Talbot O'Farrell (born William Parrot; 27 July 1878 – 2 September 1952) was an English

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...

singer (a

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

, whose repertoire included both sentimental and comic songs) and film actor.

Biography

He was born in the north of England, and worked as a policeman in Hull prior to a career in entertainment. and achieved moderate success as Jock McIver (Scottish comedian and singer), before adopting an Irish persona as Talbot O'Farrell around 1912. He was billed as "The greatest Irish entertainer of all time". He possibly took part of his stage name from his wife, Minnie O'Farrell (1872–1947), who was born in

Batley Batley is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. Batley lies south-west of Leeds, north-west of Wakefield and Dewsbury, south-east of Bradford and north-east of Huddersfield. Batley is part of the ...

into a prominent

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

family, the daughter of Joseph Talbot and Ann Talbot. She was apparently widowed from William Lindley with three young daughters when she married O'Farrell. They were married for approximately four decades. In 1922, he performed in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Australia. He appeared at the ''

Royal Variety Performance The ''Royal Variety Performance'' is a televised variety show held annually in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity (of which King Charles III is life-patron). It is attended by senior members of the British royal f ...

'' in 1925, 1938 and 1948. In 1930, he had the honour of serving as King Rat of the

Grand Order of Water Rats The Grand Order of Water Rats is a British entertainment industry fraternity and charitable organisation based in London. Founded in 1889 by the music hall comedians Joe Elvin and Jack Lotto, the order is known for its high-profile membership a ...

. He acted in several films; notably, ''

Born Lucky ''Born Lucky'' is an American television series in which contestants earned mall money and prizes. It was hosted by Bob Goen and announced by Jonathan Coleman. Four contestants competed in a stunt game show taped at various shopping malls for ...

'' (1933), ''Rose of Tralee'' (two films, of

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Fe ...

and of

1942 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Declaration by United Nations is signed by China, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union, and 22 other nations, in wh ...

) and ''

Little Dolly Daydream Little is a synonym for small size and may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little'' (album), 1990 debut album of Vic Chesnutt * ''Little'' (film), 2019 American comedy film *The Littles, a series of children's novels by American author John P ...

'' (1938). He made recordings, and appeared on radio. In 1938, he appeared in two episodes of the

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film *'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD) Music *Live (band), American alternative rock band * List of albums ...

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

''. He made a successful living prior to 1928, when he was worth £10,000 (). The worldwide depression crippled his income from the theatre, and he was bankrupt by 1933. During the Second World War, he worked for the

Entertainments National Service Association The Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA) was an organisation established in 1939 by Basil Dean and Leslie Henson to provide entertainment for British armed forces personnel during World War II. ENSA operated as part of the Navy, ...

(ENSA). He was able to regain his footing after the formation of the "

Thanks for the Memory "Thanks for the Memory" (1938) is a popular song composed by Ralph Rainger with lyrics by Leo Robin. It was introduced in the 1938 film ''The Big Broadcast of 1938'' by Bob Hope and Shirley Ross, and recorded by Shep Fields and His Orchestr ...

" company, a group of music hall veterans in the 1940s. By the time of his wife's death in 1947, the two were living in a flat at Gordon Mansions,

Fitzrovia Fitzrovia () is a district of central London, England, near the West End. The eastern part of area is in the London Borough of Camden, and the western in the City of Westminster. It has its roots in the Manor of Tottenham Court, and was urban ...

. He died at

University College Hospital University College Hospital (UCH) is a teaching hospital in the Fitzrovia area of the London Borough of Camden, England. The hospital, which was founded as the North London Hospital in 1834, is closely associated with University College London ...

, London, age 74.

Partial discography

* 1920"Who'll Take the Place of Mary?",

cylinder A cylinder (from ) has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may also be defined as an infin ...

Edison Blue Amberol Blue Amberol Records was the trademark name for cylinder records manufactured by Thomas A. Edison, Inc. in the US from 1912 to 1929. They replaced the 4-minute black wax Amberol cylinders introduced in 1908, which had replaced the 2-minute wa ...

4064 * 1920"I'd Just Paint the Leaf of the Shamrock", cylinder Edison Blue Amberol 4094 * 1920"That Old Fashioned Mother of Mine", cylinder Edison Blue Amberol 4104 * 1920"The Kingdom Within Your Eyes", cylinder Edison Blue Amberol 4139 * 1929"Afterwards May Be Too Late" / "My Inspiration Is You", 10"

78rpm A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts near ...

single Piccadilly 134 * 1929"Smiling Irish Eyes", 7" 78rpm single The Victory 150b * 1929"This Is Heaven" / "Excuse Me, Lady", 10" 78rpm single

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

2169 * 1930"My Angel Mother", 7" 78rpm single The Victory 271b * Before 1931"The More We Are Together (The Froth Blowers' Anthem)", 6" 78rpm single

Mimosa ''Mimosa'' is a genus of about 590 species of herbs and shrubs, in the mimosoid clade of the legume family Fabaceae. The generic name is derived from the Greek word (''mimos''), an "actor" or "mime", and the feminine suffix -''osa'', "resembl ...

P106b * Before 1931"Charmaine", 6" 78rpm single Mimosa P177b * 1931"When Your Hair Has Turned to Silver (I Will Love You Just the Same)", 8" 78rpm single Eclipse 35b * 1931"When the Moon Comes over the Mountain", 8" 78rpm single Eclipse 103a * 1931 or 1932"Love Letters In The Sand"/"Terence's Farewell To Kathleen", 8" 78rpm single Eclipse 172

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (1933) * ''

Rose of Tralee (The) Rose of Tralee may refer to: * Rose of Tralee (festival) The Rose of Tralee International Festival is an international event which is celebrated among Irish diaspora, Irish communities all over the world. The festival, held annually in ...

'' (1937) * ''

'' (1938) * ''

Lily of Laguna "Lily of Laguna" is a British coon song written in eye dialect. It was written in 1898 by English composer Leslie Stuart. It was a music hall favourite, performed notably by blackface performers such as Eugene Stratton and G. H. Elliott. In the ...

'' (1938) * ''

'' (1942)

References

External links

* * * * A

newsreel A newsreel is a form of short documentary film, containing news stories and items of topical interest, that was prevalent between the 1910s and the mid 1970s. Typically presented in a cinema, newsreels were a source of current affairs, informa ...

item * A newsreel item {{DEFAULTSORT:Ofarrell, Talbot 1878 births Place of birth missing 1952 deaths Music hall performers English male film actors Edison Records artists