Widow Twankey is a female character in the pantomime

Pantomime

Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...

 Aladdin

Aladdin

Aladdin is a Middle Eastern folk tale. It is one of the tales in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights , and one of the most famous, although it was actually added to the collection by Antoine Galland ....

. The character is a pantomime dame

Pantomime dame

A pantomime dame is a traditional character in British pantomime. It is a continuation of en travesti portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag. They are often played either in an extremely camp style, or else by men acting 'butch' in women's clothing...

, portrayed by a man; and is a comic foil to the principal boy

Principal boy

In pantomime, a principal boy role is the young male protagonist of the play, traditionally played by a young actress in boy's clothes.The tradition grew out of laws restricting the use of child actors in London theatre, and the responsibility carried by such lead roles...

, Aladdin – played by an actress.

History

The story of Aladdin is drawn from One Thousand and One Nights, a collection of Middle-Eastern fables. It was first published in England between 1704 and 1714; and this story was dramatised in 1788 by John O'Keefe for Covent Garden

Royal Opera, London

The Royal Opera is an opera company based in central London, resident at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Along with the English National Opera, it is one of the two principal opera companies in London. Founded in 1946 as the Covent Garden Opera Company, it was known by that title until 1968...

. In 1813, a comic character of the "dumb slave" was introduced to Aladdin, or the Wonderful Lamp, as a vehicle for the clown, Joseph Grimaldi

Joseph Grimaldi

Joseph Grimaldi , was an English actor and comedian who is perhaps best known for his invention of the modern day whiteface clown. He chiefly appeared at Drury Lane in pantomime where his greatest success was appearing in Harlequin and Mother Goose; or the Golden Egg and followed with a successful...

, and at the same time, a washer-woman, Ching Mustapha was introduced to the play.

Widow Twankey first occurs in 1861; the character runs a Chinese laundry in Peking

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

, China and is a pantomime dame

Pantomime dame

A pantomime dame is a traditional character in British pantomime. It is a continuation of en travesti portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag. They are often played either in an extremely camp style, or else by men acting 'butch' in women's clothing...

; that is, always played by a man. One of her sons, Aladdin, is the hero of the pantomime, while her other son, often named Wishy Washy (or Wishee Washee), just helps in the laundry. She is not pivotal in the plot (such as it is), but more a source of interaction with the audience through joke

Joke

A joke is a phrase or a paragraph with a humorous twist. It can be in many different forms, such as a question or short story. To achieve this end, jokes may employ irony, sarcasm, word play and other devices...

s and innuendo

Innuendo

An innuendo is a baseless invention of thoughts or ideas. It can also be a remark or question, typically disparaging , that works obliquely by allusion...

 – mostly centred on items of underwear on the washing line.

The character has had a number of different names over the years: Ching Mustapha was followed by Wee Ping, Chow Chow, and Tan King. In 1861, the character became the Widow Twankay – named for a cheap blend of China tea

Tea

Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...

. Twankay (Chinese), or 'twankey tea' is an inferior grade of green tea

Green tea

Green tea is made solely from the leaves of Camellia sinensis that have undergone minimal oxidation during processing. Green tea originates from China and has become associated with many cultures throughout Asia. It has recently become more widespread in the West, where black tea is traditionally...

, with an old, ragged, open leaf – the implication is that the widow is 'past her best'. The -kay, or -key ending derives from the Chinese (Mandarin) for tea – chá – a soft pronunciation gives the English slang char. Occasionally the spelling of her name in the programme (but not the pronunciation on the stage) is varied to make it look more like a "Chinese" personal name – e.g., "Tuang Kee Chung" in a 1979 musical version

Aladdin (musical)

Aladdin, is a musical/pantomime written by Sandy Wilson for the inaugural Christmas Pantomime at the newly refurbished Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith...

.

The story is located in a mythical China, but with many Arabic ideas, names and places which betray its Middle-Eastern origins. In some productions, the Chinese laundry is located in Limehouse

Limehouse

Limehouse is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is on the northern bank of the River Thames opposite Rotherhithe and between Ratcliff to the west and Millwall to the east....

, in the East End of London

East End of London

The East End of London, also known simply as the East End, is the area of London, England, United Kingdom, east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames. Although not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries, the River Lea can be considered another boundary...

