Original D'Oyly Carte Broadcasts

Reported by Chris Webster

Chris wishes to acknowledge the contributions of Jeremy Stevenson, Stan DeOrsey and Leon Berger, for the many details they have added to this page.
20-Sept-26: The Mikado (excerpts)
Live performance from the Princes Theatre
8.15-8.45pm and 10.30 to “the final curtain.”

Presumably, this broadcast included the overture to a fade out at whatever point they had reached by 8.45 and then a fade in from wherever they where at 10.30 until the end of the opera. This was the first ever live G&S broadcast. One of my cuttings shows a stage photo from this night in which the BBC microphones can be seen. The Radio Times for the week of 15th October 1926 carries a front page article by Lytton about the broadcast.

See the separate page for further details. My cuttings do not give the cast listings, so the following are courtesy of the web page:

The Mikado Darrell Fancourt
Nanki-Poo Charles Goulding
Ko-Ko Henry A. Lytton
Pooh-Bah Leo Sheffield
Pish-Tush John Huntington
Yum-Yum Elsie Griffin
Pitti-Sing Aileen Davies
Peep-Bo Beatrice Elburn
Katisha Bertha Lewis
Conductor: Dr. Malcolm Sargent

(Go-To is not listed but would have been heard at least in the Act One portion and presumably played by T. Penry Hughes.)


25-Dec-29: Cox and Box
D'Oyly Carte/BBC Studio Broadcast

This broadcast used D'Oyly Carte artists who were specially contracted by the BBC for the event.

  Cox Martyn Green  
  Box Charles Goulding  
  Bouncer Darrell Fancourt  
Wireless Orchestra
Conductor: Victor Hely-Hutchinson*
Producer: Julian Herbage

[*] (A G&S Journal item from March 34 states that Stanford Robinson was the conductor, but both my original source and The Times radio listings give Hely-Hutchinson.)

G&S Journal, Vol 2, p. 132, carried an article entitled “Broadcasting the Operas” that commented on this and the next listed broadcast. Of interest to this item is “Those who listened will recollect that a voice intruded here and there to describe what was going on, while, occasionally, a little added dialogue helped to create a mind picture of some piece of business that otherwise would have been lost on the listener unfamiliar with the piece.”

See the separate page for further details.


24-Jan-30: The Mikado (excerpts)
Live Performance from the Savoy
8.15 - 9.00pm & 10.12 - 11.00pm

As with the 1926 Mikado broadcast, this relay featured whatever the opera had run to in Act One and Act Two between the above times. See the separate page for further details.

The Mikado Darrell Fancourt
Nanki-Poo Derek Oldham
Ko-Ko Henry Lytton
Pooh-Bah Sydney Granville
Pish-Tush Leslie Rands
Yum-Yum Winifred Melville
Pitti-Sing Nellie Briercliffe
Peep-Bo Beatrice Elburn
Katisha Bertha Lewis
Conductor: Dr. Malcolm Sargent

(Go-To is omitted in the Times listing but would have been heard at least in the Act One portion presumably played by L Radley Flynn.)


22-Feb-30: Iolanthe (excerpts)
Live Performance from the Savoy
8.45 - 9.15pm & 9.50 - 10.45pm

As before, this relay featured whatever the opera had run to in both acts when the microphones went live.

Lord Chancellor Henry Lytton
Lord Mountararat Darrell Fancourt
Lord Tolloller David Grundy
Strephon Leslie Rands
Private Willis Sydney Granville
Queen of the Fairies Bertha Lewis
Iolanthe Nellie Briercliffe
Celia Sybil Gordon
Leila Beatrice Elburn
Fleta Muriel Dickson
Phyllis Winifred Lawson
Conductor: Dr. Malcolm Sargent

3-Dec-32, 9.50pm: The Mikado (Act Two)
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

This was the first of three broadcasts this season.

The Mikado Darrell Fancourt
Nanki-Poo Charles Goulding
Ko-Ko Henry Lytton
Pooh-Bah Sydney Granville
Pish-Tush Leslie Rands
Yum-Yum Muriel Dickson
Pitti-Sing Marjorie Eyre
Peep-Bo Elizabeth Nickell-Lean
Katisha Dorothy Gill
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

9-Dec-32, 8.15pm: The Gondoliers (Act One)
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

It seems that Lytton hot-footed it from a radio studio to the theatre on this night, because a brief cutting states “...Lytton will be heard this evening ... singing “I can't think why” .... This will be in the League of Mercy concert at 6.30pm organised by Lady Tree and George Grossmith. Incidentally it will be Sir Henry's first ‘appearance” in a studio. He will also be heard ... at 8.15 when an act of The Gondoliers is to be broadcast.”

