Michael Henry Flanders (1 March 1922 – 14 April 1975) was an English actor, broadcaster, and writer and performer of comic songs. He is best known for his
stage partnership with
Donald Swann
Donald Ibrahim Swann (30 September 1923 – 23 March 1994) was a British composer, musician, singer and entertainer. He was one half of Flanders and Swann, writing and performing comic songs with Michael Flanders.
Life
Donald Swann was born in ...
.
As a young man Flanders seemed to be heading for a successful acting career. He contracted
polio
Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...
in 1943 while serving in the
Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve
The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original R ...
and for the rest of his life was reliant on a wheelchair. He made a career as a prolific broadcaster on radio and later television, and together with his old schoolfriend, the composer Donald Swann, he wrote successful songs in the late 1940s and early and mid-1950s for
revue
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...
s in the
West End of London. In 1956 they themselves performed some of these songs, along with new songs, in a two-man revue, ''
At the Drop of a Hat
''At the Drop of a Hat'' is a musical revue by Flanders and Swann, described by them as "an after-dinner farrago". In the show, they both sang on a nearly bare stage, accompanied by Swann on the piano. The songs were linked by contemporary socia ...
''. This show, and its successor, ''
At the Drop of Another Hat
''At the Drop of Another Hat'' is a musical revue by Flanders and Swann, similar in format to its long-running predecessor, ''At the Drop of a Hat'' (1956). In the show, they both sang on a nearly bare stage, accompanied by Swann on the piano. Th ...
'', ran with occasional short breaks from 1956 to 1967 and played in theatres throughout the British Isles, the US, Australia and elsewhere.
During and after the stage partnership with Swann, Flanders pursued a many-faceted career, performing on stage, screen, radio, concert platforms and recordings. He wrote opera librettos, a children's book, a volume of poetry and the words of a
cantata
A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir.
The meaning of ...
about
Noah's Ark
Noah's Ark ( he, תיבת נח; Biblical Hebrew: ''Tevat Noaḥ'')The word "ark" in modern English comes from Old English ''aerca'', meaning a chest or box. (See Cresswell 2010, p.22) The Hebrew word for the vessel, ''teva'', occurs twice in t ...
.
Life and career
Early years
Flanders was born in
Hampstead
Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...
, London, the third child and only son of Percy Henry Flanders and his wife, Rosa Laura ("Laurie"), daughter of Charles O'Beirne, of Hastings.
His father had a variety of occupations, including actor and cinema manager.
[ His mother was a professional violinist.][Meyer, Michael]
"Flanders, Michael Henry (1922–1975)"
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 3 May 2013
From 1936 to 1940 Flanders was a pupil at Westminster School
(God Gives the Increase)
, established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560
, type = Public school Independent day and boarding school
, religion = Church of England
, head_label = Hea ...
, where his contemporaries included Peter Ustinov
Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (born Peter Alexander Freiherr von Ustinov ; 16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, filmmaker and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits ...
, Peter Brook
Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shak ...
, Tony Benn
Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), known between 1960 and 1963 as Viscount Stansgate, was a British politician, writer and diarist who served as a Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabinet minister in the 1960s and 1970s. ...
and Donald Swann
Donald Ibrahim Swann (30 September 1923 – 23 March 1994) was a British composer, musician, singer and entertainer. He was one half of Flanders and Swann, writing and performing comic songs with Michael Flanders.
Life
Donald Swann was born in ...
. In his last term in 1940, he and Swann collaborated on a school revue
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...
called ''Go To It!'' From Westminster, Flanders went up to Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...
, to read History. There he acted and directed for the Oxford University Dramatic Society
The Oxford University Dramatic Society (OUDS) is the principal funding body and provider of theatrical services to the many independent student productions put on by students in Oxford, England. Not all student productions at Oxford University a ...
and the Experimental Theatre Club. His roles included Brabantio in ''Othello
''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...
'', Pirandello's '' Henry IV'' and Shawcross in Auden and Isherwood's ''The Ascent of F6
''The Ascent of F6: A Tragedy in Two Acts'', by W. H. Auden and Christopher Isherwood, was the second and most successful play in the Auden-Isherwood collaboration, first published in 1936. It was a major contribution to English poetic drama in ...
''. He also wrote drama criticisms for the Oxford magazine '' Cherwell''.[ In October 1941 he made his professional acting debut at the ]Oxford Playhouse
Oxford Playhouse is a theatre designed by Edward Maufe and F.G.M. Chancellor. It is situated in Beaumont Street, Oxford, opposite the Ashmolean Museum.
