old Mother Riley

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Arthur Lucan and Kitty McShane as Old Mother Riley and her daughter Kitty Lucan-mcshane.jpg
Arthur Lucan and Kitty McShane as Old Mother Riley and her daughter Kitty

Old Mother Riley is a fictional character portrayed from about 1934 to 1954 by Arthur Lucan and from 1954 to the 1980s by Roy Rolland as part of a British music hall act. [1] [2]

Contents

Old Mother Riley (full comedy name: Daphne Bluebell Snowdrop Riley) is an Irish washerwoman and charwoman character, devised by Lucan (born Arthur Towle). [1] [3] His wife Kitty McShane played Old Mother Riley's daughter, Kitty. [1] It was essentially a drag act but also a double act. The couple played music halls, theatres, and broadcast on radio and appeared in films. Lucan was voted sixth biggest British box-office star by the Motion Picture Herald in 1943. [4] [5] In 1939, Jimmy Clitheroe appeared in an Old Mother Riley pantomime called The Old Woman who Lives in a Shoe, [6] and then the following year had a part in the film, Old Mother Riley in Society . The Film Fun comic included an “Old Mother Riley” strip cartoon in the 1940s.

Old Mother Riley was the first and arguably the most influential drag act on stage and screen. Although nothing like the glamorous acts like Danny La Rue, Old Mother Riley proved that drag could be a smash hit with audiences and make you a star. The Old Mother Riley films also proved that drag could be an acceptable part of comedy and storytelling. Previous to Old Mother Riley, drag was a mixture of singing acts and short comedy sketches in music halls across the UK.

Roy Rolland was Lucan's understudy and stand-in, and after Lucan's death in 1954 he continued to play the Old Mother Riley character in pantomime, on television and in cabaret until the 1980s. [1]

The character and show exist in a comic lineage that extends to Mrs. Brown's Boys . [7]

Old Mother Riley films

Made on a minuscule budget, but extremely profitable, 16 of the 18 films made by Arthur Lucan featured him as Old Mother Riley:

At the time of Lucan's death he was scheduled to film Old Mother Riley's Trip to Mars.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Lucan</span> English actor (1885–1954)

Arthur Lucan was an English actor who performed the drag act Old Mother Riley on stage, radio and screen, with a series of comedy films from the late 1930s to the early 1950s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kitty McShane</span> Irish actress

Kathleen "Kitty" McShane was an Irish actress, best known as the wife and acting partner of Arthur Lucan, with whom she appeared in a series of Old Mother Riley stage shows and films from the 1930s to the 1950s.

<i>Old Mother Riley</i> (film) 1937 British film

Old Mother Riley is a 1937 British comedy film directed by Oswald Mitchell and starring Arthur Lucan in the lead, with Kitty McShane, Barbara Everest, Patrick Ludlow and Hubert Leslie. Mother Riley and her daughter stop the plans of some disinherited relatives to overturn the terms of a will.

<i>Old Mother Riley in Paris</i> 1938 British film

Old Mother Riley in Paris is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Oswald Mitchell and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane, Magda Kun and C. Denier Warren. It is the second in the Old Mother Riley series of films, and is also known by its re-release title, Old Mother Riley Catches a Quisling.

<i>Old Mother Rileys Ghosts</i> 1941 British film

Old Mother Riley's Ghosts is a 1941 British comedy film directed by John Baxter and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane and John Stuart. It was the 8th in the long-running Old Mother Riley series. Old Mother Riley inherits a castle in Scotland, but it appears to be haunted.

<i>Old Mother Riley Overseas</i> British film

Old Mother Riley Overseas is a 1943 British comedy film directed by Oswald Mitchell and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane and Anthony Holles. In the screenplay, Old Mother Riley relocates to Portugal.

<i>Old Mother Riley in Business</i> 1941 British film

Old Mother Riley in Business is a 1941 British comedy film directed by John Baxter and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane and Cyril Chamberlain. It was the sixth in the long-running Old Mother Riley series of films. Old Mother Riley's pub faces competition from a large chain store nearby, causing her to declare war on it.

<i>Old Mother Rileys Circus</i> 1941 film

Old Mother Riley's Circus is a 1941 British comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane and John Longden. Old Mother Riley takes over a struggling circus and makes a huge success of it. The trade ad poster proclaims, "A LAUGH - A YELL - A ROAR - A LUCANQUAKE!" The film was made at the Rock Studios in Elstree by British National Films. It was the final film by Bentley, who had been a leading British director during the silent era and early sound era.

