Edwardian Actress - Gabrielle Ray

Gabrielle Ray (28 April 1883 - 27 May 1972) was one of the most successful actresses of the Edwardian era, and became one of the most photographed women in the world. She was famous throughout Europe, and was described as "the most statuesque beauty that ever appeared on the English stage". Gabrielle Ray is one of my favourite Edwardian actresses, partly for her beauty, her interesting life, and that her birthplace is very near that of my family. Despite being extremely popular when young, after an unsuccessful marriage, Gabrielle Ray's life went swiftly downhill, ending in  very tragic circumstances. I have included some photographs of her from different periods in life.

Gabrielle Ray was born Gabrielle Elizabeth Clifford Cook near Stockport, England, and was one of six children. Ray first appeared in London's West End at the age of ten, and from then on became a successful actress of the English stage. As well as being a celebrated beauty, she became famous for her dancing; for example in The Orchid (1903) she danced in pink pajamas while singing, and in The Merry Widow (1907) her routine included handstands and high kicks, performed on a table held by four men. Ray's image was wanted by many, and she became one of the most photographed women in the world; her beauty viewed by millions through the relatively recent invention of picture postcards. Her sister, Gladys Raymond, was also an actress; she and Gabrielle performed together as the 'Sisters Ray'.

In 1912 Gabrielle Ray announced her retirement from the stage, and left to marry the wealthy Eric Loder. The marriage was an unhappy one and soon broke down; they divorced in 1914. The time was difficult for Ray, but she returned to the stage in '15, and took parts in two final plays in the West End. She occasionally appeared in pantomimes and minor plays, but by 1920 Ray had disappeared from the English stage; her previous fame was forgotten and she lived in obscurity, suffering from depression and alcohol abuse. In 1936 she had a severe mental breakdown and was institutionalized for nearly forty years. Gabrielle Ray died in 1973, at the age of 90, in Holloway Sanatorium. 

Edwardian Actress - Lily Elsie

Lily Elsie (8 April 1886 – 16 December 1962) was a popular English actress and singer, most famous for her role in Franz Lehar's operetta The Merry Widow. Lily Elsie has to be my most favourite of Edwardian actresses, and I consider her to be, perhaps, the most beautiful of women. As well as being a talented actress and singer, and a stunning beauty, she had an interesting and ultimately rather tragic life, which is not apparent from the many photographs and postcards bearing her image. I have included a small selection of images of Elsie, from different periods in her life - it was very difficult to chose; she is so beautiful!

Lily Elsie was born Elsie Hodder in the West Riding of Yorkshire. Elsie became a well known child star, known as 'Little Elsie', though she was reported to be very shy, even as an adult. By 1898 she had her first performance in London, and featured in many plays and pantomimes, touring across England. From about 1900 she adopted the stage name Lily Elsie.

Elsie's biggest and most popular success came from playing the title role in the English version of The Merry Widow. From 1908 the show was a big success, and Elsie became a star, even in America. She received many gifts, especially from male admirers, and her image was wanted by many advertisers. She became one of the most photographed women of the Edwardian Era. In 1915 the American newspaper, Atlanta Constitution, wrote of Elsie: 

"Perhaps her face is nearer to that of the Venus de Milo in profile than to any other famed beauty. There are no angles to be found about her any place.... If she came to America, she would undoubtedly be called the most beautiful woman in America. Nature never made a more brilliant success in the beauty business than she did with Lily Elsie. It was mostly from the nobility that her suitors came. Everyone agrees that Lily Elsie has the most kissable mouth in all England... she possesses the Cupid's bow outline with the ends curving upward delicately, all ready for smiles.... Strangely enough, the women of the land were among her most devoted admirers."

Elsie appeared in many other shows after The Merry Widow, and in 1911 she left the stage to marry Major John Ian Bullough (1885–1936), but the marriage was reported to be an unhappy one. She also suffered from many health problems, such as anemia, and had many operations while she was still performing. Though her husband wished her to retire from stage, for it was obviously stressful and damaging on her health, and she did so for a few years, she continued until 1920, when she moved with her husband to Gloucestershire. There Elsie enjoyed the ten year break from performing, before returning to the theatre for a few years. Her last performance was in 1928.

In 1930 Elsie's unhappy marriage ended in divorce and her health deteriorated rapidly; becoming a hypochondriac and spending much time in nursing homes. She was diagnosed with serious physiological ailments and even underwent brain surgery which apparently improved her situation somewhat. Lily Elsie died in St Andrews Hospital in London at the age of 76, where she had spent her last years.

Edwardian Actresses

I have many interests in different aspects of history, but one of my favourite is that of the Edwardian era. It was rather a short period of time, but was a time of great change; socially, politically, economically and in fashion. One particular interest I have from this period is that of Edwardian actresses. I do not quite know from where this interest comes, but I think it is the fact that in history we know very much about the events and deeds of people of a time and little of the people themselves, and that is what is fascinating, whereas with Edwardian actresses we know very little about the plays they performed in, for there is often no footage of the performances, but there are many photographs documenting them throughout their lives. This opposite situation I find extremely fascinating. Though, often very little is known of the actresses lives - we only have photographs and reviews of their plays and performances. It is quite sad, but interesting, that the actresses only survive through the postcards or photographs of them, and they are quite unknown to us, but at the time they were the celebrities of their day. I find it hard to imagine that in, say, 100 years time, people will have very little idea of who our contemporary celebrities are, because they are so well documented today.