History
The Playhouse was founded as ''The Red Barn'' at 12 Woodstock Road, North Oxfor ...
as Valentine in Shaw's '' You Never Can Tell''. His biographer and Oxford contemporary Michael Meyer writes of Flanders in this period:
In 1942 Flanders applied to join the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve
The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original R ...
, serving at first as an able seaman
An able seaman (AB) is a seaman and member of the deck department of a merchant ship with more than two years' experience at sea and considered "well acquainted with his duty". An AB may work as a watchstander, a day worker, or a combination ...
, and later commissioned as a sub-lieutenant
Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces.
In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...
.[ He survived unharmed a torpedo attack in 1942 on his ship, HMS ''Marne'', but the following year he contracted ]poliomyelitis
Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe sym ...
at sea and spent the next three years in hospitals. In 1946 he was discharged, but remained a wheelchair user for the rest of his life.[ He was deeply upset when the university authorities refused, because of his disabilities, to allow him back to resume his studies.][
]
Postwar
Flanders returned to the family home in Hampstead Garden Suburb
Hampstead Garden Suburb is an elevated suburb of London, north of Hampstead, west of Highgate and east of Golders Green. It is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations. It is an example of early twentiet ...
. He directed and produced plays with a local amateur theatre group and arranged small musical gatherings with other amateurs of music, including Gerard Hoffnung
Gerard Hoffnung (22 March 192528 September 1959) was an artist and musician, best known for his humorous works.
Raised in Germany, Hoffnung was brought to London as a boy, to escape the Nazis. Over the next two decades in England, he became kno ...
and Frank Hauser.[ A stage acting career being no longer possible, he found work as a radio broadcaster and wrote a few song lyrics. At the same time, Swann began composing music for ]revues
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...
. He recalled in 1974, We wrote our first song in the summer of 1948. I'd gone over to Michael's home near Hampstead Heath to see if he could think of some words for a tune I'd written … "It all sounds a bit like Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...
, don't you think? … It must be terribly boring in the D'Oyly Carte Company, having to do everything exactly as it always has been done – ''Idea!''""
The resulting trio, "In the D'Oyly Cart" 'sic'' for three disgruntled Savoyards, was accepted by the producer Laurier Lister
George Laurier Lister, OBE (22 April 1907 – 30 September 1986) was an English theatre writer, actor, director and producer, best known for a series of revues presented in London in the late 1940s and 1950s. He was later associated with Laurence ...
for his new show ''Oranges and Lemons''. The revue and the trio were highly successful, and Lister commissioned further work from the pair for his next production, ''Penny Plain'' (1951). Among their contributions to the latter were "Prehistoric Complaint", a solo for Max Adrian
Max Adrian (born Guy Thornton Bor; 1 November 1903 – 19 January 1973) was an Irish stage, film and television actor and singer. He was a founding member of both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre.
In addition to his succ ...
, "dressed in bits of fur as a sort of mis-fit caveman",[Notes to EMI LP EMCM 3088] and "Surly Girls", with Adrian, Desmond Walter-Ellis
Desmond Walter-Ellis (16 September 1914 – 16 September 1994) was an English actor. He was active in a range of genres, from classic drama to cabaret, revue and musicals. He played a major part in the development of BBC Television when it restart ...
and Jimmy Thompson as a trio of appalling St Trinian's
''St Trinian's'' is a British gag cartoon comic strip series, created and drawn by Ronald Searle from 1946 until 1952. The cartoons all centre on a boarding school for girls, where the teachers are sadists and the girls are juvenile delinquents ...
schoolgirls.
The Flanders and Swann numbers in the two shows worked so well that Lister invited the pair to write much of his next revue, ''Airs on a Shoestring'' (1953). Their topics ranged from economics and politics ("There's a Hole in My Budget") to a plaintive song about London's last tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
("Last of the Line") to a send-up of Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...
's works to date ("Guide to Britten").[ In the same year Flanders wrote the ]libretto
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...
for a short opera by Antony Hopkins
Antony Hopkins CBE (21 March 1921 – 6 May 2014) was a composer, pianist, and conductor, as well as a writer and radio broadcaster. He was widely known for his books of musical analysis and for his radio programmes ''Talking About Music'', br ...
