Howard productions
Title
Howard productions
Description
Review of the variety show Spotlight on Flannel, Henry's theatrical business card and programmes for three performances of a revue, numbered v, vi and viii.
Language
Format
One newspaper cutting, one printed business card and three typed sheets on two album pages
Publisher
Rights
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
Identifier
SHowardHF1158144v10002, SHowardHF1158144v10003, SHowardHF1158144v10004
Transcription
[italics] The Halton Magazine [/italics]
[drawing]
HOW TO MAKE £2,000
EARLY this year a variety show, “Spotlight on Flannel,” was presented at Halton by two instructors – Cpl. Wally Okin and Cpl. Henry Howard.
When “Wings for Victory” weeks were being arranged in Bucks soon afterwards, the cast of “Spotlight on Flannel” were invited to lend a hand. They did. Between April and July they visited towns and villages all over the county, putting on a variety entertainment which became better and better as time went on.
Over this period the sum of £1,700 was collected for the “Wings for Victory” campaign and £500 for the R.A.F. Benevolent Fund.
Audiences ranged from 4,000 in an open-air stadium in Chesham (where £360 was raked in) to about one hundred in a small village hall – proceeds £20.
The party which achieved this success – in their spare time – included LACW Diana Male, the station’s popular soprano: F. Lt. Gottlieb (a first-rate tenor), F. Sgt. Jimmy Cummings (comedian), LAC Harry Illingsworth (ventriloquist), LAC Conrad Vince (compere), and LAC Wallie Buckland (accordeonist [sic]).
Sgt. George Carter acted as accompanist, and provided a swing orchestra: and of course there were the producers of the original show, Cpls. Howard and Okin, in their now famous comedy act.
Members of this group still on the station, with others of the “old gang” of entertainers, are forming the nucleus of a station concert party. Having already done a good job of work outside, they are preparing to do an equally good job in camp this winter.
There is no doubt that this development will be welcomed. It may be the beginning of entertainment “by the people, for the people,” which should be the aim on a station of this kind.
[break]
[photograph]
HENRY HOWARD
THE INIMITABLE COMPERE-COMEDIAN
FOR
“JOKING APART”
2, THE GREENWAY,
RICKMANSWORTH,
HERTS
TELEPHONE-
LONDON WALL
[indecipherable numbers]
[break]
HOWARD PRODUCTIONS
“REVUE AND VARIETY”
M.F. HOWARD.
W. OKIN.
S.F. RUDMAN.
202. GREEN LANE.
LONDON, N.13.
TEL:- PAL 2387.
“SHOWS FOR ALL OCCASIONS”
[page break]
[underlined] THE HYDE 1939 – 2940 [sic] [underlined]
PROGRAMME V
1) SONG – “DOWN WITH THE JITTERS”
2) ACTION SONG “WE’LL ALL BE MERRY & BRIGHT”
3) SKETCH – BRITISH INDIA
4) THE VICAR’S LAMENT
5) MALE CHOIR – “THERE’LL ALWAYS BE AN ENGLAND”
6) SONG – “EARLY ONE MORNING” – NORWOOD
7) TAMPERED TITLES
8) INTERVAL – COMMUNITY SINGING
9) PANTOMIME – “CINDERELLA”
[page break]
[blank page]
[page break]
[underlined] THE HYDE 1939 – 1940 [/underlined]
PROGRAMME VI
OPENING CHORUS
1) CLEMENTINE TRIO (HENRY, BAUB & ROY)
2) SKETCH – THE MODERN GENERATION
3) WILLIE – 2 SONGS
4) THE BIG DUST UP (CRAZY GANG)
5) SKETCH – THE OBVIOUS
6) THE LAUNDRY SONG – ROY
7) WHAT’S IN A NAME (ANDY & BAUB)
8) MISS MARY BURTON
9) WIDDICOMBE FAIR & OLD MOTHER RILEY (MALE CHORUS)
10) THE THREE GIRLS
11) THE SCHOOL (CRAZY GANG)
“GOODNIGHT HAMBROS”
[page break)
[blank page]
[page break]
[underlined] THE HYDE 1939 – 1940 [/underlined]
PROGRAMME VII
1) OVERTURE
2) OPENING CHORUS – [deleted] BAUBLE [/deleted]
3) “WE’RE HERE AGAIN”
4) SKETCH – “BEWARE OF THE DOG”
5) SONG – ROBBY
6) BLACK-OUT SKETCHES
7) SKETCH – “GANGSTERS HOME”
8) NURSERY RHYMES
9) SONG – WILLIAMS
10) SKETCH – “THINGS TO COME”
11) PIANO SELECTION – ROBBY
12) “RADIO LUTONBOURG”
13) THE HAMBROSIANS
14) “GOOD-BYE HAMBROS”
15) CLOSING CHORUS
[drawing]
HOW TO MAKE £2,000
EARLY this year a variety show, “Spotlight on Flannel,” was presented at Halton by two instructors – Cpl. Wally Okin and Cpl. Henry Howard.
