Ronald Frankau
Encyclopedia
Ronald Frankau was an English
comedian and musician from London
who started in cabarets and made his way to radio and films.
Frankau's father was Arthur Frankau, grandson of Joseph Frankau, a German
Jew from Frankfurt
who came to London in the late 1830s and started a cigar trading business. Arthur Frankau married Julia Davis
, who was a celebrated novelist of satirical books. Some of the titles include Pigs in Clover and An Incomplete Etonian. This may account for Frankau's grasp of satire in his later work as a comedian.
Frankau's parents had four children, Gilbert, Jack, Ronald and Joan. Gilbert
went into the family trading business until the war (living and working for a while in Germany), was a war poet and subsequently a novelist, while his daughter, Pamela Frankau
, became a novelist too. Jack was killed leading his platoon in the 3rd Battle of Gaza in November 1917. Joan married the historian Stanley Bennett and, as a Cambridge don in her own right, Joan Bennett was one of the key defence witnesses in the Lady Chatterley trial of 1960.
Frankau had several children including TV producer John Frankau, father of Nicholas Frankau
. He had two children with the actress Renee Roberts - Roberta and Rosemary. Rosemary Frankau pursued a career in acting, appearing in many series of the TV sitcom Terry and June
, as June's best friend Beattie. Rosemary's son, Sam Bain
, became a comedy writer and co-created the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show
.
The Frankau family monument in Hampstead Cemetery is monumental in every sense of the word; Grade II listed by English Heritage in 1999, it commemorates Arthur and Julia Frankau and their three sons.
in London in 1911 and joined the army in 1914 to fight in World War I
. During that time he continued his music and comedy ambitions, organizing his own concerts in Africa and the United Kingdom.
After the war he worked in night clubs and hotel lounges as an entertainer with both comical song and dance. It was then that he met performer Monte Crick, who would end up being his pianist in all his later recordings.
In 1925 he started broadcasting saucy jokes on the radio in an Etonian tone for the BBC
, but is actually better known these days for what he was never allowed to broadcast. Frankau recorded a number of songs and skits on Parlophone
, some of which, like Winnie the Worm and Everyone’s Got Sex Appeal For Someone, were banned altogether. Despite, or because of, this flavour in his songs, Frankau sold over 100,000 records in 1932.
Like most comedians, he often commented on the current events at the time, often in satire. Some of the songs he recorded regarding current events (the war, at that time) were ‘’Heil Hitler! Ja! Ja! Ja!’’ and ‘’The Navy The Army and The Police’’.
Despite his dangerously naughty tones off the air, he was able to keep his jokes clean enough for some of the toughest censors of British broadcasting at the time, including Baron Reith
.
In 1934 Frankau began a comedy duo with Tommy Handley
that they called 'Murgatroyd and Winterbottom
'.
On 7 November 2006, BBC Radio 4 broadcast a review of one of his partnerships - "Mr Murgatroyd and Mr Winterbottom" - 'The story of Tommy Handley and Ronald Frankau, a comedy partnership which had its heyday in the 1930s world of radio. There was no straight man, so the partnership was a rare one. Tommy was a fast talking Liverpudlian, while Ronald in contrast was upper class and Eton-educated. Presented by Nicholas Frankau
, actor and grandson of Ronald.' http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/pip/cqry9/
Ronald Frankau died at Eastbourne on the Sussex coast - as had his father half a century before.
"If you'd like to hear a story of many years ago,
Then gather round, good children, and I'll tell you all I know.
It's all about a princess who couldn't quite behave,
And how a naughty ogre took that princess to his cave,
And how the little princess was rescued by a prince,
And how they've been so very very happy ever since.
Extraordinary! Wonderful!
Fascinating! Queer!
Marvellous! Incredible!
Oh dear, dear "
His other publications include Crazy Omnibus (Grayson & Grayson, 1933) and two Wartime books of morale-boosting humorous verse, both illustrated by Laurie Tayler and published in the early 1940s by Raphael Tuck & Sons: Diversion and He's a Perfect Little Gentleman, the Swine.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
comedian and musician from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
who started in cabarets and made his way to radio and films.
