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The Wales on Sunday newspaper recently carried an item about Dorothy. The piece was also picked up by other newspapers around South Wales, and it also ran in The Daily Mail, accompanied by a small headshot picture of Dorothy.

Readers of the newspapers were informed: “Friends of the late Welsh singing star Dorothy Squires say she would be ‘laughing from the grave’ at the very public humbling of her old nemesis, Rupert Murdoch.

The entertainer and ex-wife of Roger Moore went to the grave blaming Murdock’s media empire for her financial ruin, after she launched dozens of costly legal battles against his newspapers. From being heralded one of the brightest stars Britain ever produced, she died in 1998 aged 83, ending her life a poverty-stricken recluse.

Last night, those who knew Dorothy said the star would be revelling in the storm engulfing the Australian media mogul’s empire. The star went head to head with the Murdoch-owned News of the World in 1971 in the first of two successful legal battles. The fiery singer sued Murdoch’s organisation over an article suggesting she had sold the intimate story of her married to 007 star Moore, when she hadn’t.

She also sued over an allegation that she had bribed a BBC radio producer to play her records on air, but a series of subsequent legal actions – as many as 28, and most unsuccessful – left her penniless. By 1982 she had been banned from the High Court and had spent much of her fortune on legal fees.

She ended up bankrupt and homeless, living in a horse-drawn caravan until she was offered a home in Trebanog, Rhondda by lifelong fan Esme Coles. In a BBC documentary, filmed only weeks before her death from cancer, she said: “I hold Rupert Murdoch entirely responsible.’ Last night Mrs Coles, now 74, said Murdoch’s appearance in the full glare of the public spotlight – culminating in last Tuesday’s grilling by MPs, during which he was pelted with a custard pie – would feel like justice to Dorothy. “Dorothy never forgave Rupert Murdoch for running a story about her selling tales about Roger Moore,” she said. “After that her life was never the same and she always said that the News of the World had been the start of her troubles.”

The 80-year-old mogul was forced to admit that he had been let down by people he trusted as he faced a barrage of questions about the saga which has rocked his empire and led to the closure of the News of the World a fortnight ago.

Dorothy, who had a love/hate relationship with the media, did however warm to one reporter on whose shoulder she cried. Dave Edwards, a retired Media Wales reporter, interviewed Dorothy during his time working for local radio. “Although Dorothy was known to have a hatred of the press I was lucky enough to get an interview with her in the studio of Swansea Sound radio station back in the 1980s,” he recalled. “She swore like a trooper and literally cried on my shoulder about the breakdown of her relationship with Roger Moore.

“We parted the best of pals – she even invited me to go with her to Swansea Market to feast on some faggots and peas.”
Dorothy was, of course, not living in a horse-drawn caravan towards the end of her life, but was reputed to have been born in one!

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Petula Clark was asked about Dorothy in an excellent in-depth interview that she gave to the Daeida Magazine which can be found on-line at daeida.com. Thanks to Theo Morgan for drawing this to our attention.

Petula was asked, Do you remember Dorothy Squires?
“Yes, of course I remember Dorothy Squires. We met several times. She was Welsh and I’m half Welsh so we got on well. I spent some time with her in Los Angeles when she was with Roger Moore as well. But I had known her before then and (Petula laughs) she was a very outgoing person, let’s put it that way! Very different from me but she was great fun and was an amazing singer. She was a diva before her time.

Artists like Dorothy Squires – who had a rather opposite voice and personality than you – do people like her attract you personally or professionally? You know, the more outgoing, boisterous, audacious types?
No, not really. Frankly it’s not that I don’t mix with people like that because I do mix with all kinds of people, and they’re all fine, but Dorothy was different. I got to know her well because we were in the same business and she was so famous – and so was I, and we used to meet at different parties. She was very much a ‘party animal’. That’s putting it mildly (Petula laughs). I wasn’t especially a party animal but I would go, you know.

How would you describe Dorothy Squires in a few words? What comes to mind immediately?
Fiery, on stage and off. Well, she was a fiery Welsh woman! She had an amazing voice, and she was so successful in the UK.

Would you say that she was larger than life?
Yes, very much so…

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The Call Boy is the official journal of the British Music Hall Society, lovingly edited by Geoff Bowden and available on subscription. The autumn 2011 issue featured a lengthy memoir by Rosalyn Wilder who worked as personal assistant to the late Robert Nesbitt. 
Robert Nesbitt presented many hit West End musical shows including those staged at the legendary Talk Of The Town nightclub back in its illustrious heyday, and he was also closely involved with the annual Royal Variety Show, working alongside Lord Bernard Delfont.
Among her reminiscences, Rosalyn recalls: “The scene is the Talk Of The Town late on Monday afternoon. Dorothy Squires is opening that night as the headline cabaret. Mr Nesbitt has spent the afternoon lighting her act. He clearly is not entirely happy and he goes up to her, puts his arm around her shoulder and says, ‘Dorothy darling, I really don’t think that song is the right choice for the act’. ‘Well,’ flounces Miss Squires, “I don’t care what you think, it stays in’. More persuasion from Mr. N.; more stubborn behaviour from the star. ‘Well, darling,’ says Mr. Nesbitt.”If you really must sing it may I suggest you sing it in the taxi on the way home?’!

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Nice to hear the ever-loyal Desmond Carrington playing Dorothy’s Roses Of Picardy in one of his Radio 2 shows. More recently, he played Russ Conway’s solo interpretation of Say It With Flowers and mentioned that the song had been penned by Dorothy. Offshoremusicradio’s Rod Collins also continues to give Dorothy quite a lot of plays on the internet station, the most recent being I’ve Gotta Be Me from the first London Palladium concert. Rod says that he receives regular requests from listeners to feature recordings by Dorothy.

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Eric Hall did Dorothy and her fans proud recently, virtually devoting the whole of his Sunday afternoon two-hour show on BBC Radio Essex to play her music. Your webmaster Chris White joined Eric to chat about Dorothy’s life and career and there were, of course, quite a lot of on-air phone calls from fans and listeners. There were too many Dorothy recordings featured to list here … suffice to say, Eric did play My Way, Till, For Once In My Life, I Am What I Am, Don’t Take Your Love From Me and many more. Thanks for keeping the Dorothy memories alive, Eric!

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Kathy Kirby

You will all know the news by now of Kathy Kirby’s sad death on 19 May 2011. For many years Kathy had lived quietly at her home in Kensington, West London, turning her back completely on any proposed public appearances. She was supported emotionally by her family, including her sister Pat, and nieces, but received very few other visitors. One exception to this golden rule was Mark Willerton of the Burtey Fen Collection, who had  known the reclusive Kathy for some three decades and often visited her at her home, acting as a confidante, and enjoying listening to her many show business reminiscences. It was Mark who arranged for Kathy to pay tribute to Dorothy for this website - look under the Tributes section - and he recalled an occasion when Kathy went one of Dorothy’s parties in Bexley and a fight broken out between Dorothy and her sister, Rene, and they had to be physically separated! On another occasion Dorothy and Lita Roza went to see Kathy in concert in Brighton and, when Kathy started to sing My Way, she whispered to Lita: “She’s singing my bloody song”!

 There’s no need to go into the career highlights of Kathy Kirby here - they have already been well-documented - but suffice to say, the ‘Golden Girl of British Pop’, as she was known back in the 60s, left behind a rich legacy of recordings for her fans to enjoy, and the memories of her outstanding musical talents will live on for many years to come.