Duke Henry Lytton
Luiz John Dean
Don Alhambra Sydney Granville
Marco Charles Goulding
Giuseppe Leslie Rands
Antonio Richard Walker
Francesco Robert Wilson
Giorgio L. Radley Flynn
Duchess Dorothy Gill
Casilda Rowena Ronald
Gianetta Muriel Dickson
Tessa Marjorie Eyre
Fiametta Doreen Denny
Vittoria [not indicated]
Giulia [not indicated]
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

(Annibale and Inez are omitted but these only appear in Act Two which wasn't broadcast. However Vittoria, who does appear in Act One, was also omitted and according to Rollins & Witts this was played by Elizabeth Nickell-Lean.)


24-Dec-32: The Yeomen of the Guard
Act One at 8.10pm, Act Two at 10.00pm
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

“Not only the first opera to be broadcast in its entirety but also the first complete full-length play to be relayed from any theatre.” Note that although the broadcast predated Henry Lytton's retirement, Martyn Green played Point.

Sir Richard Cholmondely Richard Watson
Colonel Fairfax Charles Goulding
Sergeant Meryll Darrell Fancourt
Leonard Meryll John Dean
Jack Point Martyn Green
Wilfred Shadbolt Sydney Granville
First Yeoman Robert Wilson
Second Yeoman Richard Eaton
Elsie Maynard Muriel Dickson
Phoebe Meryll Marjorie Eyre
Dame Carruthers Dorothy Gill
Kate Doreen Denny
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

??-Jan-33, 9.40pm: The Mikado (Act One)
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

This was actually the last night of the 1933 season and Lytton's farewell to the London stage. As usual it was unknown until the last minute what was to be performed, and even the usually stuffy BBC observed the mystery of this tradition and were not able to advertise the exact programme in advance. I'm not sure from Rollins & Witts whether their final date for this season, 21st January, refers to the final day, or whether the 21st was the first day of the last week of the season (this should be easy enough to ascertain from other sources). We can only assume that the cast will correspond with the R&W listings for this season, unless any understudies went on.

See the detailed series of articles on this performance kindly provided by Robert Morrison.


25-Dec-33, 9.20pm: The Mikado (Act Two)
D'Oyly Carte Studio Broadcast

There is a note explaining why Lytton is still playing, as listeners will perhaps have become confused as the most recent broadcast had been a Lytton farewell. I wonder if that previous broadcast (less than a year earlier) being Act One had any bearing on this being Act Two?

The Mikado Darrell Fancourt
Nanki-Poo Charles Goulding
Ko-Ko Henry Lytton
Pooh-Bah Sydney Granville
Yum-Yum Muriel Dickson
Pitti-Sing Marjorie Eyre
Peep-Bo Elizabeth Nickell-Lean
Katisha Dorothy Gill
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

(Pish-Tush is omitted. Presumably this was Rands. Go-To is omitted but was present in the previous Act Two broadcast, so either Rands sang it as Pish-Tush in the Madrigal and the omission was intended, or it was accidental, in which case per Rollins & Witts either Charles Cornford or Hugh Rowlands sang it. Have a look at Flynn's interesting entries in R&W, pp. 157/8.)


17-June-35, 8.00pm: The Yeomen of the Guard (Act One)
Live Broadcast from Sadler's Wells
Sir Richard Cholmondely Leslie Rands
Colonel Fairfax Charles Goulding
Sergeant Meryll Darrell Fancourt
Leonard Meryll John Dean
Jack Point Martyn Green
Wilfred Shadbolt Sydney Granville
First Yeoman Robert Wilson
Second Yeoman Samuel Mooney
First Citizen C. William Morgan
Second Citizen Frank Steward
Elsie Maynard Muriel Dickson
Phoebe Meryll Marjorie Eyre
Dame Carruthers Dorothy Gill
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

(Kate is omitted but Rollins & Witts give Kathleen Frances.)


