Our Little Clown is out and about
Partly based
on Varney’s autobiography The Little Clown (1990) this new title has been
published to accompany the 2016 exhibition at Fairlynch Museum.
Our Little
Clown follows Varney’s upbringing in London’s Canning Town and his early
introduction to show business. A self-taught musician, at the age of 15 he was
entertaining audiences in East End working-men’s clubs, playing the piano,
piano-accordion and singing.
World War Two saw him initially working in
factories before he joined the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
(REME). Later, along with the likes of Harry Secombe, Eric Sykes and Spike
Milligan he joined the Stars in Battledress, entertaining the troops. His
post-war career took off as he developed his skills as a comedian, appearing on
the West End stage and topping the bill in music hall. Then came his success in
shows like The Rag Trade and On the Buses.
Varney’s talent as a straight actor
is seen in his tragicomic performance as failed drag artist ‘Sherry’ Sheridan
in the play and film The Best Pair of Legs in the Business: he described this
as ‘the biggest gamble’ of his career.
Our Little Clown also covers Varney’s
talents as an artist and as a writer and ends with his retirement to Devon,
where he was described as ‘Budleigh Salterton’s adopted son’.
48 pages
82
illustrations; approx. 50 in colour
With a
foreword by Reg Varney’s daughter Jeanne Marley
Price: £5.00
(£4.99 at the museum)
Available at The Card Shop Too, High Street, Budleigh Salterton Tel: 01395 446767.
Raising money
for charity: profits are being divided between Fairlynch Museum and the British
Heart Foundation.
Author
Michael Downes is a Trustee of Fairlynch Museum. His previous publications have
included academic studies of 16th French literature; Oundle’s War –
a survey of the impact of WW2 on the Northamptonshire town, and The Scientist
in The Cottage – a biography of the Victorian physician, geologist and marine
sponge expert Henry Carter FRS. He also recently published a new edition of the
popular The Budleigh Salterton Railway. He lives in Budleigh Salterton with his
wife and two Bengal cats.
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