Edward Sadler (1974)Ted had been taught singing in Italy by the famous Campogagliano and he must have thought he was in for a major career, until it all turned sour for him. It was a great pity as I seem to recall his voice was a very good baritone. Ted left the Carte as he knew he was not going to make headway there and went into Covent Garden chorus where he sorted out his problems and had a good chorus career from what I am told. As far as I know he could still be there.
Janet St Claire (1969-71)Janet was/is a tall girl with flaming red hair and stunning good looks, very different from her sister, Jean Temperley, who was also good looking but who was dark haired and with whom I have sung in concert. Jan sang well, a mezzo, and covered two or three roles. After she left I believe she married and went into teaching, but I may be wrong. She lives, I think, in Grimsby
Kenneth Sandford (1957-82)Ken is my hero as far as G&S is concerned. It was he who coached me occasionally and impressed upon me the imperative of slowing down my delivery of lines. Watching him was an education as each gesture and word was carefully weighted for every performance. He was a Master. I have had the great pleasure of working with him in the Carte and in concert away from the company. I was singing in the concert at Manchester, New Year 2004 when he announced his decision to retire. His voice was better than ever yet he was experiencing short-memory lapses and felt it was not fair upon the audience, his colleagues, and last, his reputation to continue. He lives in Market Drayton, Shropshire.
Thomas Scholey (1974-82)Thomas was a friendly and generous-hearted man for whom I had a lot of time. He was gentile and well-read and his knowlege of good living held him in good stead when he left the company. He became head Somellier at a five star hotel, where he still works, though lately he suffered an accident to his leg which has incapacitated him somewhat.
Anne Sessions (1956-63, 1965-69)Sesh, as she was known had a wonderful sense of humour. Her rendition of "A Maiden Fair Of Lineage High" from Princess Ida, complete with rude gestures, was a hoot. She was married to Ralph Mason but divorced him after leaving the company. She went into cabaret and club work and some TV walk-on work. I believe she is now retired and living, I think, in Manchester. She appeared at the special event honouring Tom Round, John Reed and Ken Sandford at Buxton along with Pauline Wales and Philip Potter.
Brian Sharpe (1967-72, 1974-75) Brian and I were friendly, but that was not hard with him, he was such a friendly man. He had a very strong tenor voice, which, had he gone into Grand Opera would have developed into a Dramatic/Spinto sound. He was a natural psychic though he tried to disregard it, feeling that it would take over his life if he let it. After he left the company he went back to look after his elderly mother in Manchester. Sadly Brian was found dead in bed one morning and though the doctor said there was no suspicious circumstance it was rumoured that he had taken sleeping tablets the night before, though whether too many we shall never know.
Margaret Sheryll (1969-73)Maggie Sharp, as she was known when she joined was an attractive and vivacious chorus singer. I remember going with her to audition for John Matheson at Covent Garden. I wish I had sung first since his mind was elsewhere after Maggie had sung. He married her a couple of years latert and they went to live in Germany where they had a family of twin boys. I met up with her when I was auditioning in Munich and went to stay with her and John in Mannheim. Thery have since gone back to New Zealand, John's native land.
Geoffrey Shovelton (1975-79, 1980-82) Geoff was the last straw for me, inasmuch as he was given the prioncipal tenor position over me and so I left. However I have worked with Geoff on many occasions in concert and once in a very funny production of Princess Ida at Gawsworth Hall in Cheshire. Geoff produced these annual shows for a while but he and Debbie, his wife decided to go and live in America. The last I heard they were singing on Cruises in the Carribbean and contemplating returning to England.
Jason Shute (1972-74)Jason had a light baritone voice, tinged with the slightest welsh accent, and a fine stage presence which made his appearances on stage, especially as Strephon particularly enjoyable. It was Jason who, when making up in a very grotty dressing room said to Gareth Jones, his successor as baritone understudy, "One day Gareth, all this will be 'yewers'." Jason married and went back to Wales and to the teaching profession. Last I heard he had emigrated to Australia.
Yvonne Sommeling, A very attractive young lady had a rather zany sense of humour which led to her earn the dubious reputation of becoming the Carte's one and only Page Three Girl. (See More Tales Of The Carte) I managed to track her down in Durban, SA where she has lived for over twenty years with her husband and three children. She reminded me of the letter she received from Freddy Lloyd shortly after the picture of her wearing a feather boa appeared in the press, and she thought it was to give her the sack. Freddy merely suggested that they might find a way of interpolating her scanty outfit into the last night of the London season. Unfortunately the idea was dropped.