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The BBC Wales documentary Welsh Legends focused on some on some of the legendary names to emerge from the principality during the latter half of the 20^th century, including Richard Burton, Sir Harry Secombe Shirley Bassey and actress Rachel Roberts (who, like Dorothy, was brought up in Llanelli). The series, first broadcast two years ago, kicked off with a special programme about Dorothy which included rare film footage as well as reminiscences from those who worked with and knew her. It also feature rare interview footage with Dorothy, recorded a few months before her death, and which never made the final edit of the Rain Rain Go Away TV documentary first broadcast in 1998. Such has been the appeal of the programme that it has since been broadcast several times by BBC Wales - most recently, in May 2011 - although sadly it has never been screened elsewhere around the country. Let’s hope that it eventually gets seen around the rest of the UK.

 Tribute was also paid to Dorothy in early 2011 when BBC Radio Wales, ran a live feature about her and the plans to unveil a blue plaque in Trebanog. Presented by the popular Ray Noble, the 20-minute live segment featured both Dorothy’s niece, Emily Squires, and your webmaster Chris White, Emily reminiscing about her childhood (and adult) memories of her famous aunt, and yours truly chatting about her career. Two recordings were featured: Dorothy’s 50s recording of Edith Piaf’s If You Love Me (I Won’t Care) and 1953’s I’m Walking Behind You, her last collaboration with Billy Reid.

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Steven Warner and Tim Hutton, who are responsible for the excellent design of this website (along with similar online ventures for Twiggy and Petula Clark fans), also have their own successful record label Stage Door Records, specialising in collectors’ soundtracks and theatre recordings. They recently released a previously unheard-of demo recording of Alma Cogan performing songs from Julie, a musical written by her pianist Stan Foster back in the early 60s, but which unfortunately never became a stage production.

Steven recently received an e-mail from Rupert James, who wrote: “May I say what a wonderful collection of rare gems you are providing with your releases. The clarity of the Shirley Bassey and Alma Cogan CDs are absolutely incredible. What a ‘find’ with the Alma Cogan and Stan Foster musical.

 “I wonder if there are any plans for a Dorothy Squires collection of archive/unreleased material? I have heard that some tapes exist of Dorothy’s self-penned musical Old Rowley and they would be wonderful to hear with such clarity. Any Squires recordings would be amazing and much appreciated by her still legion of fans, so please keep me posted!”

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Adele is the latest young British female performer to take the pop world by storm. Her second album has topped the charts for a record breaking period of time, while her debut album was simultaneously number2! It sounds unlikely but, according to a Daily Express story, she is a big fan of Dorothy Squires’ music - even though Adele herself is only 21 years old! If true, it’s a great tribute to the Welsh singing diva from one of our brightest new singing and song writing talents!

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Dorothy received so little BBC radio airplay nowadays that it is always a special event when she does get a rare ‘plug’. However veteran presenters Desmond Carrington and David Jacobs have both played her in recent months. Desmond played Dorothy on his Armistice Day programme and David Jacobs featured It’s A Pity To Say Goodbye, after playing a version of the Billy Reid classic song by Ella Fitzgerald a couple of weeks earlier. David repeated his classic mistake of saying that Dorothy had been MARRIED to Billy Reid. They, of course, lived and worked together, for several years but because of Reid’s personal family circumstances they never actually tied the knot.

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 The same song was also featured on Paul O’Grady’s Sunday Radio 2 programme, (albeit it presented by Jodie Prenger of Oliver! TV and stage success, playing the role of Nancy), that particular week. Paul also mentions Dorothy in The Devil Rides Out, the second volume of his memoirs, in the context of one of his fellow drag performers often impersonating Dorothy’s stage act during his own early years as Lily Savage, playing the gay pubs of South London.

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 Dorothy was also mentioned briefly in a Radio 4 documentary to mark the centenary of the world famous London Palladium. One of the participants recalled the formidable Cissie Williams who was the Moss Empire ‘booker’ for many years. The legendary Cissie - feared by artists and managements alike - was renowned for always getting her own way and, when asked if anyone had ever succeeded in getting one over her, replied: “Yes … Dorothy Squires”! In a TV equivalent of the Palladium’s history Dorothy was heard very briefly at the beginning of the programme (though not seen), talking of the magic of  appearing onstage there.

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Dorothy was mentioned in some of the obituaries for Tito Burns, the legendary show business agent, who died in August 2010 at the venerable age of 89. Burns started his career as a musician backs in the 40s, and worked and toured with Dorothy during the early 50s. In the 60s he moved on to look after the performing careers of Dusty Springfield and Cliff Richard among others, and later became a leading light at London Weekend Television.

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Dorothy has been mentioned in several show business books recently. Former Coronation Street actor Mark Eden (who played the villain Alan Bradley and died under a Blackpool tram after pursuing Rita Fairclough!) gives her numerous mentions in his very readable memoirs A Journey - From No ‘Hope’ Street To Coronation Street (Troubador Publishing). Alan admits to having a romantic if rather stormy relation with Dorothy, and also mentions that he wrote several songs with her and Dorothy’s musical arranger Ernie Dunstall. He also recalls that he and his son went to Dorothy’s funeral but, unfortunately, went to the wrong Streatham cemetery and so missed the entire ceremony!

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 Another very readable book is David Bret’s Hurricane In Mink which chronicles the controversial life of the late Diana Dors. Diana and Dorothy were good friends for many years - Diana was staying with Dorothy and Roger Moore at their home in California when Dorothy took the phone call, and had to break the news, that Diana’s then-husband Dennis Hamilton had died suddenly, bring the curtain down on a tumultuous marriage. Dorothy also visited Diana in hospital just a couple of days before she died. David Bret’s book includes numerous references to their long and enduring friendship.

 Incidentally David Bret, who is a prolific writer of show business biographies, has dedicated several of his books to Dorothy’s memory and has mentioned her in several other of his tomes, including his biographies about Mario Lanza, Edith Piaf, Morrissey and Doris Day.

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Ebay is always a good source for Squires fans who are on the look-out for unusual memorabilia and features some interesting artefacts including posters and programmes. Two programmes for her mid-50s appearance at the Chiswick Empire in west London include an up-and-coming comedian called Peter Sellers on the bill (1955)  while Larry Grayson - some 15 years before he shot to ’overnight’ fame - features on the other (1956). Other programmes have included Nottingham Empire and a 1953 bill with Hylda Baker, and a souvenir brochure for the London Coliseum dated Sunday 17 1946.

 The latter raised funds for the Newsvendors Benevolent & Provident Institution and, apart from Dorothy and Billy Reid, also features Jack Warner, Tommy Handley, Morton Fraser and His Harmonic Rascals, Issy Bonn and Norman (’Over the Garden Wall’) Evans on the impressive bill. Another item listed The Russ Conway Show, which ran for two weeks in Weston-Super-Mare for two weeks in August 1962 with “Special Guest Star Dorothy Squires”.

DOROTHY SQUIRES
THE VOICE OF THE BROKEN HEARTED
Coming Home 1936 - 1949

JSP Records has released an excellent triple-CD set of early Dorothy recordings which has been compiled by Theo Morgan who has previously put together collections by Shirley Bassey and Petula Clark among other artists. If this paricular collection sells well JSP will be issuing a second set, again compiled by Theo, which means that every recording she made during the Thirties, Forties and Fifties will be available on CD. Truly a marvellous tribute to Dorothy. Many thanks for your commendable efforts, Theo, whch will be much appreciated by her many fans.

