(Everything I have, except Glamorous Night, and The Dancing Years, can be found on Youtube.)
Tomorrow is my birthday, so I've decided to treat myself to an Ivor Novello film. I must be very careful with these, as he only made a few. I'm not counting the silent ones, since I'm blind and obviously can't watch them. I've already seen, and loved, I Lived with You. I'm missing Symphony in Two Flats, But the Flesh is Weak (wrote but not in), and The Truth Game (wrote but not in). But I still have Once A Lady, The Lodger, Sleeping Car, and Autumn Crocus. Which one should I watch?

As for his plays, they are ridiculously difficult to find with full dialogue. If you know of any, please let me know! I managed to locate Perchance to Dream, and King's Rhapsody, both amateur but wonderful. King's Rhapsody was actually performed by the Knowle Operatic Society in 1981. How they managed to capture that in sound I have no idea, since I can't imagine it was a professional recording. Maybe, they used Super8mm. I believe some of those cameras had sound. Anyway, I also watched the film version of Glamorous Night, whose only saving graces were Mary Ellis and Trefor Jones, and I'm waiting on the 1950 version of The Dancing Years, with none other than Olive Gilbert! Finding anything with her speaking in it is almost a miracle. If anyone knows where I can find a film called Ivor Novello, from 1956 or so, please let me know. Many of his people are in it, and I would absolutely love to see it, particularly for that reason! I also have a delightful version of Valley of Song, recorded in 1955! This is a special and poignant, as the play was left unfinished at Novello's death and was completed by his librettist, Christopher Hassall, the one man I think should have done it, since he, more than anyone, knew Novello's style and thought process in such matters. A museum actually uploaded it from an audiocassette, but this is not a radio performance. It appears to be the film, which made me laugh, since now, the sighted get to experience how I see films without audio description! But it's really not fair to laugh when the ones suffering are my peers who fight like hell to get anything from/by Novello! It would be amazing, though, to have what does exist audio-described. I think, though, that I will listen to Valley of Song tonight. I am very curious about it. I'll save tomorrow for the film.

#audiodescription #blind #ChristopherHassall #cinema #films #IvorNovello #MaryEllis #OliveGilbert #operettas #plays #talkies #theatre