Art Deco in Cumberland

My only visit to the Cumberland town of Whitehaven was on a railway trip in 1979, taking scant interest in the local bus scene. I was therefore unaware of the splendid art deco 1932-built bus station situated on New Road. Closed under Stagecoach, it's future use is uncertain with the site being used for housing being a possibility, although there is a local desire to retain the frontage.

This picture, from a negative in my collection, dates from around 1955, the crew of one of the 1951 all-Leyland PD2s apparently in heated discussion before departure.

Charles Atlas

The legendary body builder challenges puny British blokes to become "new men". From Blighty magazine, 15th October, 1955.

Ava Norring

Born in Hungary in 1929, Ava Norring moved to the USA following her first marriage in 1948. Despite being dubbed "20th Century Fox's Hungarian answer to Zsa Zsa Gabor", her only credited film appears to have been as Beatrice in The Snows of Kilimanjaro. These pictures are part of a spread by Robert Halmi from the June 1955 issue of Esquire magazine; the advert for the film appeared in the December 1952 issue of Photoplay.

Phyllis Ginger

Phyllis Ginger (1907-2005) was a London-born artist and illustrator whose work included a contribution towards the Recording Britain project which was commissioned early during the Second World War; some 1500 pieces of artwork were produced to record the country before possible destruction, or, as was expected, invasion.

I recently picked up a copy of London, a very personal view by Mrs Robert Henrey, which is illustrated by a number of Phyllis Ginger's watercolours. This was first published in 1948, although my copy appears to be a 1955 edition with a 1970 dust jacket (the picture of Parliament Square has been actually stuck on!).

St Gile's Cripplegate

Piccadilly Circus

Leicester Square

Haymarket

Good Vibrations.........

From Lilliput magazine, December 1955

Reel to reel

Reel to reel tape recorders first appeared in the 1930s and later became popular in domestic use until the smaller compact cassette gradually replaced them from the 1960s. They remained in professional use until digital recording techniques took over in the 1980s/90s. That said, they still see use today; apparently many artists record to digital and then re-record to tape for a fuller, more natural sound.

My father bought a Bush recorder back in the 1960s, I remember going up to London with him for a (presumably successful) demonstration, bringing it back in the car. It was big and quite heavy, more so when also carrying the associated box of tapes. Although it was a feature in our house, we recorded off the TV and radio (with all the attendant background noise for added atmosphere!) and, on one occasion around 1968, gathered some old workers in our front room from the local sand quarry railways, to talk about their life. What ever happened to that recording, I wonder? I can only recall one pre-recorded tape, for the musical Carousel, which my mother bought

Here is an advert for the German-made Grundig, from Lilliput magazine, December 1955. Despite it's size, it is described as "......the instrument you can take to a party that everybody asks you to play". The price tag was hefty too, at 70 guineas less microphone, more expensive that the 14in television promoted by Eamonn Andrews in the same issue

Eamonn Andrews and GEC

The Irish-born TV and radio broadcaster Eamonn Andrews was the face of GEC television sets during the 1950s, his adverts popping up in various magazines during this period. Here are a quartet of scans from the pages of Picture Post, Lilliput and Everybody's Weekly.All feature the 14in size model, the price increasing by 5gn (£5.5s) during the period. The first one looks particularly creepy.....................

Sophia Loren

An eye-catching photograph from the pages of Lilliput magazine, December 1955.

And now in colour.......

The postman brought another bundle of 1950s Blighty magazines yesterday. These are from 1955 onwards and now sport a colour pin up on the cover (and still cost sixpence!).

All of the models featured, Molly Stevens, Jeanette Pearce, Margaret Simons and Toni Dais, hoped, as they say inside the magazine, to break into show business. Sadly, it seems that none got very far, at least under these names.

Frankie & Benny

Twenty years ago, in April 1992, British comedy lost both Frankie Howerd and Benny Hill. Although they died on consecutive days, 19/20th, Benny was not found until two days later, such was the reclusive life that he was leading by then. Although they were very different in their approach to comedy, Howerd's more hesitant delivery contrasting to Hill's more slick and saucy style, both learned their trade in the West End, radio and then film and television. Benny Hill was also a singer, with a number of  comedy records to his name

By the 1980s, The Benny Hill Show was suffering falling ratings and was becoming increasingly more expensive to make and changing attitudes saw much criticism of the perceived sexism in his comedy. The cancellation of his Thames series in 1989 appeared to be the beginning of the end for him.

Frankie Howerd however, was making something of a comeback during his later years, touring with his one-man show and becoming an unlikely hit with university audiences. I personally love the work of both, Up Pompeii in particular for Howerd, with his little asides to the audience and Benny Hill was probably at his best in the 1970s; trawling through DVDs of The Benny Hill Show for this period has been a delight. Despite the bashing he got in this country in his later years, he remained popular abroad; I have a Hungarian DVD featuring mainly his slapstick routines, brought back by my son off holiday a few years ago. May they both rest in peace and their influence live on.

Frankie Howerd (1917-1992)

The Ladykillers (1955)
With Katie Johnson

The Fast Lady (1962)

The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery (1966)
With Reg Varney and others

Carry On Doctor (1967)
With Anita Harris, Hattie Jacques and June Jago

Up Pompeii (1971)

Up The Front (1975)
From Star Turns, by Barry Took

Benny Hill (1924-1992)

An early publicity shot
From Star Turns, by Barry Took

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)
With Dick Van Dyke and Sally Ann Howes

The Italian Job (1969)

Benny Hill sings Ernie (1971)

The Benny Hill Show (1976)
With Henry McGee

The Benny Hill Show (1976)
With Jack Wright and Jenny Lee Wright

The Benny Hill Show (1976)
With Moira Foot

Fry's Chocolate Cream

Fry's Chocolate Cream must be regarded as an elder statesman of the chocolate bar, being first manufactured at the Bristol factory in 1866. This advert appeared in the 9 July 1955 issue of Picture Post.