Sandy Powell

Sandy Powell0:00

Hello, I'm Kirsty Young, and this is a podcast from the Desert Island Disc's Archive. For rights' reasons we've had to shorten the music. This is a recording as it was being broadcast, rather than the studio recording.

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and for that reason you may hear some interference, and some degradation in the sound quality.

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The programme was originally broadcast in nineteen sixty eight.

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Each week, a well-known person is asked the question, if you were to be cast away alone on a desert island, which eight gramophone records would you choose to have with you?

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As usual, the castaway is introduced by Roy Plumley.

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Our castaway this week, ladies and gentlemen, is a comedian. It's Sandy Powell.

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Sandy, are you a musical person?

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Um I love music, yes, I really do. Do you play an instrument?

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Well, I've got a violin. Of course you have, yes. I can't say I play it. I I mess about with it, you know. When did you start learning the violin? Oh, I suppose about I was about six or seven. I think I had uh two lessons. Well, you do very well for two lessons. But I haven't improved much, you know. But it comes in useful. I use it for comedy, you know. It comes in useful.

Sandy Powell1:01

Yeah.

Speaker 21:20

Yeah.

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What would you want these eight records to do for you on a desert island? Remind you of the past, cheer you up? What are you taking them for? Well, they'd all bring back very pleasant memories. What's the first one? Well, I'd like uh Kendard.

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I think he's a a brilliant artist. He g he gets laughs quicker than anyone in our business. And then he sings that with that lovely voice. I'd like Ken Dodd to sing Tears, please.

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It's possible.

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Ins are all universe means.

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Where is a hollow?

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I just can't believe

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The voice of Ken Dodd. What's your second disc?

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Well, America, you know, they have sent us some wonderful comics over here, you know, Bob Ho.

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Jack Benny, but one of my great favorites is uh Bob Newhart. Could I have Bob Newhart in the the drive-in lesson? Always makes me laugh.

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Of course you're nervous. I'm nervous. I'm not just saying that. I'm really very nervous.

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Of course you're nervous.

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I'm nervous.

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Yeah.

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Nervous.

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Well, uh just just don't pay any attention to their honking. You're doing fine.

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Yeah.

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You're not blocking anyone's lane.

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No, as long as you're here on the safety island, you're not blocking any complaints. Uh all right, you want to start the car?

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Uh are

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Uh while you're turning the lights off, why don't you turn off the heater?

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What do you have?

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Yeah.

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See?

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Uh

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Sandy, where do you come from?

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Uh, Yorkshire, Rotherham, I was born. Mm-hmm. Theatrical family? Yes, my mother was uh was on the stage. Yes, sir. Uh a variety performer? Yes. Did you travel about with her as a child? Yes, yes. When did you make your first appearance?

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I think I was about seven. With her? Yes. What did you do? First of all, I used to be in front in the audience and sing one of her choruses and then I went on as a singleton.

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A boy soprano. Little velvet suit and a lace collar. Oh, I did look nice. And after that?

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Well then we gradually improved, you know, we got onto the cinemas, you know, silent films and two turns.

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And they used to call the terms lantern coolers.

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We weren't important. It was just to let the lanterns cool down for the next picture, you know. What about school?

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Well

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Yes, I did go to school for two or three weeks I mean and you educated yourself? Well, yes, the little bit I've got, yes, I've had to, yes. All I can remember I was good at drawing and and then the teacher used to ask me to sing.

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For the other pupils. That's all I remember school.

Sandy Powell4:33

Yeah.

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What do you look back on as your first break, your first opportunity? Uh well, I think.

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It was about 1915

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My mother and I working at the Old City Varieties, we did a a double term called Lily and Sandy. And a few miles away at Dewsbury, the Empire Dewsbury, we Georgie Wood was top of the bill, a great star of course.

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He was off one night and they invited us to deputize for him.

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And there happened to be a London agent in front.

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The Montague it was, and he came round.

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And he said, I'd like you to try a single turn.

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And he got me two trial weeks, one at the Shepherd's Bush Empire, you know, the television theatre now.

Sandy Powell5:21

Television

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and the other one at the Ardwick Green Empire in Manchester. And that was really, I suppose, the first good break, you know. When did you first top a build?

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1918. When you were still a teenager. Yes, I was 18. Yes. But I was born in 1900. And by the time you were 21, you were running your own show, your own company. Yes.

Sandy Powell5:43

Yeah.

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Yes. On the smalls, of course.

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Let's break off your third record. What shall we have now? Well, I.

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Even though I'm a comic, I love ballet.

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And I was very undecided, you know, as to

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the music I should choose, but I finally decided on the the Dines one. I think it's lovely music.