The whole set is in chronological order, dating back to When the Poppies Bloom Again in December 1936. The idea first came about four years ago, amazingly. A label I was working for, Cherry Red, were interested in doing a Dorothy series. I had originally just suggested re-issuing the Pye material, licensed from Sanctuary, but they thought I should go back to the beginning and do a whole series. So I began researching Dot's discography, and when a friend sent me CDs of all the tracks, as taped off scratchy old 78s, I realised how brilliant her early stuff was. I had previously only known the few big hits of the period, like It's a Pity to Say Goodnight and I'll Close My Eyes. However, I hit several stumbling blocks with trying to find the discs to remaster from. By this point I had also decided to take the idea elsewhere, to JSP - a company reknowned for re-issuing vintage material in good quality as boxsets - a far more appealing idea than single CDs. So I set about buying the 78s and researching Dorothy, particularly her discography. A few kind people did indeed loan me their rare 78s, to whom I am incredibly grateful. As has happened before when I've done projects like this, I discovered a few things that were hitherto unknown. A couple of alternate versions of songs will therefore appear on Volume 2. When collecting the 78s, I also realised how rare they all were. They never turn up on ebay, and you tend not to see them at fairs etc. The rarest of the lot was a Columbia from 1950: Halfway to Heaven / Just Like a Gramophone Record. This was eventually found by Peter Rynston from Tall Order Mastering, who made the tracks sound as good as they do. Not only did Dorothy record some great songs in the 1940s (mainly thanks to Billy Reid), but it's also clear how important her role as a female singer was at the time. I firmly believe she was Britain's first diva of song, paving the way for Shirley Bassey. I therefore felt it essential to pay tribute by getting all these historic recordings re-issued properly. Yes, most of them have been out before, but scattered about on different collections, many out of print, and in varying quality. Now, for the first time, every one of Dot's commercial recordings from the start in 1936, to 1960 (before she signed to EMI again) will be available in two sets, chronologically and all remastered for the best sound possible. The first set, out on March 7th, covers 1936 to 1949. The second is also a 3CD set, covering 1950-60, which will be brought out sooner, depending on sales of the first set. So please all do your best to support this! - Theo Morgan

Dorothy Memories June 2010

Ian Parsons has written a book on the history of Swansea Grand Theatre which is being launched at the South Wales venue in August 2010. Ian has been working on the book, Swansea’s Grand, for some time and has spoken to many people associated with the theatre and about its history. Dorothy Squires appeared there on 27 March 1967 and the book contains anecdotes about her. Ian’s website, which accompanies the book, has had more than 15,000 hits so far.  There will be more information about Ian’s book later.

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American actress, singer and TV star Dorothy Provine - best-known to British audiences for her 60s appearances in the TV series The Roarin’ Twenties, which gave her a hit single with Don’t Bring Lulu - died in May 2010. Back in the 50s Provine had a well-publicised romance (well, the United States anyway) with Roger Moore when he was filming the popular TV series The Alaskans with her and, of course, and at a time when he was still married to Dorothy (Squires). Dorothy (S) apparently guessed something was wrong in their marriage when Roger kept murmuring ‘Dorothy’ in his sleep - because he always referred to her as ‘Dot’, never Dorothy! The Times’ obituary on Provine noted: “Provine was a regular on TV, gaining her first TV series The Alaskans (1959-60), set during the Yukon gold rush of the 1890s. She played a saloon owner and singer, Rocky Shaw, who has attracted an adventurer, [played by] Roger Moore. The onscreen romance reflected the fact that Moore had fallen for Provine in real life, which almost caused a rift between him and his wife Dorothy Squires. Frank Sinatra then dated her for a while …”

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Some people have asked why Dorothy’s parents’ final resting place, very near her own in Streatham Vale Cemetery, South London, has no headstone or plaque. Emily Squires, Dorothy’s niece, explains: “After the 1987 hurricane a lot of graves and trees were damaged, so the cemetery tried to inform my grandfather, who was the owner of the grave, to see if he wanted it refurbished. Unfortunately my grandfather had died some years earlier, and, without realising, the cemetery authorities sent the letter to him care of St. Mary’s Mount in Bexley (Dorothy’s home for many years), which had burned down in the70s. I didn’t know about this until Dorothy’s funeral, when I went to look for my grandparents’ grave and was then told by the cemetery office what had happened. I used to visit the grave when I lived in London. Dorothy had not put granddad’s name on the stone when he died in the early 60s and the only name on the headstone was ‘Emily Squires‘ (my grandmother), which was a bit spooky for me to see as it was also my name!”

Streatham Vale Cemetery is the final resting place for several other notable names in entertainment, including comedy film actor Will Hay, Lupino Lane (The Lambeth Walk), American pianist Charlie Kunz. Australian music hall performer Florrie Forde, big band leader Hal Swain, Ben Warriss of the comedy duo Jewell & Warriss, and music hall comedian Gus Elen. The ashes of TV magician and presenter David Nixon, and Wilfred Brambell (Steptoe & Son) are also buried there, albeit without name markers. There is a section alongside the crematorium dedicated to members of the music hall profession.  Check out www.findagrave.com and type in Streatham Vale Cemetery for more information.

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Gloria Hunniford interviewed Sir Roger Moore in her series Gloria’s Greats on the Biography Channel and he mentioned Dorothy several times - there was also a very short clip of the couple together, arriving at some function.  Gloria admitted in a magazine interview to tie-in with the series: “Sir Roger talked very openly about areas of his married life we thought he would never mention. I had hoped we might get a little about this third wife Luisa but I thought I’d have to skirt over his second wife, Dorothy Squires, completely.

 “In fact he revealed how his first marriage to an ice-skater was already on the rocks when he met the Welsh singer Dorothy Squires, who became wife number two. ‘I met Dorothy at a party at her home. She introduced me to a world that I’d never met before. … one couldn’t fail to be impressed  by her success. You know, to watch her perform and to see the depth of her talent. It was quite extraordinary‘, he commented in the TV interview.”

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Mark Willerton, curator of the splendid Burtey Fen Collection, the popular music memorabilia museum run from his home near Spalding in Lincolnshire, and who also runs websites for Kathy Kirby and the late Lita Roza, recently interviewed early 60s Welsh hit singer and performer Maureen Evans for the magazine Best Of British. Maureen revealed that her late father had been a big fan of Dorothy’s and he was delighted when she (Dorothy) specially wrote a song for Maureen called Acapulco Mexico. Maureen recorded the song and it was released as a single by her record label Oriole in 1963.

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 The Internet reveals an article which was published by the Los Angeles Times (articles.latimes.com) about Dorothy when she died in 1998, and mentions the fact that she wrote Tammy Tell Me True for the film of the same name, which was recorded by Sandra Dee, star of the movie, and married to Bobby Darin at the time. Percy Faith, the legendary American record musical arranger, supervised the session in Los Angeles.

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Al Pillay, one of the stars of The Comic Strip and who has appeared in films and on TV, is also a very talented artist and has designed a series of cards, Demented Divas, featuring some of the most recognised divas in show business, including Dorothy Squires.  When he left school at the age of 15, Al went to live in Manchester where he hooked up with Northern drag legends Bunny Lewis and Frank Foo Foo Lammar. Al became a successful drag performer himself, taking off Dorothy, Shirley Bassey, Eartha Kitt, Lena Horne and Cleo Laine in his act, performing at the Sheffield Fiesta and Manchester Golden Garter clubs among other top Northern cabaret venues.

  Al met Dorothy several times during the 80s and she apparently was a fan of his, watching his Comic Strip Presents … on Channel Four.  He took off Dorothy and Shirley Bassey during one of his TV appearances. The Demented Divas card series was launched late in 2009 and, according to Al, Dorothy was the most popular selling image of the pre-Christmas season, with 30 cards in selling in one shop Dress Circle in |London’s West End in just a few days, and re-orders flowed in.  Other ‘divas’ in the series include Joan Rivers, Carol Channing, Barbra Streisand, Eartha Kitt, Bette Davis (of course!), Mae West and Danny La Rue. Al says: “The series keeps the great show business personalities alive, in an age of fleeting, generic and all-too-fleeting types. Because of the popularity of the first Dorothy card image, I’m currently working on a new one inspired by her legendary Theatre Royal Drury Lane show, which will again be available at Dress Circle Records, the well-known theatrical shop in Monmouth Street, Covent Garden.”

