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Blackpool Wonderful Blackpool By Donald Auty
Right - Site of the Queen's Theatre 2003 D.A. Blackpool was wonderful to a 15 year old boy who ate and slept show business in those days. The resort was full of summer shows, 14 in number, and the home of many bill toppers and supporting artistes not to mention its own resident top notch producers Jimmy Brennan and the great Jack Taylor.
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Blackpool
Wonderful Blackpool was the opening chorus with the spectacular summer
revue titled Singing in the Reign starring Joseph Locke and Nat Jackley
that reopened the Queen's Theatre in 1952.
The
site of the Queen's is now a shop. It began life in the twenties as
Feldman's Theatre and was a number two touring theatre with a diet
of variety and touring revues. It was intimate on two levels and seated
around 1000. At the rear of the stalls behind the pit was a little
raised balcony where the cheapest but best seats in the house were
and I spent many a happy night there with Uncle Jack Taylor. Blackpool's
greatest home grown producer of summer shows, touring revues, and
pantomimes.
One
of my treats was to be taken to lunch at Hill's restaurant, that was
a meeting place for the theatre fraternity and because I was with
my Uncle Jack we sat at a table reserved for producers and managers.
Bob Johnson the portly manager of Feldman's was always there and I
considered him to be the height of sophistication because he crumbled
a bread roll into his soup and added Worcester Sauce to it, be it
minestrone tomato or mushroom. The conversation between the managers
about artistes salaries, box office takings, and contracts was electrifying
to me. I was sitting and dining with the greats of Blackpool. They
talked about how business was in far away theatres such as the Palace
