FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DEATH OF WEBSTER BOOTH.

Webster in the 1940s.

Early on the morning of 22 June 1984, the 74th birthday of Anne Ziegler, I received a phone call from Janet Swart, whom I had first encountered as Janet Goldsborough, singing in Mrs Dorothy McDonald-Rouse’s concert party in Johannesburg in 1957 when I was 13. Janet was a regular listener to BBC World Service and knew of my close association with Anne and Webster. She was thoughtful enough to let me know that it had been announced on News About Britain that Webster had died the day before. Janet herself died about six weeks ago but I will always be grateful to her for making that call, as I would have been completely devastated to have heard such news via the media.

A selection of obituaries printed at the time

The Star and Rand Daily Mail (Johannesburg).

The Star (Johannesburg) Obituary. (Gordon Irving)

The Times (London) obituary.

The Daily Telegraph Obituary.

Die Beeld (Johannesburg) obituary in Afrikaans.

Thanks to John Marwood for the English translation as follows:

Booth dies after illness 22.6.84

From JACK G. VIVIERS • LONDON. — Webster Booth, who together with his wife, Anne Ziegler, won the hearts of millions of people with their singing and had a large following among South Africans, died in a hospital in Llandudno in Wales after a long illness. He was 82 and his wife is 74 today.

The couple married in 1938 and sang one winning song after another during World War II and soon after. One of their most popular songs in South Africa was Wunderbar.

The music and singing of Ziegler and Booth captured the hearts of people throughout the English-speaking world. They sang many songs from Maytime.

The partnership lost some of its popularity in Britain in 1952 and they moved to South Africa, where they lived for 22 years. They first lived in Johannesburg, but later moved to the Wilderness (Knysna).

They returned to Britain in 1978 and settled in Penrhyn Bay in Wales. Their last public performance was in Bridlington about a year ago.

North Wales Weekly News, 28 June 1984.

I suggested to the Webster Booth-Anne Ziegler Appreciation group that members might like to select one of their favourite recordings which I would play leading up to the 21 June. I am listing them here. I have also suggested that those who would like to do so post a tribute to Webster to be published on 21 June.

2 June, David Small chose the duet Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life:

3 June John Rogers chose Serenade in the Night featured below.

4 June: Shiv K Purohit chose Anne and Webster singing: O Lovely Night by Landon Ronald:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sduBTwpOCBAZrroZsyGsh4fBJDuGfukF/view?usp=drive_link

5 June: Peter Wallace chose: One Alone:

6 June: John Marwood chose: The Lost Chord by Arthur Sullivan.

7 June. Robert Knight chose: The Holy City.

8 June: Anne Cook chose: Your Tiny Hand is Frozen.

9 June: Rick Wilmot chose Indian Love Call.

10 June: Marie Lamb chose Waft Her, Angels, Through the Skies from the oratorio, Jephtha by Handel.

Glynis Kester-Page

Song of Songs holds a special place in my heart and memory; it was one of a clutch of pieces of sheet music that lived in the piano stool, ready to be played (again) by my father for Mummy to sing. I therefore knew it well as a tot and, when it came on the wireless when I was about 3 (before I started school at 4, anyway), I recall joining in, much to the amusement of a visiting neighbour. My parents were very fond of Anne and Webster, and passed on their fond appreciation.

11 June: Glynis chose: Song of Songs by Moya.

12 June: The birthday of Webster’s late son, Keith Leslie Booth (1925 – 1997).

Jeff Woods chose: We’ll Gather Lilacs by Ivor Novello, one of their favourite duets.

13 June: Grietje de Vries chose A Perfect Day by Carrie Jacobs-Bond:

14 June: Bob Sanders chose I Leave My Heart in an English Garden by Welsh composer, Harry Parr-Davis. Harry Parr-Davis was Bob’s father’s cousin.

15 June: Grietje also chose the beautiful Irish ballad, Danny Boy.

https://youtu.be/AMaAOc3aO5s?si=WVuIbv17-ULdZxWm

16 June: Suzanne West chose Nirvana.

17 June: Dudley Holmes choice is Morning Glory from Sweet Yesterday by Kenneth Leslie-Smith.

18 June: Charles Jenkins has chosen The Bells of St Mary’s by Emmett Adams:

19 June: Charles Jenkins’ second choice is Bless This House by May H. Brae:

20 June: My choice is Sylvia by Oley Speaks, the first song I accompanied when I played for Webster in the studio all those years ago.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1S5MFI4qX3xWVAcppGuEo9eMyvLhg3afY/view?usp=drive_link

Webster as Francois Villon in ‘The Vagabond King’ (Friml) in 1943.

This medley is a tribute to Webster on the fortieth anniversary of his death: Wayside Rose from Frederica and the Serenade from Frasquita by Lehar, The Way You Look Tonight from Swing Time by Kern, and Sweet Melody of Night from Give us this Night by Korngold.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lR883lHcTF6GsTQ_Eyz7x-LBZw50GN_S/view?usp=drive_link

Many thanks to those in the Webster Booth-Anne Ziegler Appreciation Group on Facebook who participated and chose their favourite songs for this tribute to Webster Booth.