Family
It is said that it was difficult to get much information about Frankau’s early life because, when asked about it, he would joke rather than divulge any personal information.Frankau's father was Arthur Frankau, grandson of Joseph Frankau, a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Jew from Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
who came to London in the late 1830s and started a cigar trading business. Arthur Frankau married Julia Davis
Julia Frankau
Julia Frankau, née Julia Davis was a successful novelist under the name of Frank Danby.She was the sister of Owen Hall, Harrie Davis and Eliza Davis. She was home-schooled by Laura Lafargue, the daughter of Karl Marx.She married the cigar importer Arthur Frankau...
, who was a celebrated novelist of satirical books. Some of the titles include Pigs in Clover and An Incomplete Etonian. This may account for Frankau's grasp of satire in his later work as a comedian.
Frankau's parents had four children, Gilbert, Jack, Ronald and Joan. Gilbert
Gilbert Frankau
Gilbert Frankau was a popular British novelist. He was known also for verse including a number of verse novels, and short stories....
went into the family trading business until the war (living and working for a while in Germany), was a war poet and subsequently a novelist, while his daughter, Pamela Frankau
Pamela Frankau
Pamela Frankau was a popular British novelist. Her parents were Dorothea Frances Markham Drummond-Black and the novelist Gilbert Frankau and her grandmother the satirist Julia Frankau. Her uncle was the British radio comedian, Ronald Frankau.She had success as a writer from a young age...
, became a novelist too. Jack was killed leading his platoon in the 3rd Battle of Gaza in November 1917. Joan married the historian Stanley Bennett and, as a Cambridge don in her own right, Joan Bennett was one of the key defence witnesses in the Lady Chatterley trial of 1960.
Frankau had several children including TV producer John Frankau, father of Nicholas Frankau
Nicholas Frankau
Nicholas Frankau is an English actor best known for playing the role of Flt. Lt. Carstairs in the British sitcom Allo 'Allo! whose recurring theme involves failure to get back to England....
. He had two children with the actress Renee Roberts - Roberta and Rosemary. Rosemary Frankau pursued a career in acting, appearing in many series of the TV sitcom Terry and June
Terry and June
Terry and June is a British sitcom that was broadcast on BBC1 from 1979 to 1987. The programme is largely a continuation of Happy Ever After, and stars Terry Scott and June Whitfield as a middle-class suburban couple, Terry and June Medford...
, as June's best friend Beattie. Rosemary's son, Sam Bain
Sam Bain
Sam Bain is one of the co-creators of Channel 4's Peep Show, which won a BAFTA for best Situation Comedy in 2008. He was also one of the writers of two series of the BBC Radio 4 sketch show That Mitchell and Webb Sound and the BBC Two sketch show That Mitchell and Webb Look...
, became a comedy writer and co-created the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show
Peep Show (TV series)
Peep Show is a British sitcom starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb. The television programme is written by Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain, with additional material by Mitchell and Webb themselves, amongst others. It has been broadcast on Channel 4 since 2003. The show's seventh series makes it...
.
The Frankau family monument in Hampstead Cemetery is monumental in every sense of the word; Grade II listed by English Heritage in 1999, it commemorates Arthur and Julia Frankau and their three sons.
Early life
Frankau worked as a chorus boy at Daly's TheatreDaly's Theatre
Daly's Theatre was a theatre in the City of Westminster. It was located at 2 Cranbourn Street, just off Leicester Square. It opened on 27 June 1893, and was demolished in 1937.-Early years:...
in London in 1911 and joined the army in 1914 to fight in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. During that time he continued his music and comedy ambitions, organizing his own concerts in Africa and the United Kingdom.
After the war he worked in night clubs and hotel lounges as an entertainer with both comical song and dance. It was then that he met performer Monte Crick, who would end up being his pianist in all his later recordings.
In 1925 he started broadcasting saucy jokes on the radio in an Etonian tone for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, but is actually better known these days for what he was never allowed to broadcast. Frankau recorded a number of songs and skits on Parlophone
Parlophone
Parlophone is a record label that was founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch was formed in 1923 as "Parlophone" which developed a reputation in the 1920s as a leading jazz label. It was acquired in 1927 by the Columbia Graphophone Company which...