  A donation from all sales of the Demented Divas cards goes to the Kiss It Better charity at the legendary Ormond Street Children’s Hospital. The cards are available exclusively at the www.dresscircle.com website which also stocks the reissue of Al Pillay’s double CD A Life In Song, recorded at the Café de Paris, Piccadilly Circus, in 2007.  The CD is also available on download on Itunes and Al can also be viewed on YouTube.

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Ed Moreno was a popular radio DJ in the 60s and 70s and had a brief encounter with Dorothy Squires in 1970. Ed joined the fledgling Radio Caroline in 1964 and afterwards became programme director on Radio Invicta, the early sweet music station based on Red Sands Fort. He then joined Radio City and in 1967 became joint programme director of Radio 270 and stayed with the station almost until its close-down.

  Ed was later involved in the initial planning for Radio Northsea International and his first show was aired on March 1 1970. His final show featured an interview with Dorothy Squires which was advertised as ’a live broadcast’ although it has long been believed that it was pre-recorded. Rodney Collins, a reporter for the popular music magazine Disc & Music Echo, says: “Dorothy Squires was due out to the boat for a live interview with Ed Moreno but it had  also been decided to pre-record a stand-by interview in case of travel problems or bad weather. In the event the weather forecast was poor and Dot Squires decided against the journey. However, it continued to be billed as a live interview as it attracted a fair amount of pre-publicity.”

  Terry Williams, a family friend of Dorothy Squires, adds to the story. “She did go to Holland to give the interview and was intending to visit the boat. However, the couple of days she had in Holland coincided with rough sea conditions and they could not take her to the ship, so she recorded the interview on land.  She knew that her music was not the style of RNI but the mere fact that she could get her record played on the station, and that it would upset the BBC, was what made her do it! She had argued with somebody at the BBC and they refused to play her latest record [probably Till], although it was nothing to do with the ’payola’ scandal, which was a court case that she later won after being found innocent of the charges.”

  Rod Collins, who has his own very popular music show on the internet station offshoremusicradio.com, and frequently plays Dorothy on his programmes (including such overlooked gems like Someone Other Than Me and Solitude‘s My Home), adds: “We’d billed Dorothy as broadcasting live and that’s what we intended to do … weather permitting. However, the forecast was dreadful (I was sick on the tender on the way out) so Ed and I travelled out to the radio ship with the stand-by tape. I don’t think anyone knew at the time it was a recording, and it was some years before rumours started to circulate about it all.

 “Record Mirror was one of the music papers that gave Dorothy regular space. Peter Jones, the editor, had been a friend for years and I helped to set up the interview in the first place. It was one of two times I met Dot Squires. She was pleasant, very chatty, and very grateful for the newspaper publicity and the radio plays! For his part, Ed Moreno, who died in tragic circumstances some years ago, had one of THE best voices in radio. They are both sadly missed.”

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Obituary: Tony Osborne

Elsewhere on this website, Gary Osborne - a successful songwriter in his own right - writes of his childhood memories of Dorothy. His father was the musical arranger and composer Tony Osborne who worked with Dorothy, Shirley Bassey and Judy Garland among other musical legends. Tony had lived in retirement at his home in Australia (he emigrated there several years ago) and it is sad to report his death, albeit at the age of 87, in February 2009. Our commiserations go to Gary and his sister.

  Tony Osborne played with the BBC Orchestra in the Fifties and later recorded Juke Box Jury, the original theme song for the popular BBC TV pop series. His musical arrangements for other artists included Shirley Bassey’s I (Who Have Nothing) and Gone (which he also composed), Petula Clark’s With All My Heart, Connie Francis’ Mama, and Gracie Fields’ Little Donkey. In 1969 Tony conducted the orchestra for Judy Garland’s final concerts which took place in Scandinavia. Tony also worked successfully with Alma Cogan, Eartha Kitt, Russ Conway, Gary Miller and Jimmy Young. He recorded with Dorothy on several occasions, including most notably Say It With Flowers and Blue Snowfall. An obituary in The Independent noted: “Tony Osborne was devoted to making music. He was a talented trumpeter and pianist, but he made his mark as a gifted arranger on many successful albums and singles during the 1950s and 60s.  He was a consummate professional able to deal with prima donna antics from the likes of Shirley Bassey, Eartha Kitt and Dorothy Squires. ‘There’s no problem,’ he remarked. ‘You just talk back to them in the same language’.”

 Also sad to report the death of TV actor Simon Oates, perhaps best remembered for his leading role playing Dr. John Ridge in the very popular BBC TV series Doomwatch in the early 70s. Simon will also be remembered by many Dorothy fans for being the compere at her historic comeback concert at the London Palladium in December 1970 and, of course, it is Simon’s voice that we hear on the live recording of the show, with the opening line … ‘I don’t know what you say about this young lady’.  Ironically, Simon Oates was once rumoured to be in line to take over from Roger Moore as James Bond!

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Obituary: Danny La Rue

The legendary Danny La Rue died in June 2009 at the age of 81 after suffering failing health in recent years. However he had continued to make the occasional public appearances, speaking at the former editor of The Stage magazine Peter Hepple‘s memorial service at St. Paul’s, the actors church in Covent Garden, attending an 80^th birthday tribute lunch for Lita Roza, and appearing on TV on the occasion of his 8oth birthday.

  Danny’s long and dazzling career needs little recalling here. Suffice to say, he was Britain’s best-known - and highest-paid - female impersonator for more than three decades, with his own nightclub in London’s Hanover Square back in the 60s - which was a magnet for Royalty and celebrities - as well as starring in many West End shows.

 Danny was a long-time friend of Dorothy Squires. I can recall interviewing him at Batley Variety Club in 1973 and they had already been friends for more than 20 years at that time. Danny frequently sent up Dorothy in his stage act, impersonating her singing Say It With Flowers in a hilarious segment, which he also performed in front of the late Queen Mother and Princess Margaret at the 1973 Royal Variety Show. Later. Danny recorded Dorothy’s composition for his EMI album, To Mother With Love.

 Danny often attended Dorothy’s London concerts and I recall seeing him sitting in the Royal Box at the London Palladium with the late Dame Barbara Cartland, John Inman, and Norman Newell for one of her shows. Sad to think that they have all gone now. He also unveiled a plaque for Billy Reid in Southampton, again doing a gentle send-up of Dorothy, and he was one of the onscreen contributors to the BBC TV Wales documentary Rain Rain Go Away about Dorothy’s life.

 Danny’s funeral took place at London’s Kensal Rise and he is buried with his late partner, Jack Hanson. Thanks for all the pleasure you gave to so many over the years, Danny - and may you rest in peace.

John Hartley, who knew Dorothy towards the close of her life, and attended Danny’s funeral, writes a regular blog at Mothership Blog. This can be accessed free by anyone. Scroll down to the Archives section on Mothership Blog and look for June 2009, where you can read his account of Danny La Rue’s Funeral; then refer to November 2009, where you can read his controversial blog, Dame Shirley Bassey In Decline?

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Dorothy continues to attract press attention some years after her death. In August 2009 she was the subject of a two-page spread in the Daily Express, headlined: “James Bond’s Wild Wife”. The article by a writer called York Membury started: “Dorothy Squires was the fiery singing star who was a big name long before the unknown actor she married called Roger Moore. And despite their bitter break-up, the 007 star’s special gesture (offering to pay for a plaque to be erected in her memory in Llanelli) shows he has never forgotten her”.

