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ARTHUR LUCAN - THE EARLY YEARS
From Humble Beginnings Arthur Lucan, who created the famous Irish washerwoman character 'Old Mother Riley', was born Arthur Towle on 16th September 1885 in the small village of Sibsey, in Lincolnshire, England.
Certified copy of Arthur Towle's birth certificate Arthur was the third of seven children, the other siblings being : George (b. 4th December 1883)
Arthur Lucan's birthplace in Sibsey, Lincolnshire [Picture courtesy of Roy Rust]
The Move To Boston
Arthur moved to nearby Boston with his family when he was five years old. It was at the town’s Shodfriars Hall (pictured below), which housed a theatre, within sight of his home, where Arthur first trod the boards.
Shodfriars Hall, Boston, Lincolnshire. [Click on picture for larger image] A plaque on the side of Shodfriar's Hall in Boston reads : "This 15th century timber framed building was remodelled and restored in 1874 by J. Oldrid Scott, son of the distinguished Sir George Gilbert Scott, with a large hall in the flemish style to the rear. Later fitted as a
theatre seating 650 people it was here in 1899 that locally born Arthur
Towle aged 14 made his debut before achieving fame under the stage name
of Arthur Lucan as 'Old Mother Riley'".
Shodfriars Hall, Boston Lincolnshire - modern view.
The 1891 Census Below is an extract from the 1891 Census showing the Towle family, including Arthur, aged five.
Extract from the 1891 Census for Boston, where the Towle family moved to from Sibsey.
[Click picture for larger image] The 1891 Census [RG12/2573/37] shows: 10 Wood Yard, Boston, St. Botoloph. Tom TOWLE (head) age 36, Groom - born Waddingham. Lucy TOWLE (wife) age 33 - born Sleaford. Annie TOWLE (daughter) age 8 Scholar - born South Kelsey. George TOWLE (son) age 7 Scholar - born South Kelsey. Arthur TOWLE (son) age 5 - born Sibsey. Kate TOWLE (daughter) age 3 - born Sibsey. Tom TOWLE (son) age 1 - born Boston, Lincs. [Thanks to Roy and Joy Rust who own the cottage where Arthur Towle (Lucan) was born in Sibsey ] The Peacock and Royal Hotel The Towle family moved to 10 Wood Yard, Boston, in the summer of 1891, when Thomas Towle was hired by the Ridlington family as Head Groom at The Peacock and Royal Hotel. The house was rented from his employers for the princely sum of 1 shilling a week.
Peacock & Royal Hotel beer, wine and spirits price list, circa 1896.
Wood Lane was a small street which ran between
Craythorn Lane and Jail Lane (later re-named Sibsey Lane!). The property was extremely convenient as it backed on to the
hotel's yard.
1901 Census
Below is an extract from the 1901 Census showing the Towle family, including Arthur, aged 16. Profession - Office Boy!
Extract from the 1901 Census for Boston. A Sudden Death In The Family
Arthur's father, Thomas Towle, died suddenly at the relatively early age of
thirty nine.The cause of death was given as 'Morbus Cordis' - a catch-all phrase for death
by natural causes (heart disease) when the exact cause was not evident. This left Arthur's mother to bring up
the seven children on her own.
Thomas Towle was laid to rest in the Chapel Cemetary in Horncastle Road, Boston on 4 March 1896.
The First Steps To Stardom
The young Arthur spent hours hanging around outside the Shodfriars Hall. As a reward for his persistence he
was offered a job by the lessee, Bartol Storr. Arthur's duties involved sweeping the stage and selling programmes.
In 1899 he secured a similar job at the nearby Music Hall in the old Boston Corn Exchange. However, his ambitions
lay towards performing rather than front of house. To this end, one day, he burst into the startled manager's office to
perform an impromtu audition. The manager, Harry Fountain, was sufficiently impressed to offer him an onstage role. Arthur
Towle was on his way as a performer.
Learning His Craft
After seeing the famous Adeler and Sutton's Pierrot show in nearby Skegness, the restless young
Arthur wrote asking if he could join one of their many travelling troupes.
He left home, sometime after 1901, to join a Pierrot- type travelling show, "The Musical Cliftons."
