Written By
Frank Harvey
Where and When
24th – 26th April 1952 @ Women’s Institute Hall, Wimborne
The Plot
An English country house is plagued by a poltergeist who destroys things in the home, rearranges pictures on the wall, and possesses the daughter of the owner causing her to be expelled from school. A psychic ghost breaker and an insurance agent help the homeowners battle and expel the spirit.
Cast
- Hilda Prescott – Winifred Caney
- Audrey Prescott – Pam Mottram
- Joyce Prescott – Jane Westlake
- Olive Venner – Elaine King
- Alfred Prescott – Donald Waterfield
- Vincent Ebury – Paddy Brooman
- Joe Harris – Ronald Small
- Tom Copplestone – Leslie Young
- Bobby Ashley – Hubert Trenchard
Creative Team
- Producers – L. H. Mottram and Paddy Brooman
- Stage Manager – H. M. Coles
- Stage Lighting – Reginald L. Wilkinson
- Interval Music Recording – Charles O. Chaleel
- Effects – H. M. Coles, R. L. Wilkinson and Members of the Club
- Prompt – Daphne Anderson
- General and Business Manager – Ronald L. Small
Gallery
Reviews
Drama Club dabbles in the supernatural
The Poltergeist an amusing comedy by Frank Harvey, is a good play excellently presented at the Women’s Institute Hall this week by Wimborne Drama Club (amateur). It is a play that contains mystery, drama, thrills and laughter (with plenty of the later) and although the club, in presenting the play, do not intend it to be taken as a serious contribution towards a solution of the mysteries of psychic phenomona, they do feel that it presents amusingly and with sympathetic tolerance, the impact of unusual happenings on a typical English household.
Winifred Caney, in the role of Hilda Prescott has acheived the art of expressing fear and apprehension with distinction while Pam Mottram and Jane Westlake as her daughters, Audrey and Joyce, and Leslie Young, as Tom Copplestone, are happily casted. Herbert Trenchard as Bobby Ashley makes a brief, but effective appearance.
Elaine King, as the servant, builds up the character with great ability. David Waterfield is a convincing Rev. Alfred Prescott, and Paddy Brooman, who as Vincent Ebury sees through his psychic eyes that the vicarage has become the positive centre of unnatural activities, with Ronald Small as Joe Harris, the irrepressible startling, sensational cockney fire assessor, cum scientific investigator (reluctantly) into the supernormal are really superb in their respective roles.
The Poltergeist is something different and well worth seeing. The play ran for several months at the Vaudeville Theatre, London. It is a pity that it ends this evening in Wimborne.
WIMBORNE DRAMA CLUB’S SECOND HARVEY SUCCESS
Following the big success of their production last year of Frank Harvey’s Saloon Bar, members of Wimborne Drama Club have chosen the same author’s three-act play, The Poltergeist to present at the Wimborne Women’s Institute.
The first of three performances given last night delighted a large audience.
As in last year’s play, Joe Harris, an extremely lively Cockney, takes a leading part. On this occasion Harris is an insurance assessor who calls at a Devon vicarage about a claim for damage done by fire to a bear skin rug.
CLEVER CHARACTERISATION
Ronald Small was again responsible for clever characterisation, his activities including the temporary exorcisation of the vicarage poltergeist to the village.
Closely co-operating with him was Paddy Brooman as Vincent Ebury, an enthusiastic member of a psychic research society. Paddy carried through a difficult role wth understanding and skill.
The part of the Vicar, the Rev. Alfred Prescott, was played with marked success by a newcomer, Donald Waterfield, and Winifred Caney, as Mrs. Prescott, distinguished herself.
Pam Mottram, as Audrey Prescott, the unwitting agent of the vicarage poltergeist, gave a masterly performance.
CAPABLE OF BETTER PARTS
As the maid, Olive, who later became the poltergeist’s agent in the village, Elaine King showed herself capable of taking a more prominent part than in former productions.
Jane Westake, making her first appearance for the club, did well as Joyce Prescott. Hubert Trenchard as Bobby Ashley, and Leslie Young as Tom Copplestone, both farmers, complete the competent cast.
Producers were L. H. Mottram and Paddy Brooman; H. M. Coles was stage manager; and Reginald L. Wilkinson did the stage lighting.
There will be performances this evening and to-morrow evening.