21-June-35: The Mikado (Act One)
Live Broadcast from Sadler's Wells
Nanki-Poo John Dean
Ko-Ko Martyn Green
Pooh-Bah Sydney Granville
Yum-Yum Kathleen Francis
Pitti-Sing Marjorie Eyre
Peep-Bo Elizabeth Nickell-Lean
Katisha Dorothy Gill
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

Go-To is omitted. Presumably this was Flynn.


7-May-51: The Mikado (Act One)
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre
The Mikado L. Radley Flynn
Nanki-Poo Neville Griffiths
Ko-Ko Martyn Green
Pooh-Bah Richard Watson
Pish-Tush Alan Styler
Go-To Donald Harris
Yum-Yum Margaret Mitchell
Pitti-Sing Joan Gillingham
Peep-Bo Joyce Wright
Katisha Ella Halman
Conductor: Sir Malcolm Sargent

See the separate page for further details.


22-June-51, 9.30-10.20pm: H.M.S. Pinafore (Act Two)
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre
Sir Joseph Porter Martyn Green
Captain Corcoran Eric Thornton
Ralph Rackstraw Neville Griffiths
Dick Deadeye Darrell Fancourt
Bill Bobstay Donald Harris
Bob Becket L. Radley Flynn
Josephine Muriel Harding
Little Buttercup Ella Halman
Hebe Joan Gillingham
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

6-June-53, 7.05-8.25pm: The Gondoliers (Act One)

Judging by the orchestra credits in the Radio Times this would appear to be a joint DC/BBC “studio” recording rather than a broadcast from the theatre, presumably made a few days before the broadcast in a BBC studio near Oxford where the Company were appearing at the time.

Duke of Plaza-Toro Peter Pratt
Luiz Jeffrey Skitch
Don Alhambra Fisher Morgan
Marco Leonard Osborn
Giuseppe Alan Styler
Antonio Donald Adams
Francesco Herbert Newby
Giorgio Trevor Hills
Annibale John Reed
Duchess of Plaza-Toro Ann Drummond-Grant
Casilda Tatiana Preston
Gianetta Muriel Harding
Tessa Joyce Wright
Fiametta Beatrix Edwards
Vittoria Ceinwen Jones
Giulia Lorna Pobjoy
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey
Chorus Master: William Cox-Ife
The Combined D'Oyly Carte and
BBC West of England Light Orchestras

28-Jul-53, 7.00pm: Iolanthe
Live brodcast from Sadlers Wells

As only the first act was broadcast on BBC Home service (which was the national radio station) the Radio Times did not detail Private Willis, who only appears in Act Two. However, Act Two was broadcast on the World Service (I am not sure if they carried both acts or just the second). Willis was presumably played (on the World Service only) by Fisher Morgan.

The casting of Lord Mountararat is most curious. Darrell Fancourt had given up Mountararat some three years earlier, and there is no record of him playing it during this season. However, this performance occurred during his final week with the company (which he didn't complete), so perhaps perhaps he was making a special guest appearance in the role for old times' sake, or maybe he even appeared at the BBCs request.

Lord Chancellor Peter Pratt
Lord Mountararat Darrell Fancourt
Lord Tolloller Leonard Osborn
Private Willis Fisher Morgan [?]
Strephon Alan Styler
Queen of the Fairies Ann Drummond-Grant
Iolanthe Joyce Wright
Celia Cynthia Morey
Leila Elizabeth Howarth
Fleta Jean Tyler
Phyllis Tatiana Preston
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

27-Sep-54: Princess Ida (Act Two)
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

This was the first night of the revival so it would be quite an historic document if a copy could be found.

King Hildebrand Fisher Morgan
Hilarion Thomas Round
Cyril Leonard Osborn
Florian Jeffrey Skitch
King Gama Peter Pratt
Arac Donald Adams
Guron John Banks
Scynthius Trevor Hills
Princess Ida Victoria Sladen
Lady Blanche Ann Drummond-Grant
Lady Psyche Muriel Harding
Melissa Beryl Dixon
Sacharissa Cynthia Morey

25-Nov-54: The Mikado (complete)
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

This was not broadcast live but was recorded on the afternoon of the date given before an invited audience so that it could be given a Christmas time broadcast on the evening of Sunday, 26 December 1954. With the expiry of the fifty-year copyright term, the recording has now been re-issued on CD.