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The swan from the Saints Carnival of the Animals.

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The Solo Cello by Raymond Clark.

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Now Sandy, going back to your career, you had your own show going round the halls, the small halls at 21. When did you make your first broadcast?

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1928 and we did it in a little room in the Blackpool Tower building.

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Now, there's a famous catchphrase of yours. Oh, yes. Will you remind us of it? Yes. Can you hear me, Mother? Wh when did that start? That was in the early thirties.

Sandy Powell7:40

Yeah.

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Was it a sudden inspiration? I'll tell you exactly what happened. I was broadcasting a sketch called Sandy at the North Pole.

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I was supposed to be broadcasting from the North Pole, you know, to home. I asked him if they would get my mother so that I could speak to her.

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And Can You Hear Me Mother was a line in the sketch and it was mentioned several times, you know, a little bit of pattern in there, Can You Hear Me, Mother a bit.

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And in the middle of the sketch, I dropped my script on the floor, all the pages all over the place.

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Picking them up I had to add Leb fill in and I said, Can you hear me, Mother? again two or three times and uh

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And it caught on. It was never meant to be a catchphrase. The people just...

Sandy Powell8:29

Neighbors.

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Made it like that, thank goodness.

Sandy Powell8:35

Yeah.

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Passed into

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So you've been a a radio star for 40 years. What about records? You made a lot of records.

Sandy Powell8:42

Yeah.

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Yes, well I did my first nineteen twenty-nine.

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the uh lost policeman. Mm. The record

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Really clicked and uh that sold over half a million. Did it? In those days, yeah, that was a lot, you know. And you made quite a number of films.

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Yes, I think I did uh

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Eight altogether. And you were a television pioneer.

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Yes, yes, I think so, because I did my first television, I think it was uh nineteen

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34, 35, something like that. From where?

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A building I think it was next door to Broadcasting House.

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And we were down in the in the basement.

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And it was the first sort of full review. It was a 45-minute show.

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It's very peculiar, you know, with this uh makeup.

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White and purple I think it was and sort of a windmill.

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going round in front of the eva and of course you couldn't move, you had to stand, you know.

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But this was real pioneer stuff long before Alexandra Pellet. Oh, I think so, yes.

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Let's have your fourth record now. What should we have?

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Well

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I did a record with Gracie Fields and we called it Gracie and Sandy's Party.

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And I would like it because it would remind me of a lot of very dear friends, Gracie herself, of course.

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Then we had uh Charlie Coons, Jay Wilbur's band.

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Larry Adler and it would bring back many happy memories.

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Wait, wait, everybody! Somebody was singing out of tune. I wonder if it was Larry Adler.

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Oh, Grace, it wasn't me. I was just smoking.

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Was it Charlie Coons?

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No, it wasn't me, I was drinking.

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Well, I know it wasn't Joe Peterson, and Reginald Dixon doesn't sing. Hey, was it you, Sandy Powell?

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Oh no, Grace. Yeah, I was singing.

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Oh, that accounts for the sour note.

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Oh no, Gracie, fair, fair. I'll admit I don't know the melody or the words, but I did keep in tune. Grace's and Sandy's party.

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Sandy, I know you've appeared in the West End at Royal Performances and at the West End Variety Halls.

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Have you ever brought your own show into the west end of London?

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Yes, unfortunately.

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Hello.

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Well, uh when the when the war started, you know, we were all closed down.

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And then about a month afterwards they allowed us to open the theatres. I opened several theatres, the Dill Theatre, Oxford.

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The Royal Hanley

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the Hippodrome Bristol

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the stoll circuit and uh we did very well.

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And then Sir Oswaldstow sent for me and uh he said, Well, you've done very well, Sandy, you've opened several of our theatres.

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How about trying the West End? He said, would you like to uh put your show in at the London Coliseum?

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I like a fool, I said yes.

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Well, it was announced, you see, and then, of course, all the big boys, they thought, Well, why should we let this little fellow from Yorkshire open in the West End first? And everybody opened, the London Hippodrome opened, the Palladium opened with the Crazy Gang, the Garrick Theatre opened with the big show.

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And I opened up the Coliseum.

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Well, to cut a long story short, I was there for three weeks. I lost £2,000.

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And Sir Oswald, I went to see him. I said, let me go back into the provinces and the suburbs where I really belong. So we opened the Chiswick Empire and we got normal again.

Sandy Powell12:35

I'm not.

Presenter12:37

And of course during the war you did a lot of ENSO work, didn't you, overseas? Yes, yes. So Italy and North Africa and oh we went all over the... And Normandy soon after the landing. You worked with the American forces as well, didn't you? Yes. And I was very surprised because I thought my style would be much too simple, but I found them very, very good audience indeed.