  The article detailed Roger and Dorothy’s story marriage and included a large picture of the couple together in the 50s, as well as a glamorous shot of Dorothy in later life.  Incidentally, Roger Moore read extensive extracts from his autobiography in a Radio 2 series, and Dorothy naturally was mentioned many times, generally in most affectionate terms. There is also a ‘talking book’ available of My Word Is My Bond, with Sir Roger once again narrating.

~

Patrick Newley

Patrick Newley was a regular editorial contributor to The Stage magazine and for several years back in the 70s he also managed the inimitable Mrs Shufflewick (aka Rex Jamieson). Patrick wrote a couple of show business anecdotal books, including one about ’Shuff’, both of which mentioned Dorothy, relating humorous stories. Sadly Patrick Newley died in the summer of 2009, just several days after Danny La Rue who had been his father’s childhood friend (in fact, Patrick wrote the obituary for Danny which appeared in The Stage). A further irony was that just a year before Patrick had organised a tribute lunch for Lita Roza in Covent Garden at which Danny was a guest of honour.

  In one of his Stage articles - published in the weekly Tabard column - Patrick recalled: “Lynda Lee-Potter [the noted Daily Mail columnist] ended up on the losing side of a war of words with the equally waspish and confrontational Dorothy Squires. When the singer spent £5,000 to become the first individual to hire the London Palladium, Lee-Potter wrote a typically subdued article under an equally typically subdued Daily Mail headline: ‘Don’t do it Dot! You can’t buy success!’.

  Squires replied with a huge Get Well Soon card that read: ‘For once I fully agree with you! No one can buy success. |If they could, the millionaires would buy the lot - and keep it for themselves and their children and their children. I am paying for the chance to prove what I can do, having been in the charts three times in the last 18 months. Dear Lynda, you’ll have to pay black market prices to get in because my comeback sold out in a day.’

 “And how right she was,” Patrick Newley noted. “Squires packed the Palladium for annual shows and earned her own season there [in July 1974]. Her only niece Emily Jane Squires sums it up: ‘Lynda Lee-Potter and my aunt Dot were two of a kind - colourful, controversial and top of the tree true professionals. Bless them both’.

 Patrick Newley related another hilarious story about Dorothy in The Stage. “The volatile Dorothy Squires was no stranger to voicing her opinion. At the end of her concerts, faithful fans normally showered the stage with bouquets of flowers. I always thought these finales were rigged but on one occasion I saw her in the 80s and not so much as a daisy chain graced the stage. As La Squires, wearing a radio mic, angrily swept off into the wings the entire audience heard her voice over the speakers shout: ‘Where’s the f****** flowers?’ You can’t beat that for protest.”

~

Many of Dorothy’s big-selling records were back in the 40s before the official pop chart was born (New Musical Express launched the first Top 10 based on actual record sales in November 1952), so she is often, perhaps unfairly, overlooked by chart historians. Her only official chart hits were I’m Walking Behind You in 1953, Say It With Flower with Russ Conway (1961), For Once In My Life (1969), and Till and My Way (both 1970). However the Guinness Book of Hit Singles has published a definitive list of Post-War Pop Hits, which were based on sheet music sales (the criteria before the launch of the chart based on actual record sales) and Dorothy features high. The Gypsy was number 1 in the listing in September 1945, with Dorothy and the Ink Spots both credited with performing the Billy Reid song, and remained at the top until the end of October. Another big success was A Tree In The Meadow, which was number 1 sheet music from February 5 1948 through to 22 April 1948. Both Dorothy and singer/pianist Leslie ’Hutch’ Hutchinson are credited with the hit versions of the Reid composition.

DOROTHY SQUIRES MEETS ROSEMARY SQUIRES

Dorothy meets Rosemary - the two Squires girls met up at a showbusiness function. Picture courtesy of Mark Willerton of the Burtey Fen Collection

Pontyberem’s Famed Daughter:

Dorothy Squires
By Keith Evans
(March 12, 2008)

In 1977 Melody Maker approached Dorothy Squires for her reaction, as a fan, to the sudden death of ‘The King of Rock and Roll’. ‘Poor Elvis’ she sighed ‘he was my greatest fan.’ Elvis Presley reputedly had a full collection of her records, attended her American tours and asked her to sing her hit single ‘My Mother.’

From 1945 ‘Miss Squires’ was one of Britain’s most popular singers; by 1950 its highest paid. She beguiled capacity audiences, alternately belting out songs with semaphore arm movements or gently realise subtle, poignant, even tearful, refrains. But a torrent of emotional and legal setbacks following her separation and divorce from Roger Moore preoccupied her remaining thirty years. From millionairess to pauper: a modern Biblical parable of rags to riches to rags.

Dorothy was born ‘Edna May’ on March 25, 1915, in a fairground van on a field now home to Pontyberem Primary School. Her parents, Archibald Squires and Emily (nee Rickets) respectively sprang from Rhondda and Gwendraeth families.  Dot’s paternal grandmother ran a coconut shy stall. When the show moved on the Squires stayed in Pontyberem, initially with Dorothy’s uncle Bob, aunt Lanu and maternal grandmother at ‘San Domingo’ cottage – long since demolished.

Archibald became a steel worker and moved the family to Dafen. On leaving school ‘Dot’ served in Woolworth’s before toiling in a Llanelli tin-plate works; she bore scars on her forearms from this time. She revealed to Vincent Kane in 1977 that her first paid performance (6d) was at 13 singing and playing the ukulele to Pontyberem miners. At 16 she sang on stage at Llanelli’s Ritz Ballroom, later joining the Denza Players. A year later she furtively left for London to live with a cousin and work as a nurse while auditioning in for showbiz.

American song writer Charlie Kunz saw her perform and arranged for her first radio broadcast in December 1936. During 1938 Billy Reid, an English composer and band-leader, left his wife and two daughters to devote himself to Dorothy and her career. In 1945 he composed her first big hit song, ‘Coming Home.’ By the late 1940s, with an array of Reid songs, including ‘The Gypsy’ and ‘Danger Ahead’, she outsold such recording artists as Judy Garland and Peggy Lee. Living together in a Bexley mansion, Dot and Billy jointly bought Llanelli’s Astoria Theatre.

Around this time of austerity and rationing, as a pre-school infant, Saundra Storch, whose parents Leonard and Donna Davies were publicans of Pontyberem’s New Inn, received an unexpected gift from the superstar; an embroidered cosmetic’s bag with a glittering compact, exquisite lipsticks and toiletries.  

When Squires and Reid split up in 1951, after punching and kicking each other in the Astoria bar (her father was hit in the face), he acquired the Llanelli theatre while she took the Bexley mansion. Dot’s aunt and uncle, Lizzie and Dai Walters of Bont’s Parcymynach, looked after the Kent mansion for her.

Roger Moore, then a struggling actor and catalogue model, entered Dot’s life in 1952 when attending one of her famed parties. July 1953 found them married by a tipsy American minister in Jersey City; Moore was twelve years her junior. Dot discovered she could never have children. She now did all to promote her handsome husband’s US career, first with MGM then Warner Bros. The couple, with a Hollywood home, worked and partied with ‘The Stars’, including Gary Cooper, Elizabeth Taylor, Gene Kelly, Doris Day and Rock Hudson. She was complimented for her singing by the legendary French performer Edith Piaf. As the career of a future 007 heartthrob rose, with eponymous leads in TV hits Ivanhoe and Maverick, Dot’s career ebbed away.

On occasions, with Roger Moore, she stayed with another Pontyberem aunt, Mrs Clarke, of Maes Y Deri. Nearby a mutual friend and seamstress adjusted Dorothy’s chic clothes - a mink coat being the most memorable item to re-hem. Her costumes, flamboyant, gossamer, colourful, sequinned and edged in ostrich feathers, were created by Dougie Donnell; dress designer to other elite performers including Shirley Bassey and Dusty Springfield.