The Mikado Donald Adams
Nanki-Poo Neville Griffiths
Ko-Ko Peter Pratt
Pooh-Bah Fisher Morgan
Pish-Tush Jeffrey Skitch
Go-To John Banks
Yum-Yum May Sanderson
Pitti-Sing Joyce Wright
Peep-Bo Beryl Dixon
Katisha Ann Drummond-Grant
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey
Narrator: John Ellison

I found Pratt disappointing on my first listening, but I have now heard several of his live recordings, and despite deciding in general that I was not a fan, on a more recent listening I warmed to him “a little” (but not a lot). He appears to be very timid, and his pointing seems well thought out, but it seems more as though the timing of the comedy is in Pratt's head but is not extended to the listeners' funny bones (the baa-ing is in Ko-Ko's opening scene by the way, and the Little List includes “the daily diarist,” or perhaps this should be “the Dale-y diarist,” as this is obviously a pun on the popular BBC programme of the day, Mrs Dale's Diary (and it gets a good laugh). Griffiths had a heavier voice than I expected, knowing him only from his Decca recording. He gets a cadenza in “Flowers,” which is not the same one that Kenny Baker uses. Adams was not yet the Mikado that he was to become. In view of his later performances I at first found him disappointing, although in reality I think he was probably still very good. On a second listening, I couldn't really see exactly what I found lacking in Adams and was much happier with him then. Skitch was as likable and solid as his recordings, but Drummie and Morgan were wonderful — particularly Morgan, who must be one of the best Pooh-Bahs ever. Joyce Wright is delightful; the other girls are OK.

The narrator is not the Jon Ellison who was a member of D'Oyly Carte.


10-Dec-54: Ruddigore
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

It is worth noting that this was a last night performance, and so it is possible that neither the attending audience nor the listeners would have known what to expect, and it is possible that this may not have been an entirely conventional performance, although I don't know what “licence” the performers were allowed at last nights at this stage — they may still have been straight performances with the “specialness” being purely the surprise element. It seems that the BBC Home service (which was a national radio station) broadcast the only first act, whereas both acts were broadcast on the General Overseas Service.

Robin Oakapple Peter Pratt
Richard Dauntless Leonard Osborn
Sir Despard Murgatroyd Fisher Morgan
Old Adam John Banks
Rose Maybud Cynthia Morey
Mad Margaret Joyce Wright
Dame Hannah Ann Drummond-Grant
Zorah May Sanderson
Ruth Joyce Ferrer
Sir Roderic Murgatroyd Darrell Fancourt

13-Nov-55: The Pirates of Penzance
An abridged and narrated television broadcast made
during the company's stay in New York

This was a 40 minute cut in to the middle of the US TV programme Omnibus entitled “Scenes from The Pirates of Penzance,” and the excerpts are not well constructed. Also the narration (by Alistair Cooke) is dreadful, but this is not the narrator's fault unless he wrote his own script. I have a copy of the soundtrack which has an amount of tape wobble, but the actual film does still exist and may be viewed by visitors to certain U.S. archives that hold copies. [It is in the Library of Congress; see separate article.]

Major-General Stanley Peter Pratt
Pirate King Donald Adams
Samuel Trevor Hills or
George Cook
Frederic Neville Griffiths
Sergeant of Police Fisher Morgan
Mabel Muriel Harding
Edith Joyce Wright
Kate Joy Mornay
Ruth Ann Drummond-Grant
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey
Narrator: Alistair Cooke

I don't know the venue of this broadcast. It may have been from a TV studio, or it may have been from the theatre where the Company was performing, but whichever it was not done before a live audience, although it may still have been a live broadcast.

The items and timings are as follows. These clearly show what was missing, and the timings give an idea of how some items were reduced.

Overture 3:13
Climbing over rocky mountain 1:38
Oh is there not one maiden breast 3:22
How beautifully blue the sky 2:00
Stay we must not lose our senses 1:23
Hold monsters 0:45
I am the very model 2:41
And now that I have introduced myself 1:26
Although our dark career 1:46
At what time does your expedition march 2:58
Now for the pirates lair 4:58
When a felon's not engaged 2:18
With catlike tread 1:25
To gain a brief advantage 2:18
Finale 1:38

14-Dec-56: The Gondoliers
Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

This was not broadcast live, but was recorded on the date given so that it could be given a Christmas time broadcast on the evening of Sunday, 23 December 1956.