When “Wings for Victory” weeks were being arranged in Bucks soon afterwards, the cast of “Spotlight on Flannel” were invited to lend a hand. They did. Between April and July they visited towns and villages all over the county, putting on a variety entertainment which became better and better as time went on.
Over this period the sum of £1,700 was collected for the “Wings for Victory” campaign and £500 for the R.A.F. Benevolent Fund.
Audiences ranged from 4,000 in an open-air stadium in Chesham (where £360 was raked in) to about one hundred in a small village hall – proceeds £20.
The party which achieved this success – in their spare time – included LACW Diana Male, the station’s popular soprano: F. Lt. Gottlieb (a first-rate tenor), F. Sgt. Jimmy Cummings (comedian), LAC Harry Illingsworth (ventriloquist), LAC Conrad Vince (compere), and LAC Wallie Buckland (accordeonist [sic]).
Sgt. George Carter acted as accompanist, and provided a swing orchestra: and of course there were the producers of the original show, Cpls. Howard and Okin, in their now famous comedy act.
Members of this group still on the station, with others of the “old gang” of entertainers, are forming the nucleus of a station concert party. Having already done a good job of work outside, they are preparing to do an equally good job in camp this winter.
There is no doubt that this development will be welcomed. It may be the beginning of entertainment “by the people, for the people,” which should be the aim on a station of this kind.
[break]
[photograph]
HENRY HOWARD
THE INIMITABLE COMPERE-COMEDIAN
FOR
“JOKING APART”
2, THE GREENWAY,
RICKMANSWORTH,
HERTS
TELEPHONE-
LONDON WALL
[indecipherable numbers]
[break]
HOWARD PRODUCTIONS
“REVUE AND VARIETY”
M.F. HOWARD.
W. OKIN.
S.F. RUDMAN.
202. GREEN LANE.
LONDON, N.13.
TEL:- PAL 2387.
“SHOWS FOR ALL OCCASIONS”
[page break]
[underlined] THE HYDE 1939 – 2940 [sic] [underlined]
PROGRAMME V
1) SONG – “DOWN WITH THE JITTERS”
2) ACTION SONG “WE’LL ALL BE MERRY & BRIGHT”
3) SKETCH – BRITISH INDIA
4) THE VICAR’S LAMENT
5) MALE CHOIR – “THERE’LL ALWAYS BE AN ENGLAND”
6) SONG – “EARLY ONE MORNING” – NORWOOD
7) TAMPERED TITLES
8) INTERVAL – COMMUNITY SINGING
9) PANTOMIME – “CINDERELLA”
[page break]
[blank page]
[page break]
[underlined] THE HYDE 1939 – 1940 [/underlined]
PROGRAMME VI
OPENING CHORUS
1) CLEMENTINE TRIO (HENRY, BAUB & ROY)
2) SKETCH – THE MODERN GENERATION
3) WILLIE – 2 SONGS
4) THE BIG DUST UP (CRAZY GANG)
5) SKETCH – THE OBVIOUS
6) THE LAUNDRY SONG – ROY
7) WHAT’S IN A NAME (ANDY & BAUB)
8) MISS MARY BURTON
9) WIDDICOMBE FAIR & OLD MOTHER RILEY (MALE CHORUS)
10) THE THREE GIRLS
11) THE SCHOOL (CRAZY GANG)
“GOODNIGHT HAMBROS”
[page break)
[blank page]
[page break]
[underlined] THE HYDE 1939 – 1940 [/underlined]
PROGRAMME VII
1) OVERTURE
2) OPENING CHORUS – [deleted] BAUBLE [/deleted]
3) “WE’RE HERE AGAIN”
4) SKETCH – “BEWARE OF THE DOG”
5) SONG – ROBBY
6) BLACK-OUT SKETCHES
7) SKETCH – “GANGSTERS HOME”
8) NURSERY RHYMES
9) SONG – WILLIAMS
10) SKETCH – “THINGS TO COME”
11) PIANO SELECTION – ROBBY
12) “RADIO LUTONBOURG”
13) THE HAMBROSIANS
14) “GOOD-BYE HAMBROS”
15) CLOSING CHORUS
Collection
Citation
“Howard productions,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed June 13, 2026, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/collections/document/42864.