Gracie Fields: Icon of Variety
A Newsreel Celebration
It is widely known that Dame Gracie Fields was born to humble beginnings above her Grandmother’s fish and chip shop in January 1898, in the northern mill town of Rochdale. From her humble beginnings, little Grace Stansfield rose to be Britain’s most popular female variety entertainer and the nation’s sweetheart. Gracie’s no-airs-and-graces style of blending sentimental songs with raucous comedy numbers enamoured her to the working classes of the depression, placing her high in the public’s estimation -with the reserved honour of the nickname ‘Our Gracie’.
In their new DVD ‘Gracie Fields, Icon of Variety: A Newsreel Celebration,’ Strike Force Entertainment charter Gracie’s professional life in over 2 hours of newsreel footage, from both the Movietone and Pathe archives. In over 56 separate newsreels, we see Gracie rise from provincial star to Britain’s best-loved female artist and charity campaigner to a gracious old lady. For the first time, this DVD presents many newsreels featuring Gracie in excellent video and sound quality, previously unavailable for fans and collectors. Whilst the hardcore Gracie collector may have seen all of the footage included in this excellent compilation; the quality surpasses and many will rush out to buy this DVD to see Gracie Fields presented in her natural environments for the first time in clarity. For those with a passing interest, or not so much knowledge of Our Gracie, this DVD is a gold-mine of entertainment of the ultimate icon of variety.
‘The Show’s the Thing’
The earliest reel shows Gracie in a silent comedy scene from ‘The Shows the Thing,’ (incorrectly announced on the original newsreel as ‘Mr. Tower of London’). The 1930s saw the beginning of Gracie’s film career, presented on this disc with a theatrical pre-release sequence from ‘Sally in our Alley’ and also an extract from ‘Sing As We Go,’ which shows a very brief ‘new’ shot of extras in the famous closing sequence of the film.
Gracie attend hundreds of charity events, for which she received the ‘Order of St John and Jerusalem’ for her important charity work. This compilation shows Gracie attending a child boxing match in aid of St. Dunstan’s school for the blind; kicking off a 1936 football match between the Press and Boxers; visiting the White Feather Children’s camp in Heaton Park, Smethwick Disabled Men’s handicraft factory and a Monster Gala in Chorley. Footage also shows Gracie being appointed as the President of the Variety Artists Ladies’ Guild and Orphanage and Life Governor of the London Hospital.
Away from the recording studio, film cameras and variety stage, Gracie is seen attending various opening events around the country. From the Glasgow Empire Exhibition, the opening of Potter and Moore’s factory, the launching of the ‘SS Gracie Fields,’ visiting Butlins Skegness with Jack Doyle and the opening of the Dominion Theatre, Ritz Cinema Birkenhead, and the London premiere of Irving Berlin’s ‘Alexander’s Ragtime Band’. Other events showcased include the pressing of Gracie’s 4 millionth record at the HMV factory in Hayes on 14th February 1933; Sheila Temple’s birthday party in Hollywood; the 2nd birthday party of Leslie Fuller’s twin daughters; and the Variety Artist’s Ball of 1938.
In 1937, Gracie was presented with the CBE from the King, and footage shows Gracie leaving her Finchley Road home to receive the award, showing her brother Tommy the citation on her return from ‘Buck House,’ and her thoughts of the event a few days later. Whilst having homes in London and Peacehaven, Gracie’s main house was on the Isle of Capri, and a newsreel from the mid-1930s shows the regeneration of the dilapidated property from ‘Il Fortino’ into the world renowned ‘La Canzone del Mare’ -the song of the sea. The longest reel in the collection is the ten minute Movietone Christmas Reel of 1938, edited and narrated by Gracie as she takes us on a whistle-stop tour of Northern life, finishing with Gracie and Victor Silvester dancing ‘The Trek Song’ in the studio.
