| Arthur Lucan/Old Mother Riley | ||||
| INDEX : HOME FAQ TIMELINE THE EARLY YEARS THE KINGSTON- UPON-HULL CONNECTION OTHER LINKS
"On Your Way, Riley!" (Play based
on the life of Lucan and McShane)
British
Music Hall Performers
British
Films of the 30's, 40's & 50's
It's Behind You (Pantomime Site)
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BEHIND THE CURTAINS -THE PRIVATE LIFE OF LUCAN & McSHANE (Continued)
Chalk And Cheese Although the couple's professional career contined to go from strength to strength, storm clouds were gathering behind the scenes. The couples tempraments were as different as chalk and cheese. Kitty's volatile Irish temper and Arthur's easy-going nature were beginning to jar. Kitty had a large ego and loved to be in the limelight and control the purse strings.Whilst Arthur was the reverse. He preferred to stay in the background, and remained virtually un-noticed by adoring fans once he divested himself of his Old Mother Riley drag garb.
Kitty felt that Arthur didn't stick up for himself in dealings with others, and would often make her feelings
known by throwing the nearest inanimate object at him. He became an expert at dodging missiles!
Following their sucessful appearance at the Royal Variety Performance in 1934, the couple's poularity and earnings
rocketed. They bought a mansion in Wembley, and Kitty enjoyed the power and trappings that the fame brought. Arthur
had more modest tastes.
Kitty was renowned for her notorious moods swings - she could be make Arthur's life hell one minute, and then be all
sweetness and light the next. She was also an outrageous flirt, especially with younger men.
Billy Bleach to Willer Neal
Kitty McShane first took a shine to the young Billy Bleach after he was booked as part of a male backing quartet
on tour in 1944.
The relationship quickly developed into something more serious and Bleach became a permanent fixture in both Lucan
& McShane' public and private lives. Arthur naively went along with her. However, he insisted that Bleach changed his name, as
it "sounds like a washing detergent!" Billy Bleach was re-invented as Willer Neal. The die was cast.
Little did Arthur Lucan realise that
the seeds of the destruction of his marriage and his career had been sown.
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Tivoli Theatre, Hull,
poster featuring an appearance by Lucan and McShane commencing on 20
November 1950.It also features Kitty's lover, Willer Neal (Billy Bleach)
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