Despite international celebrity, locals who knew the Squires family, treated the singing star as ‘one of us’, but for some feigning shock at her jewelled fingers and a gold ankle chain. She revisited many times after Moore left her for an Italian actress, Latisa Mattioti, in 1961. In the company of Dot’s pianist she rehearsed in her aunt’s parlour in Maes Y Deri to the delight of Mrs Richard’s next door. An acquaintance told me, ‘Dot was welcoming and generous with her attention and hospitality to family and friends in Pontyberem and Dafen.’

The year she and the star of TVs Saint series parted, Dorothy re-entered the charts, with popular pianist Russ Conway, singing her own composition, ‘Say It With Flowers.’ She cut here album ‘We’ll Keep A Welcome’ in 1966 before a choc-a-bloc audience at Llanelli’s Regal Cinema. In 1970 she proved her worth and trounced her critics in TV and radio circles, by hiring and reaping sell out concerts at London’s Palladium and Talk of the Town with a noted show at New York’s Carnegie Hall.

But Pontyberem’s famed daughter was on a collision course with destiny. Headlines from the period tell much: ‘Singer Dot Quits Over Rumpus at Nightclub.’ ‘The Saint’s wife arrested at home.’ ‘Judge’s jail warning to Dorothy Squires – fined £100 for kicking a taxi driver.’ ‘Squires rude and offensive court told.’ ‘Miss Squires who is suing the News of the World claims damages for alleged libel…admitted she felt bitter at times towards Miss Mattioti ’I could have murdered her if I could have caught her… Who wouldn’t?’ She was the other woman… I was demented because my world had been cut from underneath me’ ‘denied she was still bitter when Mr Moore married …at the time that Miss Squires was acquitted of a breathalyser offence.’ Her wildfire notoriety knew no boundary.

She launched and paid dearly for 33 law suits, losing 30 of them. Dorothy sued in turn such as screen actor Kenneth More for libel in 1968, prosecuted in turn in 1972 for kicking Bernard Bresslaw’s brother, 1973 accused of trying to bribe an operative on BBC radio’s Two Way Family Favourites to promote her records, in 1979 suing the intended publishers of her autobiography for non-payment of serialisation in the Sunday People. She launched so many prosecutions that a judge, in exasperation, dubbed her ‘a vexatious litigant’ and forbade her further cases without prior High Court permission.

To add to her woes, in 1974 her under-insured Bexley home, a former residence of Edward VII’s mistress, burnt down. Dot bought a mansion by a river; it flooded. She was declared bankrupt in 1988; all her possessions, including her jewels, were sold at public auction. She rented a cottage near Pontefract, living as a recluse. In 1995, ill and destitute, she left Yorkshire hours before bailiffs enacted a repossession order. Thanks to Esme Cole, a fan and friend, in Trebanog she shared a rent free home for the last three years of her life fighting cancer: A far cry from halcyon days owning race horse winners, one of whom she spoke to in Welsh, and hosting stars such as Cliff Richard, Tom Jones, Diana Dors, Tessie O’Shea and her unlikely close friend, the comedian, Hilda Baker.

At her last public concert in 1990, at the Brighton Dome, she forgot the opening lyrics of a song. At its end she laughingly declared: ‘I told you I’d balls it up!’

At Cardiff’s BUPA Hospital in 1996 her £6,000 bill for cancer treatment and surgery was paid for by Sir Roger Moore. In the late spring of 1998, as she lay dying of lung cancer at Llwynpia Hospital, near Pontypridd, her ex-spouse rang from UNICEF in n Sweden. Over the phone he told a niece to say ‘Rog is thinking of you’, asking that Dot’s hand be squeezed for him. When told Dorothy Squires said ‘Magic’ She died hours later on April 14, aged 83. She is buried in Stretham Park cemetery, south London, in the same grave as her brother, Captain Fred Squires, who died aged 37. 

A decade on, her countless fans run an exceptional internet website. Re-releases of this Welsh diva’s musical triumphs by major international studios not only safeguards her legacy but points to a Dorothy Squires revival. Perhaps the time is near when Pontyberem marks itself out as the birthplace of Elvis’s favourite female singer.

Click on image to read complete article

A plaque in Dorothy's memory was recently unveiled in Pontyberem, South Wales. Many thanks to Alec Jones for sending in the piece which appeared in the local Llanelli Star.

Dorothy Memories June 2010

Ian Parsons has written a book on the history of Swansea Grand Theatre which is being launched at the South Wales venue in August 2010. Ian has been working on the book, Swansea’s Grand, for some time and has spoken to many people associated with the theatre and about its history. Dorothy Squires appeared there on 27 March 1967 and the book contains anecdotes about her. Ian’s website, which accompanies the book, has had more than 15,000 hits so far. There will be more information about Ian’s book later.

American actress, singer and TV star Dorothy Provine - best-known to British audiences for her 60s appearances in the TV series The Roarin’ Twenties, which gave her a hit single with Don’t Bring Lulu - died in May 2010. Back in the 50s Provine had a well-publicised romance (well, the United States anyway) with Roger Moore when he was filming the popular TV series The Alaskans with her and, of course, and at a time when he was still married to Dorothy (Squires). Dorothy (S) apparently guessed something was wrong in their marriage when Roger kept murmuring ‘Dorothy’ in his sleep - because he always referred to her as ‘Dot’, never Dorothy! The Times’ obituary on Provine noted: “Provine was a regular on TV, gaining her first TV series The Alaskans (1959-60), set during the Yukon gold rush of the 1890s. She played a saloon owner and singer, Rocky Shaw, who has attracted an adventurer, [played by] Roger Moore. The onscreen romance reflected the fact that Moore had fallen for Provine in real life, which almost caused a rift between him and his wife Dorothy Squires. Frank Sinatra then dated her for a while …”

Some people have asked why Dorothy’s parents’ final resting place, very near her own in Streatham Vale Cemetery, South London, has no headstone or plaque. Emily Squires, Dorothy’s niece, explains: “After the 1987 hurricane a lot of graves and trees were damaged, so the cemetery tried to inform my grandfather, who was the owner of the grave, to see if he wanted it refurbished. Unfortunately my grandfather had died some years earlier, and, without realising, the cemetery authorities sent the letter to him care of St. Mary’s Mount in Bexley (Dorothy’s home for many years), which had burned down in the70s. I didn’t know about this until Dorothy’s funeral, when I went to look for my grandparents’ grave and was then told by the cemetery office what had happened. I used to visit the grave when I lived in London. Dorothy had not put granddad’s name on the stone when he died in the early 60s and the only name on the headstone was ‘Emily Squires‘ (my grandmother), which was a bit spooky for me to see as it was also my name!”

Streatham Vale Cemetery is the final resting place for several other notable names in entertainment, including comedy film actor Will Hay, Lupino Lane (The Lambeth Walk), American pianist Charlie Kunz. Australian music hall performer Florrie Forde, big band leader Hal Swain, Ben Warriss of the comedy duo Jewell & Warriss, and music hall comedian Gus Elen. The ashes of TV magician and presenter David Nixon, and Wilfred Brambell (Steptoe & Son) are also buried there, albeit without name markers. There is a section alongside the crematorium dedicated to members of the music hall profession. Check out www.findagrave.com and type in Streatham Vale Cemetery for more information.


