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Caricature
Cooke, George - Enlarge image
Caricature
- Place of origin:
Hanley, England (made)
- Date:
September 1903 (drawn)
- Artist/Maker:
Cooke, George (artist)
- Materials and Techniques:
Pen and ink and wash on paper
- Museum number:
S.392:49-2002
- Gallery location:
In Storage
This caricature is of Phil Ray (b.1872), ‘The Abbreviating Comic’ or ‘The Abbreviating Patterer’. He was performing at the Grand Theatre of Varieties, Hanley, during the week of 21 September 1903. He was billed as ‘the popular London Patter Comedian. The man who has taken Dan Leno’s place at the London Pavilion during his illness’. It is one of the many superb caricatures of Edwardian music hall performers that were drawn by the artist George Cooke when he was based at the Grand Theatre. He compiled them in a series of albums.
Music hall performers liked to cultivate ‘specialities’. Phil Ray was known for wearing Eton collars and hats with feathers, and for singing songs that included abbreviations such as,
I weren’t feeling right so I went down to Bright; to spend a few mins by the sea. On Victoria plat I patiently sat with my little portmant on my knee. Then in from the junc came the 3.30 punc, as they shunted it in from the staysh said the guard ‘Make a start, room for one, this compart’. I said ‘Thanks for the kind informaysh’.
Phil Ray was popular up to about 1914, despite being censured by some for his rather ‘blue’ humour.