Over the next few weeks I plan to write a post on a certain Edwardian actress and include some photos; just a small few from the often hundreds which would be taken of the women during their careers. Like many of us who like history, we are drawn to the bygone eras, and look upon them with a certain nostalgia, even though we have never lived through those times. What I find interesting about Edwardian actresses is the differences and similarities to our actresses and models of today. I find it rather sad that today, to be considered beautiful, an actress or model should be thin. They are extremely beautiful women, but it is sad that they have to be so thin to be considered so. So, what I love about the Edwardian actresses and models is that their fame is based on their talent and their natural beauty. Yes, they did wear corsets, but that was just common practice. It is interesting to note that many of the actresses considered to be the most beautiful and famous of the Victorian and Edwardian period were often rather large ladies, often standing over six foot.
The actresses I plan to write posts about are; Lily Elsie, Maud Allan, Gabrielle Ray, Constance Collier, Maude Fealy, Lina Cavalieri and Lillian Russell.

Lily Elsie

Maud Allan

Gabrielle Ray

Constance Collier

Maude Fealy

Lina Cavalieri

Lillian Russell

Street Life in London - Photography of John Thomson

When a child in primary school, I remember being decidedly disinterested in history lessons when we learnt about the Victorian era. It is maybe because all they decided to teach us was how horrible life was for children of that time - factory work, coal mines etc - probably to make us feel bad for living a nice life in modern day. Therefore, for a long time, the age of Queen Victoria's reign was my least favourite period of history, but now knowing about all the art and culture of the day I find social history wonderfully interesting!

John Thomson, self-portrait in China

So, finding the wondrous photography of John Thomson intrigued me greatly. The life of the Victorian London poor has been brought to life, through the beautiful and expressive medium of photography. John Thomson (1837-1921) was a Scottish born photographer, geographer and traveller, who traveled mainly in Far East Asia, documenting and photographing the culture, before returning to London to work on collaborative photography project with friend Adolphe Smith, a journalist. Their project was to document the street life of London - laying the foundations for photojournalism.
The accompianing descriptions for the photographs are written by Adolphe Smith.

Covent garden flower women

"How different is the Covent Garden of to-day, with its bustle and din, its wealth and pauperism, its artifices, its hot-house flowers and forced fruit, its camellias with wire stems, its exotics from far-off climes, to "the fair-spreading pastures," measuring, according to the old chronicle, some seven acres in extent, where the Abbots of Westminster buried those who died in their convent. In those days vegetables were not only sold here but grew on the spot; and the land, now so valuable, was considered to be worth an annual income of £6 6s. 8d., when given by the Crown to John Russell, Earl of Bedford, in 1552. […] When death takes one of the group away, a child has generally been reared to follow in her parents' footsteps; and the "beat" in front of the church is not merely the property of its present owners, it has been inherited from previous generations of flower-women. Now and then a stranger makes her appearance, probably during the most profitable season, but as a rule the same women may be seen standing on the spot from year's end to year's end, and the personages of the photograph are well known to nearly all who are connected with the market."

London nomads

"He honestly owned his restless love of a roving life, and his inability to settle in any fixed spot. He also held that the progress of education was one of the most dangerous symptoms of the times, and spoke in a tone of deep regret of the manner in which decent children were forced now-a-days to go to school. 'Edication, sir! Why what do I want with edication? Edication to them what has it makes them wusser. They knows tricks what don't b'long to the nat'ral gent. That's my 'pinion. They knows a sight too much, they do! No offence, sir. There's good gents and kind 'arted scholards, no doubt. But when a man is bad, and God knows most of us aint wery good, it makes him wuss. Any chaps of my acquaintance what knows how to write and count proper aint much to be trusted at a bargain.'

The Temperance Sweep

"He is now the happy father of a large family, he lives in a house near Lambeth Walk, where he once humbly worked in the capacity of a mere assistant. As a master sweep he has an extensive connexion. The money he earns enables him to subscribe to several benefit societies, and he is entitled to receive from them 10s. a week in sickness, while his wife will have £46 given her at his death, or he will receive £18 should she die first. Altogether he is both prosperous and respected throughout the neighbourhood, where he ardently advocates the cause of total abstinence, and is well known as the temperance sweep."

Street advertising

"There is a certain knack required in pasting a bill on a rough board, so that it shall spread out smoothly, and be easily read by every pedestrian; but the difficulty is increased fourfold when it is necessary to climb a high ladder, paste-can, bills, and brush in hand. The wind will probably blow the advertisement to pieces before it can be affixed to the wall, unless the bill-sticker is cool, prompt in his action, and steady of foot. Thus the "ladder-men," as they are called, earn much higher wages, and the advertising contractors are generally glad to give them regular employment. The salaries of these men vary from £1 to £1 15s. per week, and they work as a rule from seven in the morning to seven at night."