, ''Three's Company''. They followed this up the next year with ''A Christmas Story''.[ Also in 1954 Flanders, in partnership with Kitty Black (1914–2006), translated ]Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...
's ''Histoire du soldat
' (''The Soldier's Tale'') is a theatrical work "to be read, played, and danced" () by three actors and one or several dancers, accompanied by a septet of instruments. Conceived by Igor Stravinsky and Swiss writer C. F. Ramuz, the piece was base ...
'' for the Edinburgh Festival
__NOTOC__
This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland.
The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...
. The work played to capacity audiences in Edinburgh, and again in London at the Royal Festival Hall
The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...
in 1956 with Flanders as the narrator, Sir Ralph Richardson
Sir Ralph David Richardson (19 December 1902 – 10 October 1983) was an English actor who, with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, was one of the trinity of male actors who dominated the British stage for much of the 20th century. He wo ...
as the Soldier and Peter Ustinov as the Devil. The translation has held its place as the standard English version into the 21st century.
During the 1950s, Flanders consolidated his career as a broadcaster, on radio, and later on television, in programmes ranging from sports commentary to poetry readings, and including a two-year stint as chairman of ''The Brains Trust
''The Brains Trust'' was an informational BBC radio and later television programme popular in the United Kingdom during the 1940s and 1950s, on which a panel of experts tried to answer questions sent in by the audience.
History
The series was ...
'' after it moved from radio to television.[ He preferred performing to writing, and said that he wrote mainly "to give myself something to perform."][Fiddick, Peter. "The complete Michael Flanders", ''The Guardian'', 3 July 1970, p. 9]
''At the Drop of a Hat''
As established and successful songwriters Flanders and Swann were invited to lecture on their craft at Dartington International Summer School
Dartington International Summer School is a summer school and festival of music held on the medieval estate of Dartington Hall and is a department of the Dartington Trust.
Operation
First established at Bryanston School in 1948 (largely throu ...
in 1956. Flanders found that his spoken introductions were as well received by the audience as were the songs themselves. He and Swann decided to give a show along similar lines in London. They took the New Lindsey Theatre for a limited three-week run; the New Lindsey, holding about 150 people, was situated outside the London West End theatre
West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes, "West End" in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1 ...
district. The show opened on 31 December 1956. The press notices were good, the box-office did excellent business, and the pair were offered a West End transfer. Swann recalled in 1977, "We turned it down unanimously. It seemed to spell the end of Michael's radio career (he had by that time done at least a thousand broadcasts) and the end of Swann as composer."[Flanders and Swann, p. 7] After each had spent two or three sleepless nights worrying, they reconsidered;[ the show transferred to the ]Fortune Theatre
The Fortune Theatre is a 432-seat West End theatre on Russell Street, near Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster. Since 1989 the theatre has hosted the long running play ''The Woman in Black''.
History
The site was acquired by author, playw ...
in Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...
on 24 January 1957, where, according to ''The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'', "it took the audience by storm". The critic J. C. Trewin
John Courtenay Trewin (4 December 1908 – 16 February 1990) was a British journalist, writer and drama critic.
Trewin was born in Plymouth, Devon, although both his parents were Cornish. He was educated at Plymouth College and in 1926 joi ...
wrote, "I feel that even Gilbert">. S.Gilbert might have applauded the intricate neatness of their numbers. … I urge you to hear Mr Flanders as he explains the precise derivation of 'Greensleeves'." The show ran for 808 performances at the Fortune, until 2 May 1959.
In August 1959 Flanders and Swann took the revue to the Edinburgh Festival
__NOTOC__
This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland.
The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...
. On 8 October they opened in New York at Broadway's John Golden Theatre
The John Golden Theatre, formerly the Theatre Masque and Masque Theater, is a Broadway theater at 252 West 45th Street (George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1927, the Golden Theatre was de ...
, playing there for 215 performances. In the ''New York Herald Tribune
The ''New York Herald Tribune'' was a newspaper published between 1924 and 1966. It was created in 1924 when Ogden Mills Reid of the ''New-York Tribune'' acquired the ''New York Herald''. It was regarded as a "writer's newspaper" and competed ...
