Tuning in…
Tuning in…
Castaway
1 appearance
Comedienne and singer, known as the Wacky Warbler and the girl with a thousand voices, with a four-octave vocal range.
On the island
Eight records
Joan Turner with Wally Stott and his Orchestra
happy memories, you know, my first record that didn't get anywhere
come what may, he still is my very favourite singer
Un bel dì (One Fine Day)Favourite
the big finish of my act … the only serious thing I did in the act
Nicholas Brodszky and Paul Francis Webster
I love his voice. Secondly, it's a nice encouraging feeling if you're on an island
Tales of the Unexpected (Theme)
she loves the theme tune
Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II
from my one and only album
In conversation
Presenter asks
5:28Were you always a clown, Joan, as a little girl?
Oh, yes, and I always wanted to be a ballet dancer, you see. I think most little girls do, don't they? … A ballet dancer and a movie star.
Presenter asks
9:20So why then, 10 years later in 1954, when a big offer came, did you take it?
Well, I was still doing odd bits throughout that period because he never wanted me to go back on the stage. … But finally, in 1954, I was made the offer I couldn't refuse. This was the Opera House Blackpool for 18 weeks, which was obviously the next step to the Palladium and the West End.
Presenter asks
17:00What do you spend it on?
Family. Friends, hangers-on. … I love buying things for the family. … I had a Rolls-Royce, a Bentley, mink coats.
Presenter asks
19:49How did your friends react?
They didn't come around much because, you see, I couldn't afford the parties any more and it was really only the parties and I had all famous people in my house and of course to show off to my friends who I knew. … It was quite mad.
The keepsakes
The luxury
They happen to be my favourite food and they're the most nourishing food you can eat because it's all protein.
Presenter asks
26:12What did you mean by that?
Well, become too powerful, is more the word, I think, don't you? You're fighting men all the time anyway, so you've got to become like them, haven't you? You become quite bossy. Yes, I think you have to be, because once they see the weakness of a woman, you lose the fight.
“I don't think I could stay serious enough for that.”
“I had a nervous breakdown through worrying, being torn between the home, the husband, and my career.”
“People love to come and see you upset, don't they?”
“Comics always want to be actors, you see. They always want to be in Shakespeare. This is a well-known fact, isn't it? I've always wanted to play tragedy because I never got the chance of it.”
“Help me, God, to bear, well, the things that are hard to bear. Help me to bear pain with cheerfulness and without complaint. Failure, that's if I'm trying to build a boat, failure with the perseverance to go on trying until I succeed, disappointment without bitterness and without resentment, delays with patience that has learned to wait, criticism without losing my temper, and defeat without making excuses.”