Street doctors

"The subject of the accompanying illustration is a vendor of cough lozenges and healing ointment. He was originally a car-driver employed by a firm in the city, but had to leave his situation on account of failing sight.”

More photographs from the series will be posted soon... hope you find these interesting for now!

Photograph Album Update

I have recently become the proud owner of a late Victorian photograph album (explanatory post here). Today I have found some photos to put in the album. Every Sunday after church, I go down to my local flea market in Tynemouth Station; it is full of vintage and handmade stalls, antiques, records and utter junk. Mostly junk. However, there are always some great finds - I was lucky enough to discover a box of old family photographs. Bought two carte de visites that I found interesting.

The first is of a young woman, probably local; for the studio was in Sunderland. I chose this one because I found her dress interesting. The belt with three buckles, the bells at the neck and down the skirt, the snake bracelet. A very nice outfit overall. What intrigued me most, though, was the whistle attached to the buttons. What could it be for? I do not know for sure but the costume looks to be mid/late 1880's early 90's maybe? It has quite a military feel to it, with the belt and whistle, but it is probably just fashion. I wonder who this woman was, what her occupation was? Her hands look as though she did some sort of labour (though she could just have big hands) and she does not look high class. It would be nice to find out more about this woman, for she seems rather interesting.

This second portrait I bought less for curiosity, but for that it is just a lovely portrait. This young woman too is local; the photographers is in Newcastle. I love her dress - looks like early 1890's. I like the that the fabric of the skirt matches the blouse. The collar, laced cuffs and bodice are beautiful additions and make this dress really lovely and unusual. I wonder if this photo was taken for the young woman's sweetheart, perhaps, or for family. I do wish it to be the former - I am such a romantic... sad, I know.

Very pleased with my photographs - they fit perfectly in the album and look about right for the period. Even though I love collecting old photographs, I cannot help feeling a little disrespectful for they are such personal things. It is sad to think that these people are dead and we know nothing of there lives save for what they looked like. Not even a name. I wonder what they would think knowing that their photographs were in a cardboard box in a flea market. I like to think that by buying these portraits I am keeping some sort of memory safe, whereas if not the photos would get mistreated and lost. Ah, maybe I am thinking too much into it now. I digress.
If anybody may have some information or I have got something wrong, like dates or costumes etc,  it would be lovely to know. Updates coming in the future when I find more photographs.
Best Wishes.

1890's Photograph Album

Oh, how I love charity shops! I have recently bought an old photograph album. Though it was mostly void of photos and has significant water damage, I still could not resist and bought it for £9 - a bargain I think! It is a lovely old thing - a really big and heavy book, leather with a nice clasp and everything. I have done some research and concluded that the album is from the 1890s. Very old indeed!

I was disappointed at first to see that the album was empty, but as I turned over the last page I found this photograph...

A mysterious man... how intriguing!

What a fine young gentleman! I wonder who he was, and why was his the only photo left? To try to answer that; the dampness had fused the photograph to the paper backing, but if he was that important surely somebody could have cut it out or something? And the water damage seems to be  a later addition to the album... I wonder who owned this book, what family did it belong to? Ah, so many questions which will never be answered! It is indeed a mystery!

I cannot bear to see this photo album empty, and the young gentleman on his own, so I have decided to find some old photographs, preferably ones from the later Victorian era. I will post any photos I manage to find.

Best Wishes

Lyme Park Photography

For the New Year I traveled down to the Peak District to stay with family. Staying true to British traditions, the weather was awful; it rained constantly for a week. Rather disappointing, for I always enjoy being out in the beautiful countryside down there, and there are so many lovely buildings to explore.

After becoming increasingly annoyed with the rain, I decided to take an umbrella and my camera and wander down to Lyme Park. Lyme Hall and Park is a beautiful country estate near Disley, Cheshire, and is probably best known for being Mr Darcy's Pemberley in the 1995 Pride and Prejudice. You know, the bit where Colin Firth appears from the lake to a rather surprised Lizzy Bennet - my favourite scene of the series (well, apart from all the scenes where the wonderful Mr Collins (David Bamber) is present)!

Here are my photos of Lyme Park and gardens. It was quite misty, which made half of my photographs really fuzzy and useless, and the other half, here, quite spooky.

This is the old Hunting Lodge. I thought the stone had some lovely textures and the building looked very imposing and proud.

Spotted a statue of Artemis on the roof, Ancient Greek Goddess of the hunt, childbirth and virginity.

Found this rather amusing and slightly ironic, seeing as Lyme Hall was just an imposing shadow in the mist...

Poseidon! With a rather lethal looking tridant... would not like to get on the wrong side of him, as found out by lion-hearted Odysseus! 

Happy New Year! and may the weather get considerably better for 2013, lets hope at least...