His
formative years were spent learning his craft around England and Ireland.
Although Arthur enjoyed his time with the Cliftons, he yearned for the warmth and comfort of the
static theatre.
To this end, in 1910 he managed to secure a pantomime -
Little Red Riding Hood - at the Queen's Theatre, Dublin, by literally
writing the script overnight, with himself playing the role of Granny.
Kitty McShane Enters The Picture
The title role in the pantomime had been given to a beautiful thirteen year old raven
haired brown eyed local girl, Catherine "Kitty" McShane. The
die was cast.
Although the pantomime was a huge success, Arthur
reluctantly returned to England to join a concert party "The White
Coons."
Arthur Lucan and
Kitty McShane [Click on picture for larger image] A Change Of Name
It was just before his return to England that
Arthur adopted the stage name Lucan, after spotting a horse-drawn milk
float with the words "LUCAN DAIRIES" on the side.. This
site was created and is maintained by Martyn
Peter Wilkinson. Quotes and images not my own
remain in the copyright of the originator or
else in the public domain. The information
contained in this web site is intended for
entertainment, educational, historical, and
informational purposes only. All
rights Reserved Worldwide © 2001-2008 |
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Market Place, Boston [Picture courtesy of Roy Rust]
An early insight into the Towle children and young Arthur's budding performing talent "...my father who knew Arthur and the rest of the Towle family as a boy. My father Reginald George Wright was born in Boston in 1893 so was the same age as Lucy Towle, the youngest of the Towle children. In fact they attended the same school, The National School, in Boston. My father remembered going to see a play that Arthur had produced under his own steam and taken part in. It was entitled, Maria Martin, Death in the Red Barn. It was performed in a loft above a slaughter house and bacon warehouse belonging to Mr Thorpe, a butcher in Dolphin Lane. The admission was 6 pins and attracted about 50 children from the area. The only mishap on the first night was that the curtain became stuck and could not be lowered, much to the amusement of the audience. Tom Towle, one of Arthurs younger brothers also had a flair for the theatre as he performed shadow shows. He was also a member of the " Eclipse School of Physical Culture" a rather grand name for the boxing and weightlifting club. Tom worked for some time in the timber yard in Boston. Edwin Towle became a grocer at the Maypole Dairy in Bargate, Boston and the two younger girls Kate and Lucy married and lived in Boston. If you think that using pins as a type of currency is a little odd remeber that it is not such a long time ago that change especially in dress shops of say a farthing or halfpenny (old money) was quite often given in the form of a packet of pins." [Thanks to Ruth Newcombe] Tom and George Towle and The Peacock & Royal Hotel Tom Towle had numerous jobs throughout his life. He worked at The Peacock & Royal Hotel as a boot boy. His other jobs included working behind the counter at the Maypole Grocery Store, navvy, working at a seed merchants and commisionaire at The Odeon cinema. His final job before he retired, was working at Midgeley's Grocery Store. George Towle, Arthur's elder brother, followed in his late father's footsteps and took a job at The Peacock & Royal Hotel (pictured below).
The Peacock & Royal Hotel in Market Place, Boston, circa 1896.
The Old Mother Riley Character
Arthur Lucan dressed as Mrs Daphne Snowdrop Bluebell Riley The character Mrs Daphne Snowdrop Bluebell Riley had originally lived in the back streets Dublin with her wastral husband who eventually drank himself to death. Leaving his wife to bring up their only daughter, Kitty, on her own. She currently lives in a two-up, two-down terraced house in Paradise Row. Such houses were common in most major cities in the country. The occupiers of these houses were poor, but proud. In an effort to supplement her widow's pension and support herself and her daughter, Mrs Riley had worked as a laundress, kitchen maid, cleaner, shop assistant and a matchseller. "There's laughter and tears, smiles and regrets, sunshine and showers, but we must all carry on to the end." Arthur Lucan, from his famous sketch, THE MATCHSELLER. Around the Old Mother Riley character, Arthur Lucan wove countless music hall sketches, films, disc recordings and radio broadcasts. To listen to the Columbia disc recordings Click here
A young Arthur Lucan and Kitty McShane |
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