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You've been a family comedian all the time, have you? I've always tried to, yes. I've always keep the comedy clean. That's always been my idea.

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At the end of the forties the

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Music Call began to fade out. How did this affect your career?

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Well, when I saw the red light for the music halls, my agent very wisely uh suggested I should do

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a summer season, you know, concert party at the seaside and he booked me at uh Eastbourne. Mm-hmm.

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And I've been connected with that theater ever since. Well, that's been handy. I played 15 seasons myself there, and now I put the show in every summer. Yes. And of course, you do pantomime every year? Oh, yes, pantomime, yes. I think I've appeared in over 50 pantomimes. Have you? And this Christmas, I'm going to the new theatre, Cardiff.

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And of course a lot of concert engagements. Yes, one night stands. That's the great thing. And the clubs. Oh, I play the clubs as well. I try anything. Let's have your fifth record. What next?

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Well, I do like

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Melody

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Could I have the theme music from Limelight? From the Charlie Chaplin film. Yes, please.

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The theme from Limelight played by Frank Jacksfield in his orchestra.

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What next?

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Well now, back to my first love, The Music Halls.

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Could I choose anyone better than Morcombe and Wise? I'll tell you why I appreciate them. I've never met the boys. I'd love to meet them one of these days, but their comedy to me is perfect. So could I have Morcombe and Wise in Me and My Shadow?

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Have you taken your shoes off? Yes, it's my feet that squeak. Oh, right. Here we go.

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Ho ho ho mate me

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And my my shit is a little bit more.

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Walk in the new look, you go in the echo chamber.

Sandy Powell15:32

Okay.

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Me, me, me, me, me, me, me, and my sh.

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Malcolm and Wise.

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Sandy, could you endure loneliness?

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Not really. No.

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No, I wouldn't like.

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Are you a practical character? Could you look after yourself on this island? No.

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Definitely, no. Could you put together some sort of shelter? No, no. I'd try, but it wouldn't be any good. What are you going to eat?

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Yes, now that's a bit tricky. I like fruit. Just as well as fruit. Ever done near fishing?

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Uh

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Well, I don't like killing anything now. I suppose I'd have to, but I wouldn't like it. Would you try to escape? Could you make a route? Oh, no. No. You'd just stay there. Yeah, I'd just be on the beach, thumbing a lift, you know. A permanent address at last. You've settled it. I'm afraid so, yes. Right, record number seven.

Sandy Powell16:26

Yeah, I

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I'm afraid so.

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Well, we had ballet and comedy and films.

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Now I'd like something to remind me of Christmas and pandeme.

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So with Bing Crosby singing Silent Night.

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Uh

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Only on vergion

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Pink Crosby, Silent Night, Holy Night.

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And now we come to your last one.

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Yes, the last one. Well now, you know, in our profession, we must have a big finish. It is most important.

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So I had like something

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Really stimulating. The 1812 overture. I think I'd like it. Would perhaps make me work and try to build a house or something.

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The closing passage of Tchaikovsky's 1812 overture, Konstantin Silvestri conducting the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the band of Her Majesty's Royal Marines. If you could take just one of the eight records you've chosen, which would it be? I think it would be Bing Crosby, Silent Night.

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One luxury to take to the island, will you? Ah, yes.

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I can't have a telephone, I said. I don't think so. Oh, I know. I know. Can I take my violin? Yes. I only had those two lessons. All right, well, we'll have an instructional booklet stuck inside. Yes.

Sandy Powell19:23

Alright, well

Sandy Powell19:24

Probably

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Oh, and uh plenty of spare strings, please. Yes, as many as you like. Well, they'll come in useful, you know, when I'm trying to build the raft and uh the hut.

Sandy Powell19:37

Yeah.

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Yes, you put one over on me, haven't you? All right. And one book.

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Putting aside the Bible and Shakespeare, which are already on the island. Ah, that's easy.

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Charlie Chaplin's bone.

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My autobiography.

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My home

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Why do you like this so much? Well, Chully is the greatest of them all, isn't he?

Presenter19:58

Thank you, Sandy Powell, for letting us hear your Desert Island Discs. And thank you very, very much for asking me to come along. It's been a great pleasure. Goodbye, everyone.

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The guest in today's programme was Sandy Powell, the interviewer was Roy Plumley, and the producer Ronald Cook.

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The programme will be repeated on Wednesday evening at seven o'clock.

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Next Monday at 12.25 the castaway will be Sir Paul Gore Booth, Head of Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service.

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You've been listening to a podcast from the Desert Island Discs Archive. For more podcasts, please visit bbc.co.uk/slash radio four.