'' Walter Kerr
Walter Francis Kerr (July 8, 1913 – October 9, 1996) was an American writer and Broadway theatre critic. He also was the writer, lyricist, and/or director of several Broadway plays and musicals as well as the author of several books, genera ...
wrote, "Whatever it is that runs through both these gentlemen's veins it makes them lively, witty, literate, ingratiating, explosively funny and excellent company for a daffy and delightful evening". After closing on Broadway they toured the show through 12 cities in the US, one in Canada and three in Switzerland. During 1962 and 1963, they revived the production in Canada and toured the British Isles, appearing in 17 towns and cities.[ During the tour they continually added new songs and dropped old ones; by the time they returned to the West End in October 1963 the programme was so different from that given at their last London appearance more than four years earlier that the show had a new title: '']At the Drop of Another Hat
''At the Drop of Another Hat'' is a musical revue by Flanders and Swann, similar in format to its long-running predecessor, ''At the Drop of a Hat'' (1956). In the show, they both sang on a nearly bare stage, accompanied by Swann on the piano. Th ...
''.
''At the Drop of Another Hat''
The second show followed the pattern of the first, with songs and monologues linked by comment and introductions by Flanders. It opened on 2 October 1963 at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket
The Theatre Royal Haymarket (also known as Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is a West End theatre on Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use. Samuel Foote ...
, a much larger house than the Fortune (with 900 seats to the Fortune's 438). Once again the reviews were excellent. The ''Daily Express
The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...
'' called the show "an instant success"; ''The Times'' called it "a delicious entertainment … an inimitable evening":
The duo played at the Haymarket until 21 March 1964, and after a break they toured the show in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and southern England,[ before opening again in London, at the ]Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, on land owned by Thomas Brend and inherited by his son, Nicholas Brend, and gra ...
in September 1965, playing there until February 1966. Finally, they toured the show in Canada and the US, concluding in a Broadway run at the Booth Theatre
The Booth Theatre is a Broadway theater at 222 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1913, the theater was designed by Henry Beaumont Herts in the Italian Renaissance ...
from 31 December 1966 to 9 April 1967.[
The decision to stop playing the Hat shows was chiefly Swann's, who felt they were impeding his range as a serious composer. The two remained friends and continued to collaborate from time to time.][Berger, Leon]
"Swann, Donald"
Grove Music Online, Oxford Music Online, Oxford University Press, accessed 3 May 2013
He was the subject of '' This Is Your Life'' in 1972 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews
Eamonn Andrews, (19 December 1922 – 5 November 1987) was an Irish radio and television presenter, employed primarily in the United Kingdom from the 1950s to the 1980s. From 1960 to 1964 he chaired the Radio Éireann Authority (now the RTÉ A ...
.
Other work
During breaks in the schedule of the Hat shows, and after they had come to an end, Flanders performed on radio, television, stage, film and the concert platform. In 1962 he appeared at the Aldwych Theatre
The Aldwych Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Aldwych in the City of Westminster, central London. It was listed Grade II on 20 July 1971. Its seating capacity is 1,200 on three levels.
History
Origins
The theatre was constructed in th ...
, London, as the Storyteller in the Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...
's production of Brecht
Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...
's ''The Caucasian Chalk Circle
''The Caucasian Chalk Circle'' (german: Der kaukasische Kreidekreis) is a play by the German modernist playwright Bertolt Brecht. An example of Brecht's epic theatre, the play is a parable about a peasant girl who rescues a baby and becomes a b ...
''. In 1970 he starred in the revue ''Ten Years Hard'' by Peter Myers; his performance was praised, but the show was not, and it closed within a month. He acted in the films '' Doctor in Distress'' (1963) and ''The Raging Moon
''The Raging Moon'' (released in the US as ''Long Ago, Tomorrow'') is a 1971 British romantic drama film starring Malcolm McDowell and Nanette Newman and based on the book by British novelist Peter Marshall. Adapted and directed by Bryan Forbes ( ...
'' (1971).
Flanders continued to broadcast on radio and television. On BBC radio he was the anchorman of the "Scrapbook" and "Battle for the Atlantic" series, and he was a regular on the quiz shows "Twenty Questions" and "Animal, Vegetable and Mineral". On television he presented the concert, opera and ballet series "Gala Performance".[ He provided the storyteller's voice on the British soundtrack of the '']Barbapapa
''Barbapapa'' is a 1970 children's picture book by the French-American couple Annette Tison and Talus Taylor, who lived in Paris, France. Barbapapa is both the title character and the name of his "species". The book was the first of a series of ...
'' animated cartoon series, and narrated many documentaries, including the 1969 BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
''.