<i>Old Mother Riley Joins Up</i> 1940 British film

Old Mother Riley Joins Up is a 1940 British comedy film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane, Martita Hunt, Bruce Seton and Garry Marsh. It was part of the long-running Old Mother Riley series.

<i>Old Mother Riley Detective</i> 1943 British film

Old Mother Riley Detective is a 1943 British comedy film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane and Hal Gordon. It was part of the long running Old Mother Riley series. Old Mother Riley investigates the disappearance of food during the war, a serious crime because of rationing.

<i>Old Mother Riley at Home</i> 1945 British film

Old Mother Riley at Home is a 1945 British comedy film directed by Oswald Mitchell and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane and Freddie Forbes. It is the 11th film in the long-running Old Mother Riley series.

<i>Old Mother Riley, MP</i> 1939 British film

Old Mother Riley, MP is a 1939 British comedy film starring Arthur Lucan and Kitty McShane, which forms part of the Old Mother Riley series of films. The film's plot centres on Old Mother Riley standing for election to the House of Commons.

<i>On Your Way, Riley</i> 1982 play by Alan Plater

On Your Way, Riley is a 1982 play by Alan Plater and a 1985 Yorkshire Television drama of the same name about the private and theatrical partnership of husband and wife 'Old Mother Riley' music hall performers Arthur Lucan and Kitty McShane.

<i>Mother Riley Meets the Vampire</i> 1952 British film

Mother Riley Meets the Vampire, also known as Vampire Over London or My Son, the Vampire, is a 1952 British horror comedy film directed by John Gilling, starring Arthur Lucan and Bela Lugosi that was filmed at Nettlefold Studios.

<i>Old Mother Rileys Jungle Treasure</i> 1951 British film

Old Mother Riley's Jungle Treasure is a low budget 1951 British comedy film, the penultimate in the long running Old Mother Riley series starring Arthur Lucan and Kitty McShane. It features an early appearance by future Carry On regular Peter Butterworth.

<i>Old Mother Riley Headmistress</i> 1950 British film

Old Mother Riley, Headmistress is a low-budget black-and-white 1950 British comedy film, starring Arthur Lucan and Kitty McShane. The 13th film in the Old Mother Riley series, it features the Luton Girls Choir playing many of Mother Riley's pupils.

<i>Old Mother Riley in Society</i> 1940 British film

Old Mother Riley in Society is a low budget 1940 black and white British comedy film, directed by John Baxter, and starring Arthur Lucan and Kitty McShane. It is the fifth in the long running Old Mother Riley series, and features the screen debut of Jimmy Clitheroe as the boot boy in a high society household.

<i>Old Mother Rileys New Venture</i> 1949 British film

Old Mother Riley's New Venture is a low-budget black-and-white 1949 British comedy film, starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane and Chili Bouchier. It is the twelfth in the long-running Old Mother Riley films, and was the first of the series to play in London's West End. In addition, it was the first to be released in the US, where it opened in 1952, as Old Mother Riley,.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roy Rolland</span> English comedian and stage actor

Roy Rolland was an English comedian and stage actor who was the understudy for Arthur Lucan as Old Mother Riley and who took over the role following the death of Lucan in 1954, playing it until about 1977.

Gaston and Andree were a duo of British adagio dancers and gymnasts, who were popular performers in variety shows in the 1930s, and later became theatrical producers. They were Jimmy Gaston and Rosemary Andree.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Gifford, Denis (26 August 1997). "Obituary Roy Rolland". The Independent. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  2. ↑ "Old Mother Riley homepage". Archived from the original on 2012-02-20. Retrieved 2014-10-04.
  3. ↑ "Britmovie". Old Mother Riley: The Life and Career of Arthur Lucan. Britmovie. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  4. ↑ Matthew Coniam (2009-09-13). "The 1944-45 Motion Picture Almanac". Movietone News. Archived from the original on 2014-03-03. Retrieved 2014-03-03.
  5. ↑ "Arthur Lucan – the man who was "Old Mother Riley"" (PDF). Brent.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
  6. ↑ "Vintage British Comedy". Old Mother Riley. Archived from the original on 18 December 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  7. ↑ McMullan, Thomas (24 December 2018). "How Mrs Brown's Boys became a critic-proof hit". BBC News. Retrieved 24 December 2018.

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