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With A Smile And A Song at the Oasthouse Theatre, Rainham on 25th May
Ticket s (£15) can be booked by clicking here: www.ticketsource.co.uk/oasthouse
Day By The Sea – Extra Seats in the Upper Circle Now Available At Just £25
Because of the high demand for tickets, the Royal Hippodrome Theatre in Eastbourne is now opening the Upper Circle for Day By The Sea. Tickets in the Upper Circle are only £25 for the whole day.
To book tickets either ring the box office on 01323 802020 or book online (There is an admin charge for online bookings):
Bobby Crush joining the bill at Day By The Sea on 1st June
Sadly Christopher Biggins has had to pull out of the British Music Hall Society’s Day By The Sea at the Royal Hippodrome Theatre, Eastbourne on Saturday 1st June but we are delighted that the pianist and entertainer Bobby Crush has agreed to step in at short notice. Bobby will be chatting about his long career in show business.
Bobby became known nationwide after six winning appearances on TV’s “Opportunity Knocks!”, receiving along the way the Variety Club of Great Britain’s Award for “Best New Artist of 1972”. This was presented to him by the late Lord Mountbatten of Burma and heralded the first of many appearances before members of the Royal Family.
West End successes include three seasons at the London Palladium alongside Jack Jones, Vic Damone and Dame Julie Andrews. As a regular performer at that theatre, Bobby’s name was recently added to the “Roll of Honour” at the Palladium stage door. He also spent a year with Max Bygraves in “SwingalongaMax” at the Victoria Palace and was chosen to appear for Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother at “The Royal Variety Performance”.
Bobby’s work abroad has also been extensive: a tour of Canada with Sir Harry Secombe and concerts in Australia and New Zealand, where he also co-hosted “The Countrywide Music Awards Show” and received a gold disc for sales of his “Piano Party” album. He is also a regular guest on the Queen Mary 2, P&O, Crystal and Royal Caribbean cruise ships, where his cabaret shows invariably receive standing ovations.
Recording successes include his debut album “Bobby Crush”, which reached the UK top 20: chart singles “Borsalino” and “The Sting” and the TV advertised “Double Decker Party Album”, which sold over 100,000 copies and brought Bobby two more gold discs. In all, he has made 13 albums (not including compilations) and a new live album is currently being planned. As well as his piano albums, Bobby can be heard vocally on two show recordings. He plays the role of “Pharaoh” on Pickwick’s “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and sings three songs on Carlton’s “Songs from the musical Hair”.
TV credits include two series of “Sounds Like Music” as the show’s host, “Celebrity Eggheads”, “This Morning”, “Celebrity Squares”, “Wetty Hainthrop Investigates” with Victoria Wood and Julie Walters for “Comic Relief”, “Through The Keyhole”, “Cash in the Celebrity Attic”, “The Antiques Roadshow”, “Live from Her Majesty’s”, “Give Us A Clue”, “Noel’s House Party”, “The Unforgettable Hughie Green”, “Victoria Wood, as seen on TV”, “Jim Davidson’s Generation Game”, “The Talent Show Story” and countless guest appearances. He has also been a guest judge on Sky TV’s talent show “Star Search” and Carlton’s “Pot of Gold” with Des O’Connor. Most recently, Bobby has been playing “Billy Sparkle” in the popular TV comedy “Benidorm”. Last April, Bobby was also seen in a major new series for ITV called “Last Laugh in Vegas”, which documented Bobby’s American debut alongside 7 other legendary British acts.
Bobby’s broadcasting career has included a week of his own shows on BBC Radio 2 and many guest slots including “Steve Wright in the Afternoon”, “The Gloria Hunniford Show”, “John Inman and Friends”, “Maestro” and seven acclaimed appearances on “Loose Ends” for BBC Radio 4. Bobby’s “40th Birthday Concert”, aired on Radio 2, was nominated for the “Monte Carlo Radio Prize” and such was its success that a follow-up show, “Bobby Crush – Centre Stage” was immediately commissioned. Most recently, Bobby was a featured guest on the “Tracks of my years” segment of the Ken Bruce Show on BBC Radio 2.
As a composer and lyricist, Bobby has written two complete pantomime scores, one full scale musical (“Sherwood”), a huge hit for Keith Harris and Orville, (“Orville’s Song” reached number 4 in the UK charts with over 250,000 sales and was awarded a silver disc) and he has also written comedy material for Russ Abbot and Les Dennis. Most recently, Bobby has been writing for 4 Poofs and A Piano, with whom he toured in the Spring of 2013.
Bobby has also appeared in five musicals starring as “Dr. Frank N. Furter” in “The Rocky Horror Show”, “Vernon Gersch” in “They’re Playing Our Song”, “L.M.” in “Pump Boys and Dinettes” and “Billy Flynn” in “Chicago at top theatres around the United Kingdom. Spring 2018 saw Bobby guest starring in the UK tour of “Summer Holiday, the Musical”, playing the role of “Jerry”, the agent.
Bobby’s one-man shows have been seen at the Fortune Theatre, the Arts Theatre, the Green Room at the Café Royal, Pizza on the Park, Leicester Square Theatre and the Pheasantry, all in London’s West End. His most recent cabaret appearance was at “Live at Zedel” in Piccadilly (formerly known as “Crazy Coqs”), where he was introduced to a whole new generation of fans and was given an extended standing ovation by the sell-out crowd.
Other career highlights include: a 45 date tour with 60’s singing star Gene Pitney, an appearance at the Royal Albert Hall in “The Stonewall Equality Show” and a national tour of “Back to Bacharach”, his tribute show to the legendary Burt Bacharach, for which he also wrote the script.
Bobby made his straight theatre debut appearing as showbiz legend Liberace in the courtroom drama “Liberace’s Suit” at the Jermyn Street Theatre, London, receiving rave reviews from the national press. This was followed by his highly acclaimed one-man show, “Liberace, Live from Heaven”, which played a sell-out season at the Leicester Square Theatre in London, a 34 date tour of New Zealand and a month-long residency at the Edinburgh Festival.
Bobby has starred in over 30 pantomimes, starting out as a teenager in “juvenile lead” roles but in recent years, he has become one of the country’s most in-demand “Dames”, a role he has played every year since 2000.
Bobby is currently writing his autobiography, which has the working title “Not The Boy Next Door” … it is hoped that it will be published in the near future.
More info at Bobby Crush The Official Website Of The UK’s Favourite Piano Entertainer or follow Bobby on “Facebook” or “Twitter” (@theBobbyCrush)
The Amazing Impact Of The Music Hall On Battersea & Wandsworth
On 28 May 2019 as part of the Wandsworth Heritage Festival, there will be a talk by Neil Robson, editor of the Wandsworth Historian, entitled The Amazing Impact Of The Music Hall On Battersea And Wandsworth.
The talk takes place at Battersea Arts Centre, Lavender Hill, London, SW11 5TN (Box Office: 020 7223 2223) at 7pm. Admission free.
For more information click below:
Auction Of Drawings from Stephen Lees’ Music Hall Novels.
A collection of 76 original architectural line drawings on 43 sheets of cartridge paper of various sizes from 260 x 360 mm to 400 x 560 mm will be auctioned. These drawings were all featured in the 6 music hall novels written by Stephen Lees, which were reviewed in The Call Boy.
Auction Title: Books & Works on Paper Auction Date: Wednesday, 29 May 2019
Lot No Description Stock Ref Reserve Estimate 474 † Lees Auction Location: Chiswick Auctions, 1 Colville Road, London W3 8BL Tel: 020 8992 4442 Email: info@chiswickauctions.co.uk
