Cinderella
Set Design
1953 (designed)
1953 (designed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
In 1947, Val Parnell took over the management of the London Palladium, one of the largest theatres in Britain. Under Parnell, the Palladium presented large-scale spectacular pantomimes until 1987 and became known as the Home of Pantomime due to its lavish productions featuring the biggest celebrity names of the time.
Cinderella, written by Michael Bishop, Erik Sykes, Spike Milligan and Phil Park, ran from 24th December 1953 to 6th March 1954 and starred actress Julie Andrews as Cinderella, singer and comedian Max Bygraves as Buttons and comic actor Richard ‘Mr Pastry’ Hearne as Baron Pastry. The show’s scenery, designed by Charles Reading, achieved great praise, with the Tatler and Bystander describing the three and a half hour show as having “taste, beauty and elegance, but little humour.”
The show was the West End’s only pantomime of the year and featured a comic scene where Hearne as Baron Pastry got trapped in an electric washing machine.
Cinderella, written by Michael Bishop, Erik Sykes, Spike Milligan and Phil Park, ran from 24th December 1953 to 6th March 1954 and starred actress Julie Andrews as Cinderella, singer and comedian Max Bygraves as Buttons and comic actor Richard ‘Mr Pastry’ Hearne as Baron Pastry. The show’s scenery, designed by Charles Reading, achieved great praise, with the Tatler and Bystander describing the three and a half hour show as having “taste, beauty and elegance, but little humour.”
The show was the West End’s only pantomime of the year and featured a comic scene where Hearne as Baron Pastry got trapped in an electric washing machine.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Cinderella (popular title) |
| Materials and techniques | Gouache and watercolour on card |
| Brief description | Set model piece for the 'Harlequinade' in pantomime Cinderella, London Palladium, 1953 |
| Physical description | Gouache and watercolour on card set model piece for the Harlequinade prologue in pantomime Cinderella, London Palladium, 1953. The 'Harlequinade' cloth features a colourful row of shops with smoking chimneys set against a starry night-time sky. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Given by Roger Fox |
| Summary | In 1947, Val Parnell took over the management of the London Palladium, one of the largest theatres in Britain. Under Parnell, the Palladium presented large-scale spectacular pantomimes until 1987 and became known as the Home of Pantomime due to its lavish productions featuring the biggest celebrity names of the time. Cinderella, written by Michael Bishop, Erik Sykes, Spike Milligan and Phil Park, ran from 24th December 1953 to 6th March 1954 and starred actress Julie Andrews as Cinderella, singer and comedian Max Bygraves as Buttons and comic actor Richard ‘Mr Pastry’ Hearne as Baron Pastry. The show’s scenery, designed by Charles Reading, achieved great praise, with the Tatler and Bystander describing the three and a half hour show as having “taste, beauty and elegance, but little humour.” The show was the West End’s only pantomime of the year and featured a comic scene where Hearne as Baron Pastry got trapped in an electric washing machine. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.2286-2014 |
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| Record created | November 6, 2014 |
| Record URL |
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