, some of which, like Winnie the Worm and Everyone’s Got Sex Appeal For Someone, were banned altogether. Despite, or because of, this flavour in his songs, Frankau sold over 100,000 records in 1932.
Like most comedians, he often commented on the current events at the time, often in satire. Some of the songs he recorded regarding current events (the war, at that time) were ‘’Heil Hitler! Ja! Ja! Ja!’’ and ‘’The Navy The Army and The Police’’.
Despite his dangerously naughty tones off the air, he was able to keep his jokes clean enough for some of the toughest censors of British broadcasting at the time, including Baron Reith
Baron Reith
Baron Reith , of Stonehaven in the County of Kincardine, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1940 for John Reith, the first Director-General of the BBC. His only son, the second Baron, disclaimed the peerage for life in 1972....
.
In 1934 Frankau began a comedy duo with Tommy Handley
Tommy Handley
Thomas Reginald "Tommy" Handley was a British comedian, mainly known for the BBC radio programme ITMA . He was born at Toxteth Park, Liverpool in Lancashire....
that they called 'Murgatroyd and Winterbottom
Murgatroyd and Winterbottom
Murgatroyd and Winterbottom were a comedy double act consisting of British comedians Ronald Frankau and Tommy Handley. The duo was formed in 1934. In 2006 BBC Radio 4 broadcast a review of Mr Murgatroyd and Mr Winterbottom - 'The story of Tommy Handley and Ronald Frankau, a comedy partnership which...
'.
On 7 November 2006, BBC Radio 4 broadcast a review of one of his partnerships - "Mr Murgatroyd and Mr Winterbottom" - 'The story of Tommy Handley and Ronald Frankau, a comedy partnership which had its heyday in the 1930s world of radio. There was no straight man, so the partnership was a rare one. Tommy was a fast talking Liverpudlian, while Ronald in contrast was upper class and Eton-educated. Presented by Nicholas Frankau
Nicholas Frankau
Nicholas Frankau is an English actor best known for playing the role of Flt. Lt. Carstairs in the British sitcom Allo 'Allo! whose recurring theme involves failure to get back to England....
, actor and grandson of Ronald.' http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/pip/cqry9/
Ronald Frankau died at Eastbourne on the Sussex coast - as had his father half a century before.
Books
Frankau published a children’s book, Oh, Dear, Dear (Frederick Warne & Co., 1929), poems from which were also set to music by his pianist Monte Crick and released on Parlophone."If you'd like to hear a story of many years ago,
Then gather round, good children, and I'll tell you all I know.
It's all about a princess who couldn't quite behave,
And how a naughty ogre took that princess to his cave,
And how the little princess was rescued by a prince,
And how they've been so very very happy ever since.
Extraordinary! Wonderful!
Fascinating! Queer!
Marvellous! Incredible!
Oh dear, dear "
His other publications include Crazy Omnibus (Grayson & Grayson, 1933) and two Wartime books of morale-boosting humorous verse, both illustrated by Laurie Tayler and published in the early 1940s by Raphael Tuck & Sons: Diversion and He's a Perfect Little Gentleman, the Swine.
Movie credits
- (1947) Dual Alibi
- (1947) The Ghosts of Berkeley SquareThe Ghosts of Berkeley SquareThe Ghosts of Berkeley Square is a 1947 British comedy film, directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Robert Morley and Felix Aylmer. The film is an adaptation of the novel No Nightingales by Caryl Brahms and S. J. Simon, inspired by the enduring reputation of the property at 50 Berkeley Square as...
- (1945) What Do We Do Now?
- (1942) Much Too Shy (credited as screenwriter)
- (1939) His Brother’s Keeper
- (1935) Radio Follies a.k.a. Radio Parade of 1935
- (1932) Bridegroom for Two
- (1932) The Other Mrs. Phipps
- (1931) Potiphar’s Wife
- (1931) The Skin Game
- (1931) Let’s Love and Laugh