Gloria Hunniford interviewed Sir Roger Moore in her series Gloria’s Greats on the Biography Channel and he mentioned Dorothy several times - there was also a very short clip of the couple together, arriving at some function. Gloria admitted in a magazine interview to tie-in with the series: “Sir Roger talked very openly about areas of his married life we thought he would never mention. I had hoped we might get a little about this third wife Luisa but I thought I’d have to skirt over his second wife, Dorothy Squires, completely.
“In fact he revealed how his first marriage to an ice-skater was already on the rocks when he met the Welsh singer Dorothy Squires, who became wife number two. ‘I met Dorothy at a party at her home. She introduced me to a world that I’d never met before. … one couldn’t fail to be impressed by her success. You know, to watch her perform and to see the depth of her talent. It was quite extraordinary‘, he commented in the TV interview.”

Mark Willerton, curator of the splendid Burtey Fen Collection, the popular music memorabilia museum run from his home near Spalding in Lincolnshire, and who also runs websites for Kathy Kirby and the late Lita Roza, recently interviewed early 60s Welsh hit singer and performer Maureen Evans for the magazine Best Of British. Maureen revealed that her late father had been a big fan of Dorothy’s and he was delighted when she (Dorothy) specially wrote a song for Maureen called Acapulco Mexico. Maureen recorded the song and it was released as a single by her record label Oriole in 1963.

The Internet reveals an article which was published by the Los Angeles Times (articles.latimes.com) about Dorothy when she died in 1988, and mentions the fact that she wrote Tammy Tell Me True for the film of the same name, which was recorded by Sandra Dee, star of the movie, and married to Bobby Darin at the time. Percy Faith, the legendary American record musical arranger, supervised the session in Los Angeles.

Al Pillay, one of the stars of The Comic Strip and who has appeared in films and on TV, is also a very talented artist and has designed a series of cards, Demented Divas, featuring some of the most recognised divas in show business, including Dorothy Squires. When he left school at the age of 15, Al went to live in Manchester where he hooked up with Northern drag legends Bunny Lewis and Frank Foo Foo Lammar. Al became a successful drag performer himself, taking off Dorothy, Shirley Bassey, Eartha Kitt, Lena Horne and Cleo Laine in his act, performing at the Sheffield Fiesta and Manchester Golden Garter clubs among other top Northern cabaret venues. 
Al met Dorothy several times during the 80s and she apparently was a fan of his, watching his Comic Strip Presents … on Channel Four. He took off Dorothy and Shirley Bassey during one of his TV appearances. The Demented Divas card series was launched late in 2009 and, according to Al, Dorothy was the most popular selling image of the pre-Christmas season, with 30 cards in selling in one shop Dress Circle in |London’s West End in just a few days, and re-orders flowed in. Other ‘divas’ in the series include Joan Rivers, Carol Channing, Barbra Streisand, Eartha Kitt, Bette Davis (of course!), Mae West and Danny La Rue. Al says: “The series keeps the great show business personalities alive, in an age of fleeting, generic and all-too-fleeting types. Because of the popularity of the first Dorothy card image, I’m currently working on a new one inspired by her legendary Theatre Royal Drury Lane show, which will again be available at Dress Circle Records, the well-known theatrical shop in Monmouth Street, Covent Garden.” 
A donation from all sales of the Demented Divas cards goes to the Kiss It Better charity at the legendary Ormond Street Children’s Hospital. The cards are available exclusively at the www.dresscircle.com website which also stocks the reissue of Al Pillay’s double CD A Life In Song, recorded at the Café de Paris, Piccadilly Circus, in 2007. The CD is also available on download on Itunes and Al can also be viewed on YouTube.

Ed Moreno was a popular radio DJ in the 60s and 70s and had a brief encounter with Dorothy Squires in 1970. Ed joined the fledgling Radio Caroline in 1964 and afterwards became programme director on Radio Invicta, the early sweet music station based on Red Sands Fort. He then joined Radio City and in 1967 became joint programme director of Radio 270 and stayed with the station almost until its close-down.
Ed was later involved in the initial planning for Radio Northsea International and his first show was aired on March 1 1970. His final show featured an interview with Dorothy Squires which was advertised as ’a live broadcast’ although it has long been believed that it was pre-recorded. Rodney Collins, a reporter for the popular music magazine Disc & Music Echo, says: “Dorothy Squires was due out to the boat for a live interview with Ed Moreno but it had also been decided to pre-record a stand-by interview in case of travel problems or bad weather. In the event the weather forecast was poor and Dot Squires decided against the journey. However, it continued to be billed as a live interview as it attracted a fair amount of pre-publicity.”
Terry Williams, a family friend of Dorothy Squires, adds to the story. “She did go to Holland to give the interview and was intending to visit the boat. However, the couple of days she had in Holland coincided with rough sea conditions and they could not take her to the ship, so she recorded the interview on land. She knew that her music was not the style of RNI but the mere fact that she could get her record played on the station, and that it would upset the BBC, was what made her do it! She had argued with somebody at the BBC and they refused to play her latest record [probably Till], although it was nothing to do with the ’payola’ scandal, which was a court case that she later won after being found innocent of the charges.”
Rod Collins, who has his own very popular music show on the internet station offshoremusicradio.com, and frequently plays Dorothy on his programmes (including such overlooked gems like Someone Other Than Me and Solitude‘s My Home), adds: “We’d billed Dorothy as broadcasting live and that’s what we intended to do … weather permitting. However, the forecast was dreadful (I was sick on the tender on the way out) so Ed and I travelled out to the radio ship with the stand-by tape. I don’t think anyone knew at the time it was a recording, and it was some years before rumours started to circulate about it all.
“Record Mirror was one of the music papers that gave Dorothy regular space. Peter Jones, the editor, had been a friend for years and I helped to set up the interview in the first place. It was one of two times I met Dot Squires. She was pleasant, very chatty, and very grateful for the newspaper publicity and the radio plays! For his part, Ed Moreno, who died in tragic circumstances some years ago, had one of THE best voices in radio. They are both sadly missed.”

Obituary: Tony Osborne

Elsewhere on this website, Gary Osborne - a successful songwriter in his own right - writes of his childhood memories of Dorothy. His father was the musical arranger and composer Tony Osborne who worked with Dorothy, Shirley Bassey and Judy Garland among other musical legends. Tony had lived in retirement at his home in Australia (he emigrated there several years ago) and it is sad to report his death, albeit at the age of 87, in February 2009. Our commiserations go to Gary and his sister.
Tony Osborne played with the BBC Orchestra in the Fifties and later recorded Juke Box Jury, the original theme song for the popular BBC TV pop series. His musical arrangements for other artists included Shirley Bassey’s I (Who Have Nothing) and Gone (which he also composed), Petula Clark’s With All My Heart, Connie Francis’ Mama, and Gracie Fields’ Little Donkey. In 1969 Tony conducted the orchestra for Judy Garland’s final concerts which took place in Scandinavia. Tony also worked successfully with Alma Cogan, Eartha Kitt, Russ Conway, Gary Miller and Jimmy Young. He recorded with Dorothy on several occasions, including most notably Say It With Flowers and Blue Snowfall. An obituary in The Independent noted: “Tony Osborne was devoted to making music. He was a talented trumpeter and pianist, but he made his mark as a gifted arranger on many successful albums and singles during the 1950s and 60s. He was a consummate professional able to deal with prima donna antics from the likes of Shirley Bassey, Eartha Kitt and Dorothy Squires. ‘There’s no problem,’ he remarked. ‘You just talk back to them in the same language’.”
Also sad to report the death of TV actor Simon Oates, perhaps best remembered for his leading role playing Dr. John Ridge in the very popular BBC TV series Doomwatch in the early 70s. Simon will also be remembered by many Dorothy fans for being the compere at her historic comeback concert at the London Palladium in December 1970 and, of course, it is Simon’s voice that we hear on the live recording of the show, with the opening line … ‘I don’t know what you say about this young lady’. Ironically, Simon Oates was once rumoured to be in line to take over from Roger Moore as James Bond! 