Alan Spencer (1974-80) Alan found his true metier when he switched to choreography and production. He was not a bad performer but his voice was light and not particularly well produced as I remember. He is remembered mainly for a spectacular entrance he made ahead of Katisha when, as one of her guards, he managed to demolish the pagoda when he leapt upon it with vigour. He became chief director of the Magic Of D'Oyly Carte concerts and is living in London. (?)
William Strachan (1975-79) Billy Strachan became known to me in concerts with the Magic of D'Oyly Carte . He was another of these very funny chaps who could have you laughing in no time. When he left the Carte he went into Musicals, perticularly Evita which he did for several years. He now sings with the Scottish Opera and occasionally sings in concert with Magic of D'Oyly Carte.
Ann-Louise Straker (1981-82) I first met Ann-Louise when I was asked to perform in a concert arranged by her husband, Andrew Whittacker, at the Savoy. Since then I stepped in on occasion to perform with her at the concerts her husband organise at Grim's Dyke Hotel, Gilbert's old home in Harrow. I was a long-time performer of concerts there until my group was ousted by this new lot so my memories of Ann-Louise are a bit tainted. I like her. She is a very pleasant lady with a pure soprano tone and is making good use of it in concert. She has a family and lives in Chiselhurst.
Alan Styler (1947-68) I met this DC icon only once and he greeted me with a joke. I'm told he was like that all the time and he most certainly could hold an audience on personality alone. I have documented some of the tales concerning him in D'Oyly Days and wish I had a few more. He was a well-loved performer but he succumbed to cancer in 1970.
and so
Glynne Thomas (1957-59) Operatic Baritone GlynneThomas was another ex-Carter I met only once, and this in the company of Glyn Adams in a pub near Covent Garden. He told me one of the tales I have put in the More Tales From The Carte page which is really why I have included him here. He was a larger than life character and I could see why Glyn Adams liked him so much. He spent many years in the Covent Garden Chorus, and liked his beer! More than this I don't know.
Vivian Tierney (1975-79, 1981-82) This powerful soprano was destined to make a career in Grand Opera which she accomplished with some success both here and in Europe. I had the dubious pleasure of seeing her in a performance of a then new opera, Macbeth, which was the most demanding both vocally and musically for any of the performers. She shone in a very cacophonic piece which, thank God, seems to have sunk without trace. She was married to Gareth Jones and had a son but has since remarried and lives, the last I heard in North London.
Michael Tuckey (1968-73) Mike was a close friend of mine in the Carte. He had been something of a local star in the Amateurs and then tried his luck with The Black And White Mistrel Show, with which he, and Colin Wright, toured Britain for a couple of years. He then made his way to the Carte and joined at the same time as me. He was good fun and a genuine friend. He played his parts with panache and sang well. He married Susan Mosco but this ended in divorce, partly because Mike's post-Carte job was as a travelling saleman for a firm specialising in vibrating pokers - er - something to do with the building trade. After this he set up his own factory making and fitting kitchens and shop fronts etc in his home town of Warwick. He sang on cruises and met his second wife while cruising the Greek Islands. I met up with him also in Cape Town when he came on the Queen Mary. Since then his second marriage too has ended. He has a son and, though I don't see a lot of him these days, I believe he still resides in Warwick.
Stephen Tudor (1968) Stephen joined the company just after we had gone out on tour and was being rehearsed while we performed. I think we saw him once at a rehearsal, and then he simply decided it was not for him and returned to Cape Town from whence he hailed. I met up with Stephen when I went to work for CAPAB in Cape Town and he told me he couldn't face doing G&S continually all year round. He considered himself to be an Opera Singer and went to try his luck in that area of work. This was over thirty years ago so what has become of him I have no idea.
This addendum lists all the later choristers and a few previous I either know little of or have some bearing on my Tales. Further information on these, or any of the others would be welcome.
Addendum
Suzanne Sloane (1978-79) Suzanne Sloane was with the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company only a short time. She appeared in the original London cast of Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd and later joined the chorus of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s Evita in London. Sadly it is reported that she took her own life during the show’s run.
Jane Stanford (1979-82) The face is familiar and I think I met her in concert once or twice but I have no more information.
Clicking on the blue links above and below will open pages in one of several G&S sites (listed below) which you can browse at leisure. They are
Memories Of The D'Oyly Carte
Who Was Who In The D'Oyly Carte
The G & S Archive
Savoynet