''The Better 'Ole'', also called ''The Romance of Old Bill'', is an Edwardian musical comedy with a book by

Bruce Bairnsfather Captain Charles Bruce Bairnsfather (9 July 188729 September 1959) was a prominent British humour, humorist and cartoonist. His best-known cartoon character is Old Bill (comics), Old Bill. Bill and his pals Bert and Alf featured in Bairnsfather's ...

and Arthur Elliot, music by Herman Darewski, and lyrics by Percival Knight and James Heard, based on the cartoon character Old Bill, an

infantryman Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

, drawn by Bairnsfather. In the musical, Old Bill intercepts a spy's plan to destroy a bridge, trapping a French

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

after they cross it. Bill saves them by blowing up the bridge before they pass; his actions are misunderstood, however, and he is arrested for disobeying orders and holding an enemy document. After Victoire explains the situation, Bill is released and given a medal. The original London production in 1917 was a hit, running for over 800 performances, starring

Arthur Bourchier Arthur Bourchier (22 June 186314 September 1927) was an English actor and Actor-manager, theatre manager. He married and later divorced the actress Violet Vanbrugh. Bourchier was noted for roles both in classical drama, particularly William S ...

as Old Bill. The piece also had success on tour and on Broadway the following year and spawned two film adaptations and a sequel.

Productions

London and original tour
On 4 August 1917, ''The Better 'Ole'' opened in London at the Oxford Music Hall, where it ran for 811 performances, starring

as Old Bill."The Better 'Ole"
Broadwayworld.com, accessed 12 September 2010. It was produced by Charles B. Cochran." Charles B. Cochran's production of ''The Better 'Ole Or The Romance of Old Bill''. ''The Play Pictorial'', 32:191, January 1918, p. 18 After the success of the London production was apparent, a provincial touring company was formed, led by Martin Adeson as Old Bill. Broadway
It later also ran successfully on Broadway, where Charles Coburn starred as Old Bill opposite his wife, who played Victoire; the couple are also credited as the producers of the Broadway production."Bairnsfather Play Down in Greenwich"
''The New York Times'', 21 October 1918, accessed 27 October 2010. The production first played downtown at the Greenwich Village Theatre, then moved to Broadway at the

Cort Theatre The James Earl Jones Theatre, originally the Cort Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 138 48th Street (Manhattan), West 48th Street, between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater ...

and later 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, New York, U.S. Opened in 1913, the theater was designed by Henry Beaumont Herts in the It ...

.The Broadway League
"The Better 'Ole"
''IBDB: The Official Source for Broadway Information'', accessed 11 January 2011. Choreographed by Lily Leonora, the show played from 19 October 1918 to 4 October 1919, lasting 353 performances. Sets were designed by the painter Ernest Albert. Subsequent productions
By 1919, five productions of the "smashing success" were running in North America (including the New York premiere). Besides Coburn in New York, these productions starred De Wolf Hopper, Maclyn Arbuckle, Edmund Gurney and James K. Hackett as Old Bill in Chicago,

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

and Canada, respectively.

Plot

Setting: France and England during World War I ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' commented that there was not much plot, and what there was did not matter much. ''

The Play Pictorial ''The Play Pictorial'' was an English theatrical magazine that was published in London between 1902 and 1939. ''The Play Pictorial'' provided pictorial records of West End theatrical productions. Each issue described a single show, with descrip ...

'' gave the following plot summary:

ere is but one dramatic episode in the piece. … It is the acquisition of the Spy's letter containing the information as to the mining of the bridge over which the French are going to attack, when with the aid of Victoire Bill realises its purport, he determines to frustrate the enemy's intention by blowing up the bridge in advance. His mission fulfilled, he finds himself under arrest for disobedience to orders; he is further compromised by the possession of an incriminating enemy document; death by a firing party at dawn appears to be his imminent fate. But a kindlier fate has interposed in the person of Victoire. She has gone to the French Headquarters with the story of his gallantry, and an officer of the French Staff arrives, bearing with him the glorious Cross of Honour.