Duke of Plaza-Toro Peter Pratt
Luiz Jeffrey Skitch
Don Alhambra Arthur Richards
Marco Neville Griffiths
Giuseppe Alan Styler
Antonio John Reed
Francesco John Fryatt
Giorgio George Cook
Annibale John Reed
Duchess of Plaza-Toro Ann Drummond-Grant
Casilda Maureen Melvin
Gianetta Jean Hindmarsh
Tessa Joyce Wright
Fiametta Mary Sansom
Vittoria Ceinwen Jones
Giulia Margaret Dobson
Inez Alice Hynd
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey

28-Jan-59: The Gondoliers
Live broadcast from the Princes Theatre

I think this was broadcast live and not recorded at an earlier date for a later transmission, but am not entirely sure.

Duke of Plaza-Toro Peter Pratt
Luiz John Fryatt
Don Alhambra Kenneth Sandford
Marco Thomas Round
Giuseppe Alan Styler
Antonio John Reed
Francesco Frederick Sinden
Giorgio George Cook
Annibale John Reed
Duchess of Plaza-Toro Ann Drummond-Grant
Casilda Jennifer Toye
Gianetta Jean Hindmarsh
Tessa Joyce Wright
Fiametta Mary Sansom
Vittoria Ceinwen Jones
Giulia Anne Session
Inez Alice Hynd
Conductor: Isidore Godfrey
Narrator: John Ellison

This exists in private collections, and several things stuck in my mind after my first listening. I was horrified to hear evidence that John Reed really did occasionally get out of time with the orchestra — and he was only playing Antonio! I quite smugly noted that not long after John's fluff, Tom Round got out of time even more horribly during “We're Called Gondolieri.” Of course, I wasn't smug because it had happened to Tom, just that it had happened and was worse than John's error. To John's credit, his Annibale dialogue is delivered with the style of a natural old school G&S performer, and despite his earlier fluff it is no wonder that he went on to rightly achieve his own greatness, because you can hear it in this brief dialogue. Styler and Tom were both great together, and the girls were a good match, but I have to add that Joyce Wright is absolutely gorgeous (as she is in everything). Drummie was a highlight of the recording (and that comes from one who can't stand the roles of the Duke and Duchess). I do not particularly like Pratt's performance as the Duke. To me he comes across (here and elsewhere) as being far too introverted for the some of the comedy roles although his style does work in roles such as Robin and Point. That said, a friend who who has also heard this recording has nothing but admiration for his subdued style and finds them extremely intelligent portrayals. Sandford has an assurance that would make you think he had played the role for years, when he was actually fairly new to it. Two other particular points that stick in my mind concern encores. Sandford has an encore for “There lived a king” that is taken at what seems like twice the pace of the original. I wonder if this was traditional. If it was, it seems to have been discarded and forgotten about. Tom's encore for “Sparkling Eyes” is totally different in style to the original — far more dreamy. There are lots of encores for the Gavotte too, and the laughter is wonderful — I just wish I knew exactly what was going on. The narrator does explain some of the business, but obviously more is going on that he is describing.

The narrator is not the Jon Ellison who was a member of D'Oyly Carte.


December 1961: Iolanthe
Live D'Oyly Carte Performance

This was the last performance before the copyright expired. The BBC then broadcast the Sadlers Wells Iolanthe a few weeks later.

Lord Chancellor John Reed
Earl of Mountararat Donald Adams
Earl Tolloller Philip Potter
Private Willis Kenneth Sandford
Strephon Jeffrey Skitch
Queen of the Fairies Gillian Knight
Iolanthe Joyce Wright
Celia Joan Lawrence
Leila Pauline Wales
Fleta Dawn Bradshaw
Phyllis Mary Sansom
Conductor: Sir Malcolm Sargent

13-Dec-65: Patience
Live BBC-TV Performance from the Saville Theatre

This was not broadcast live, but recorded before an invited audience for transmission on 27th December. Film no longer exists (or, if it does, it has yet to be discovered), but happily after thirty-four years a copy of the soundtrack has been found. See the discussion on separate page.


1975: The Mikado
Live Broadcast from the Savoy Theatre

This was from the Centenary Fortnight Season.

The Mikado John Ayldon
Nanki-Poo Colin Wright
Ko-Ko John Reed
Pooh-Bah Kenneth Sandford
Pish-Tush Michael Rayner
Go-To John Broad
Yum-Yum Julia Goss
Pitti-Sing Judi Merri
Peep-Bo Patricia Leonard
Katisha Lyndsie Holland
Conductor: Charles Mackerras