Jean Collen, June 2024

ANNE ZIEGLER ON HER OWN (1985 – 1989)

Anne lived on alone in the bungalow in Penrhyn Bay, North Wales for another 19 years until her own death in October of 2003. Obituary notices appeared in the Star and Rand Daily Mail, Johannesburg shortly after Webster’s death – I had not included these previously, so will do so now. The Rand Daily Mail’s obituary contained a few errors, like We’ll Gather VIOLETS, and several wrong dates!

25 June 1984 Rand Daily Mail.

Anne was still teaching a few pupils and had been booked to play the Fairy Godmother in Jack and the Beanstalk in Bromley at the end of the year. She decided to have a break in South Africa before she was due to go into the pantomime. It would do her good to get away from Penrhyn Bay, which was full of reminders of Webster’s illness and death. (Extract from my book: Sweethearts of Song: A Personal Memoir of Anne Ziegler and Webster Booth (2006) (All additional information from the same book.)

Going to South Africa – September 1985.

Visiting Doris Boulton in South Africa.

Jean Buckley, their fan and friend of forty-two years, who had been very kind and supportive during Webster’s last illness, was working to raise money for the Webster Booth Memorial Fund in order to award a scholarship to a tenor at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.

Webster, Jean Buckley and Anne visiting the Buckleys shortly after the Booths had returned to the UK in 1978.

Anne and Bonnie 1985 (Photo by fan and friend: Pamela Davies)

This message from Jean Buckley appeared in The Stage and Opera in September 1985.

Anne went to Bromley in November to play the Fairy Godmother in Jack and the Beanstalk. Contrary to what had been agreed with her agent, she discovered that she was to play a minimal part in the show. She had been promised a solo of her own choice, but when she arrived all that was required of her was thirty-six lines of dialogue and four bars of Only a Rose with “another character”. She was hurt and annoyed. (Extract from my book)

Bromley Pantomime. December 1985.

That was Anne’s last venture on to the stage. Although she was offered a decent part in panto at Plymouth the following year to make up for the poor one in Bromley, and was asked to take the part of an elderly actress who had once been a star of Operetta in Stephen Sondheim’s West End production of Follies, she turned both offers down. ( I believe Adele Leigh took the part Anne had been offered. I wonder if Adele Leigh knew that she had not been the first choice for the role!)

In April 1986 she received an Award from the Queen for services to music. This award took the form of a pension from the Civil List. It was made in both their names and Anne was saddened that Webster had not lived long enough to enjoy the honour and see the monetary benefit of it.

After her bad experience in Bromley, Anne remarked, “Theatre as I knew it doesn’t exist any longer and now that I’ve had the award, I don’t need to work.”

On 9 June 1986 Jean Buckley was able to take a cheque for £3250.00 to the RNCM, and on 10 December Anne presented an interim award of £500 for that year. The Duchess of Kent, the President of the College, presented the Diplomas to graduating students at the same ceremony.

Alan Keith had attended Webster’s memorial service in 1984 and was a great admirer of Anne and Webster.

New Year’s party (circa 1986) with Penrhyn Bay neighbours – Les and Peggy Williams, Anne, ?, Jean and Maurice Buckley at the Buckley home.

Anne with her friend and fan, Joan Tapper (from Mold) and Jean and Maurice Buckley.

Anne with tenor, Allun Davies (1987) after one of his concerts.

Jean, Anne and Babs with their pets outside Jean’s house in Rhos on Sea. (late 1980s)

14 October 1987 It’s a Funny Business.

January 1989 – Peter Firmani doing a tour of Memories of Anne Ziegler and Webster Booth.

Anne, Jean and Joan Tapper at Joan Tapper’s home to celebrate Anne’s birthday (circa 1989).

Jean Collen 28 May 2019.

MOVING TO SOUTH AFRICA

1 Early days in Johannesburg.

This chapter appeared in “Do You Remember Anne Ziegler and Webster Booth” by my friend, the late Pamela Davies. I wrote it about their time in South Africa.

Anne and Webster had toured the Cape towards the end of 1955 with the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra and returned to the UK so that Webster could fulfil oratorio engagements over Christmas.8 November 1955 

The Booths arrive back in the UK from their South African tour on 12 December 1955.

Towards the end of January 1956, they were back in South Africa to appear in major cities in the Transvaal, Kimberley, Bloemfontein, Port Elizabeth, East London, Durban, and Pietermaritzburg, before doing a tour of the country districts of the Transvaal. In this second tour, they were accompanied by Arthur Tatler on the piano. There was even a notice in The Rand Daily Mail advising people of the time of their plane’s arrival at 5.50 pm on Saturday afternoon 28 January. 

They were entertained by the Mayor, Leslie Hurd, in the mayoral parlour. The Mayor spoke to the assembled gathering of local celebrities about the fact that he shared the same Christian name with Webster (Leslie).