Musical numbers

These songs were used in the New York production: *"Tommy" – Suzette from France and Tommies *"That Trip Across the Rhine" – Captain of the Women's Workers' Camp and Women War Workers *"Carrying On" – Bert, Alf and Old Bill *"We Wish We Was in Blighty" – Bert, Alf and Old Bill *"When You Look in the Heart of a Rose" – Company *"Venus de Milo" – Old Bill *"''Je Sais Que Vous Etes Gentil''" ("I Know You Are Nice") – Berthe and Bert (interpolated song by Henri Christiné) *"Regiment of Our Own" – Bert and French Girls *"Regiment of Our Own" (reprise) – Bert and Mollie from Ireland

Roles and original casts

The list below shows first the London, then the New York casts: *Old Bill –

; Charles D. Coburn *Victoire – Edmée Dormeuil (later, Peggy Foster); Mrs. Charles D. Coburn *Bert – Tom Woottwell; Charles McNaughton *Alf – Sinclair Cottee; Colin Campbell *Spy – M. Crommelynck; Lark Taylor *Angele – Chris Birss; Gwen Louis *Suzette – Glory Edgar; Mona Desmond *W.A.A.C. – Hilda Denton; Lillian Spenser *Berthe – Carrie Rose; Helen Tilden

Critical reception

In ''The Play Pictorial'', B. W. Findon wrote, "Old Bill stands out with the vividness of a Shakespearean creation, as forcible as Falstaff, as quaint as Dogberry. It is for this reason that he has caught the imagination of the public, that he attracts myriads to the Oxford and fills them with the glory of their race. … A great entertainment, in brief; a revue of the war most admirable. It will be a prodigious success in America and the far lands. We have had nothing like it, I repeat, and assuredly there is here that which will make the whole civilised world akin." ''The Times'' commented, "The Bairnsfather jokes are as amusing on the stage as they are when printed.""''The Better 'Ole'': A Bairnsfather Play at The Oxford", ''The Times'', 6 August 1917, p. 9 ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

'' said of Bourchier's depiction of Old Bill, "If others have been more sardonic and incisive, he is more good-natured and appealing." The paper thought the piece "unduly spun out, perhaps, because there is a limit to the humorous side of war." Thebetterole-1919scene

Of the New York production, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote that it "sweeps an audience off its feet by the sheer force of sincerity. Sooner or later everyone will see it and those will be fortunate to do so while it retains the bloom of its first inspiration".

Adaptations and sequel

Two film adaptations of the musical were made during the

silent film era A silent film is a film without synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) ...

. The first, a 1918 British version, '' The Romance of Old Bill'', starred Charles Rock. The second version was a 1926 Warner Bros. film, '' The Better 'Ole'', which was the second feature film to use the

Vitaphone Vitaphone was a sound film system used for feature films and nearly 1,000 short subjects made by Warner Bros. and its sister studio First National Pictures, First National from 1926 to 1931. Vitaphone is the last major analog sound-on-disc sys ...

sound process, and starred Sydney Chaplin as Old Bill. The success of the musical led to a West End sequel, '' Old Bill, M.P.'', which opened at the Lyceum Theatre on 12 July 1922. Old Bill was played by

Edmund Gwenn Edmund Gwenn (born Edmund John Kellaway; 26 September 1877 – 6 September 1959) was an English actor. On film, he is best remembered for his role as Kris Kringle in the Christmas film ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (1947), for which he won t ...

, and Bairnsfather appeared as himself. Unlike ''The Better 'Ole'', the later piece was not a musical. It ran until 11 November 1922."Varieties &c", ''The Times'', 11 November 1922, p. 8

References

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Better Ole Musicals based on comic strips Broadway musicals 1917 musicals British musicals Musicals set in England Musicals set in France Musicals about World War I