Gracie’s return from Hollywood in February 1939 saw her appointed as an honorary Police Officer of the Santa Monica Police Department, and footage shows Gracie showing off her award on her return to Victoria Station. Another award presented to Gracie was a portrait by Scottish artist James Gunn, commissioned and paid for by the people of Rochdale and presented to Gracie in a concert at Rochdale’s Theatre Royal, as shown in this collection. One comical event from 1938 sees Gracie christen a baby elephant ‘Sally’ at Maidstone Zoo with a glass of champagne.
The two most poignant reels on the disc feature Gracie’s battle with cervical cancer in 1939. Given only a 30% chance of survival from the illness, Gracie underwent two major internal operations at the Royal Chelsea Women’s Hospital -and the public responded with over 250,000 letters of good wishes. The emotional footage of Gracie leaving the hospital sums up the nation’s adoration for their favourite star.
At the outbreak of the Second World War, Gracie denied herself the six years suggested recuperation period, and immediately threw herself into war work. Well known edited newsreels of Gracie’s concerts for the troops at Chelsea Barracks, her first tours of France in September and December 1939 and her return in April 1940 are shown in their entirety. One interesting piece of footage shows Gracie and Monty Banks serving tea to the troops from a YMCA tea van, and Gracie feeding a biscuit to a soldier with a pet monkey! Following Gracie’s departure to entertain the troops in Canada and America in June 1940, Gracie’s 1941 and 1943 return visits to England are featured in newsreels of her Rochdale appearances and a party thrown in her honour by Basil Dean in 1943 at the Dorchester Hotel. Gracie’s successful tour of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific is shown on the disc with footage of Gracie’s performance in Brisbane in July 1945, where her performance is stopped by an inebriated sailor!
Gracie sums up her war tour herself in a newsreel filmed on her return to England in January 1946, presented here interspersed with images of her tours in a montage sequence unique to this DVD release. Her successful return to the hearts of her adoring public is shown with footage of her first return to native Rochdale after the war in June 1947, with thousands of people thronging the streets as they had done years before.
Following her third marriage to Romanian born Boris Alperovici in February 1952, the early 1950s saw Gracie slow down into semi-retirement, attending events shown here such as the Britannia Film Ball, Britain’s Ballroom Queen and judging Miss World 1954 -all events which are presented here. Gracie is also seen throwing a tea-party for disabled children at the Savoy Hotel, and appearing in a special Christmas concert at the Royal Festival Hall -where she comes off the stage to join the audience in singing Christmas numbers and a concert in Oldham in the mid 1950s.
Gracie appears as the guest of honour at the November 1959 Britannia Ball in New York, where she leads the assembly in singing ‘It’s A Long Way to Tipperary.’ November 1962 sees Gracie again present the trophy to ‘Miss World’, and finally, growing old Gracefully, ‘Our Gracie’ presents a Society of Film and Television Award to Stanley Baxter in March 1975. 
It is the musical talent of Gracie that many remember her by, and this compilation features extracts from many of her popular song. These include the ever popular: Sally; Walter; Mrs Binns’ Twins; Music Maestro Please; The Sweetest Song in the World; Wish Me Luck; the Trek Song; My Boy; He Wooed Her and Wooed Her; The Thingummybob; I’m Sending a Letter to Santa Clause; You Made Me Love You; A Little On the Lonely Side and I Never Cried So Much in All My Life;
This collection also features shots of some of those closest to Gracie, filling in the ‘wider circle’ for many Gracie enthusiasts. Throughout the reels, we see shots of Gracie’s Mother and Father, Jenny and Fred, her pianists Harry Parr-Davies and Ivor Newton, her managers Bert and Lillian Aza, her younger brother Tommy Fields, and shots of all three husbands Archie Pitt, Monty Banks and Boris Alperovici.
Whether performing on stage, presiding over an opening ceremony or photographed naturally with the troops, this collection provides an amazing and unique insight into both the public image of Dame Gracie Fields. Taking the viewer on a tour from her rise in the review at the age of thirty through her film career, semi-retirement and ultimately to an appearance on British television in her 70s, this DVD has something of interest for every Gracie Fields collector, enthusiast, fan and those with just a passing interest in the greatest female star Britain has ever produced.
Seb. Lassandro