The critics were rather severe in their judgement of their recital, viewing them as ballad singers rather than operatic singers, although both Dora Sowden from The Rand Daily Mail and Oliver Walker from The Star agreed that Anne and Webster knew how to charm their audiences. The writers of the “women’s’ pages” were much more enthusiastic about them. Amelia from the Women’s Journal in The Star gave a fulsome report of one of their concerts on 20 February 1956:

“When the two appeared in the City Hall on Thursday night the crowd was screaming to stamping stage with enthusiasm even though the artists had been most generous in their encores.

Miss Ziegler wore one of the lovely crinolines which she always chooses for stage appearances. This one had a black velvet bodice and a skirt of gold and black tissue brocade. With her diamond jewellery she was a scintillating figure under the lights.”

Because of tax problems, they had made up their minds to settle in the country and returned to the UK merely to sort out their affairs and make arrangements to have their belongings shipped to South Africa.  They travelled onboard the Pretoria Castle to Cape Town in July 1956. Before they went to Johannesburg they appeared in Spring Quartet in Cape Town under the direction of Leonard Schach.

Dawson’s Hotel 1972. Thanks to Frans Erasmus for allowing me to use this photo.

A great fuss was made of them when they came to settle in Johannesburg. They stayed for several months at Dawson’s Hotel in Johannesburg while they looked for a suitable place to live. They eventually found a pleasant flat at Waverley, just off Louis Botha Avenue in Highlands North, where they lived until they bought their first house in Craighall Park several years later. They were lucky to obtain the services of Hilda, who hailed from the island of St Helena, to be their housekeeper. Hilda remained with them during their eleven years in Johannesburg.

Anne and Webster in the Hillman Convertible outside their flat in Waverley, Highlands North (1956).

They had an engagement to star in A Night in Venice with the Johannesburg Operatic Society in November, and Webster was asked to sing the tenor solo in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony at a Symphony concert. The work was presented as part of the Johannesburg Festival to celebrate Johannesburg’s seventieth birthday. Sir Malcolm Sargent, who had conducted Webster at several concerts in London the previous year, conducted the concert, while the other soloists were Webster’s old friend, Betsy de la Porte (contralto), whom he remembered from his early days singing at Masonic dinners, Frederick Dalberg (bass) and the young coloratura soprano, Mimi Coertse, who was beginning to make a name for herself  in Vienna.

Anne and Webster in “A Night in Venice” for the Johannesburg Operatic Society”.

Rather incongruously Webster took the Tommy Handley part in a series of ITMA scripts acquired by Springbok Radio, the commercial station of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (the SABC). This thirteen-week series was entitled Light up and Laugh, sponsored by Gold Flake Cigarettes, and produced by the Herrick-Merrill production house.

Although Anne had driven a car in her youth she had allowed her British driving licence to lapse after she married Webster. The Booths had two cars at their disposal in Johannesburg: a sea-green Zephyr and a pale blue Hillman convertible. Anne had to do a South African driving test and was taught by an Afrikaans ex-traffic policeman. On her first lesson he made her drive along Louis Botha Avenue, the main road from Pretoria through the suburbs into Johannesburg. There was a bus boycott on at the time. Thousands of people were walking along Louis Botha Avenue from the townships of Alexandra and Sophiatown to their work places in the city centre. Anne was very nervous, fearing that she might knock somebody down. Despite the adverse circumstances of her first driving lessons she soon passed her test and proved to be an excellent driver. She went on driving until shortly before her death in 2003.

In the first year or two after their arrival in South Africa they were fêted by everyone, invited to all the society parties and offered all kinds of engagements. Anne took her first non-singing part in Angels in Love, the story of Little Lord Fauntleroy and his mother, Dearest, played by Anne. They replayed their parts in A Night in Venice to Durban audiences. They even went to East London to sing at the city’s Hobby Exhibition, and were heard often on the radio. Not only did they do frequent broadcasts but their records were played constantly by other presenters, who marvelled that such a famous couple had chosen to settle in South Africa.

In 1957 they opened their School of Singing and Stagecraft at their studio on the eighth floor of Polliack’s Corner. They held a party to celebrate the opening of the studio and invited musical and society glitterati, who eagerly crammed into the studio for the occasion and were suitably impressed by the array of pictures of Anne and Webster, taken with internationally famous friends and colleagues, adorning one of the studio walls.

Polliack’s Corner, Pritchard Street – the building to the right with balconies. The studio was on the eighth floor.

The original plan was that Webster would teach singing, while Anne would teach stagecraft, but in the end they both taught singing, and Anne acted as accompanist to the students. At first there were not many students as their fees per month were much higher than those of local singing teachers. Eventually they reduced the fees in order to attract more students. I began having singing lessons with them at the end of 1960 after I had finished school. The fee was £4-4-0 a month.

In 1963 Anne told me that all the local Johannesburg celebrities and socialites who had tried to cultivate them when they first arrived in South Africa, soon left them alone once they realised that they were not as wealthy as they had imagined, and actually had to work for a living, and were not free to attend the races and other such “society” activities.

Jean Collen 1 August 2022