Weak ‘attack’ robs ‘The Poltergeist’
Although Wimborne Drama Club did not quite reach their Linden Tree pinnacle in last week’s production of Frank Harvey’s farcical comedy, The Poltergeist, at the Women’s Institute, they nevertheless put on a first rate show, which fully merited the hearty applause of the packed audiences.
L. H. Mottram and Paddy Brooman’s well-balanced production was robbed of essential vitality by its slightly slow pace — occasioned, in great measure, by rather weak attack on the part of most, of the players. In other respects, however, it was excellent.
In spite of somewhat stylized mannerisms, Ronald Small’s Joe Harris was a joyous Cockney character-study, requiring only a little more bounce to make it perfect. Elaine King scored many laughs Wilh a good, though rather jerky performance as the maid, Olive; and Paddy Brooman was sound and humorous as the psychic investigator, Vincent Ebury.
As the Rev. Alfred Prescott, Donald Waterfield gave a convincing, study of an elderly parson, though both he and his wife (Winifred Carey) showed rather more hesitance than was necessary throughout the play.
Full marks
Strong support was given by the small-part players — Pam Mottram (Audrey Prescott), Jane Westlake (Joyce Prescott), Leslie Young (Tom Copplestone) and Hubert Trenchard (Bobby Ashley).
In a play where so much depends on split-second timing of effects, full marks must to stage-manager M, Coles. R. L. Wilkinson and those club members who achieved such slick and effective results.
R. L. Wilkinson was electrician, Daphne Anderson prompted and Ronald Small was general manager for the production.
A fantastic comedy and another success for drama club
Wimborne Drama Club scored another grand success with their presentation at the Women’s Institute Hall last week of Frank Harvey’s The Poltergeist. The optimism by which the play was approached was fully justified by sincere and excellent performances by all partcipants.
The Poltergeist is first and foremost, a fantastic comedy, and certainly a comedy with a difference. Great credit for its success must go to the joint producers Messrs L. H. Mottram and Paddy Brooman who undoubtedly have taken the trouble to go thoroughly into the whys and wherefores concerning the little fellow the poltergeist, a noisy agency with a wild and malicious characteristic.
The story is about mysterious and unusual happenings in a typical English household which happenings, first accredited to the vicar’s youngest daughter, and excorcised, finally develops an interest in the kitchen, through the agency of the servant girl.
A rug is burnt by some force or forces which normally is not admitted to exist, and the efforts of subsequent visitors to the household to excommunicate the unwelcome intrusion provides this talented company with the greatest possible chances for laughter making at each others expense.
Honours
Honours go to Elaine King who as Olive the servant “knows what she sees” and who believes that “when you are old, heaven seems only across the street,” and Roland Small, who taking the part of Joe Harris, the all in one assurance assessor who “meets life with the lid off”. It is refreshing to meet artistes who act so naturally that one cannot help but feel that they are actually living the parts they portray.
Paddy Brooman as Vincent Ebury, the enthusiastic amateur investigator into “things that go bump in the night” gave as perfect a representation of that crazy individual as one could imagine him to be. Paddy has no need to act, his facial contortions and actions are enough to send anyone into hysterics and his ecstatic happiness when prospects of “things happening” became, will not be forgotten.
Pam Mottram and Jane Westlake as Audrey and Joyce the Prescott daughters, were outstanding. Pam had a role which called for the extreme drama and she used it to the fullest advantage, while Jane in her first part with the club proved to be a valauable asset in her lighter role.
Donald Waterfield and Winifred Caney as Vicar and Mrs Prescott were a good duo quite convincing in character and displayed splendid team work.
Minors Do Well
Leslie Young and Hubert Trenchard had minor parts as Tom Copplestone and Bobby Ashley, but they put everything into the performance and provided just the right kind of atmosphere which was required at their particular moments.
The play was well patronised, and large crowds attended each performance. H. M. Coles was stage manager, Reginald L. Wilkinson was responsible for the lighting and Charles O. Chaleel attended to the music recordings.
The propmpter, who was not needed, was Daphne Anderson and General and Business Manager Ronald L Small.
Special effects (thunder, wind, ghostly thumps, moving objects, flying coal etc) were in the capable hands of H. M. Coles, R. L. Wilkinson and members of the club.
Detail note: The impish little fellow really DID get into the play, for did I not notice that he stopped the clock (!) on the mantel piece at 8:25 and provided polyanthus for the table – in September.
Programme