. There was a considerable chinatown

Chinatown, London

The name Chinatown has been used at different times to describe different places in London. The present Chinatown is part of the Soho area of the City of Westminster, occupying the area in and around Gerrard Street...

 located here, since the early 19th century, to serve the needs of Chinese seamen. The area became infamous through exaggerated reports of opium den

Opium den

An opium den was an establishment where opium was sold and smoked. Opium dens were prevalent in many parts of the world in the 19th century, most notably China, Southeast Asia, North America and France...

s and slum housing. Since the destruction of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, it has relocated to Soho

Soho

Soho is an area of the City of Westminster and part of the West End of London. Long established as an entertainment district, for much of the 20th century Soho had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life and film industry. Since the early 1980s, the area has undergone considerable...

.

Portrayals

Joseph Grimaldi

Joseph Grimaldi

Joseph Grimaldi , was an English actor and comedian who is perhaps best known for his invention of the modern day whiteface clown. He chiefly appeared at Drury Lane in pantomime where his greatest success was appearing in Harlequin and Mother Goose; or the Golden Egg and followed with a successful...

 took many of the early female roles in pantomimes at Drury Lane. He was notable for introducing the pantomime dame, and the tradition of audience participation and community singing. He was a specialist in physical comedy; particularly tumbling and falling.The first "Widow Twankey" was played by James Rogers at the Strand Theatre

Royal Strand Theatre

The Royal Strand Theatre was located in Strand in the City of Westminster. The theatre was built on the site of a panorama in 1832, and in 1882 was rebuilt by the prolific theatre architect Charles J. Phipps...

 on 1 April 1861, in an 'extravanganza' by H. J. Byron, Aladdin or The Wonderful Scamp – this play also featured a character named Pekoe.

The comedian Dan Leno

Dan Leno

Dan Leno , born George Wild Galvin, was an English comedian and actor, famous for appearing in music hall and dozens of comic plays, pantomimes, Victorian burlesques and musical comedies during the Victorian era...

 portrayed Widow Twankey from 1896 at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane

The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...

, with Marie Lloyd

Marie Lloyd

Matilda Alice Victoria Wood was an English music hall singer, best known as Marie Lloyd. Her ability to add lewdness to the most innocent of lyrics led to frequent clashes with the guardians of morality...

 in the role of principal boy – Aladdin. Leno introduced dancing and long monologues with the audience to the role – bringing the then popular music hall

Music hall

Music Hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...

 into pantomime.

Aladdin continues as a part of the repertoire of the Christmas season. Today, the dame is often played by popular television stars, but in 2004 and 2005, Sir Ian McKellen

Ian McKellen

Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE is an English actor. He has received a Tony Award, two Academy Award nominations, and five Emmy Award nominations. His work has spanned genres from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction...

 played the part of Widow Twankey at the Old Vic

Old Vic

The Old Vic is a theatre located just south-east of Waterloo Station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, it was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 when it was known formally as the Royal Victoria Hall. In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian...

. This reintroduced a tradition of senior classical actors playing pantomime, which was originally played in the theatrical off-season between December and April. This script was heavy with adult innuendo such as "I've got something cheesy bubbling in my oven" and "your front porch could do with a good lick". A musical version of Aladdin

Aladdin (musical)

Aladdin, is a musical/pantomime written by Sandy Wilson for the inaugural Christmas Pantomime at the newly refurbished Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith...

was commissioned from Sandy Wilson

Sandy Wilson

Sandy Wilson is an English composer and lyricist, best known for his musical The Boy Friend .-Biography:Wilson was born Alexander Galbraith Wilson in Sale, Greater Manchester, and was educated at Harrow School and Oriel College, Oxford. During the war he served in the Royal Ordnance Corps in Great...

, for the 1979–80 reopening season of the Lyric Hammersmith

Lyric Hammersmith

The Lyric Theatre, also known as the Lyric Hammersmith, is a theatre on King Street, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, which takes pride in its original, "groundbreaking" productions....

.

Widow Twankey was also portrayed by Michael Hurst

Michael Hurst

Michael Eric Hurst, ONZM is a New Zealand actor, director and writer, mostly on stage and television. He is probably best known internationally for playing Iolaus in the television programs Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and companion series Xena: Warrior Princess...

 (credited as "Edith Sidebottom") in three Hercules: The Legendary Journeys

Hercules: The Legendary Journeys

Hercules: The Legendary Journeys is a television series, filmed in New Zealand and the United States. It was produced from 1995, and was very loosely based on the tales of the classical Greek culture hero Heracles...

episodes. First in the season four episode "...and Fancy Free," followed by the episode "Men in Pink" He later reprised the role for the final time in a season five episode entitled "Greece is Burning." The character of Widow Twankey is a diva, married at least 12 times, and a teacher of dance.