Obituary: Danny La Rue

The legendary Danny La Rue died in June 2009 at the age of 81 after suffering failing health in recent years. However he had continued to make the occasional public appearances, speaking at the former editor of The Stage magazine Peter Hepple‘s memorial service at St. Paul’s, the actors church in Covent Garden, attending an 80th birthday tribute lunch for Lita Roza, and appearing on TV on the occasion of his 8oth birthday.
Danny’s long and dazzling career needs little recalling here. Suffice to say, he was Britain’s best-known - and highest-paid - female impersonator for more than three decades, with his own nightclub in London’s Hanover Square back in the 60s - which was a magnet for Royalty and celebrities - as well as starring in many West End shows.
Danny was a long-time friend of Dorothy Squires. I can recall interviewing him at Batley Variety Club in 1973 and they had already been friends for more than 20 years at that time. Danny frequently sent up Dorothy in his stage act, impersonating her singing Say It With Flowers in a hilarious segment, which he also performed in front of the late Queen Mother and Princess Margaret at the 1973 Royal Variety Show. Later. Danny recorded Dorothy’s composition for his EMI album, To Mother With Love.
Danny often attended Dorothy’s London concerts and I recall seeing him sitting in the Royal Box at the London Palladium with the late Dame Barbara Cartland, John Inman, and Norman Newell for one of her shows. Sad to think that they have all gone now. He also unveiled a plaque for Billy Reid in Southampton, again doing a gentle send-up of Dorothy, and he was one of the onscreen contributors to the BBC TV Wales documentary Rain Rain Go Away about Dorothy’s life.
Danny’s funeral took place at London’s Kensal Rise and he is buried with his late partner, Jack Hanson. Thanks for all the pleasure you gave to so many over the years, Danny - and may you rest in peace.

John Hartley, who knew Dorothy towards the close of her life, and attended Danny’s funeral, writes a regular blog at Mothership Blog. This can be accessed free by anyone. Scroll down to the Archives section on Mothership Blog and look for June 2009, where you can read his account of Danny La Rue’s Funeral; then refer to November 2009, where you can read his controversial blog, Dame Shirley Bassey In Decline?


Dorothy continues to attract press attention some years after her death. In August 2009 she was the subject of a two-page spread in the Daily Express, headlined: “James Bond’s Wild Wife”. The article by a writer called York Membury started: “Dorothy Squires was the fiery singing star who was a big name long before the unknown actor she married called Roger Moore. And despite their bitter break-up, the 007 star’s special gesture (offering to pay for a plaque to be erected in her memory in Llanelli) shows he has never forgotten her”.
The article detailed Roger and Dorothy’s story marriage and included a large picture of the couple together in the 50s, as well as a glamorous shot of Dorothy in later life. Incidentally, Roger Moore read extensive extracts from his autobiography in a Radio 2 series, and Dorothy naturally was mentioned many times, generally in most affectionate terms. There is also a ‘talking book’ available of My Word Is My Bond, with Sir Roger once again narrating.


Patrick Newley

Patrick Newley was a regular editorial contributor to The Stage magazine and for several years back in the 70s he also managed the inimitable Mrs Shufflewick (aka Rex Jamieson). Patrick wrote a couple of show business anecdotal books, including one about ’Shuff’, both of which mentioned Dorothy, relating humorous stories. Sadly Patrick Newley died in the summer of 2009, just several days after Danny La Rue who had been his father’s childhood friend (in fact, Patrick wrote the obituary for Danny which appeared in The Stage). A further irony was that just a year before Patrick had organised a tribute lunch for Lita Roza in Covent Garden at which Danny was a guest of honour. 
In one of his Stage articles - published in the weekly Tabard column - Patrick recalled: “Lynda Lee-Potter [the noted Daily Mail columnist] ended up on the losing side of a war of words with the equally waspish and confrontational Dorothy Squires. When the singer spent £5,000 to become the first individual to hire the London Palladium, Lee-Potter wrote a typically subdued article under an equally typically subdued Daily Mail headline: ‘Don’t do it Dot! You can’t buy success!’.
Squires replied with a huge Get Well Soon card that read: ‘For once I fully agree with you! No one can buy success. |If they could, the millionaires would buy the lot - and keep it for themselves and their children and their children. I am paying for the chance to prove what I can do, having been in the charts three times in the last 18 months. Dear Lynda, you’ll have to pay black market prices to get in because my comeback sold out in a day.’
“And how right she was,” Patrick Newley noted. “Squires packed the Palladium for annual shows and earned her own season there [in July 1974]. Her only niece Emily Jane Squires sums it up: ‘Lynda Lee-Potter and my aunt Dot were two of a kind - colourful, controversial and top of the tree true professionals. Bless them both’.
Patrick Newley related another hilarious story about Dorothy in The Stage. “The volatile Dorothy Squires was no stranger to voicing her opinion. At the end of her concerts, faithful fans normally showered the stage with bouquets of flowers. I always thought these finales were rigged but on one occasion I saw her in the 80s and not so much as a daisy chain graced the stage. As La Squires, wearing a radio mic, angrily swept off into the wings the entire audience heard her voice over the speakers shout: ‘Where’s the f****** flowers?’ You can’t beat that for protest.”


Many of Dorothy’s big-selling records were back in the 40s before the official pop chart was born (New Musical Express launched the first Top 10 based on actual record sales in November 1952), so she is often, perhaps unfairly, overlooked by chart historians. Her only official chart hits were I’m Walking Behind You in 1953, Say It With Flower with Russ Conway (1961), For Once In My Life (1969), and Till and My Way (both 1970). However the Guinness Book of Hit Singles has published a definitive list of Post-War Pop Hits, which were based on sheet music sales (the criteria before the launch of the chart based on actual record sales) and Dorothy features high. The Gypsy was number 1 in the listing in September 1945, with Dorothy and the Ink Spots both credited with performing the Billy Reid song, and remained at the top until the end of October. Another big success was A Tree In The Meadow, which was number 1 sheet music from February 5 1948 through to 22 April 1948. Both Dorothy and singer/pianist Leslie ’Hutch’ Hutchinson are credited with the hit versions of the Reid composition.

RARE PHOTOS / MEMORABILIA

From the Burtey Fen Collection - many thanks to Mark Willerton

 DOT AND HER TWO FINGERED GRAND EXIT

Click to enlarge and read entire article

This was the first time I saw Dorothy. I had been to see Shirley Bassey in November 73 and was knocked out. I new Dorothy had a similar style and when she was at our local theatre, booked tickets. No, she wasn't as polished as Shirley, no the orchestra wasn't as professional, yes her false eyelashes came off, yes she hit wrong notes and was out of tune at times but, what a show! Became a fan at sixteen and went on to see her many more times, the last time, at Wimbledon. 
- Stephen Debell

Geri Smith has added new dates for her one-woman show The  Dorothy Squires Story which she first performed at the Edinburgh Festival some while back, and has since repeated several times with great success. Geri will be performing at a matinee performance in Llwyn-y-Pia, Rhonda Valley, South Wales, on 4 June. More importantly for London (and Home Counties) based Dorothy Squires fans,, she will be taking the show to the annual Henley Fringe Festival, with matinee and evening performances at the Chamber Room in Henley scheduled for July 23, 24 and 25.

Welsh Legends

Dorothy Squires was the first featured name in the second BBC TV Wales series of Welsh Greats, which aired on 23 February 2009.  Produced by Dafydd O’Connor, and presented by Cerys Matthews of the best-selling Welsh band Catatonia, the programme was an excellent 30-minute overview of Dorothy’s long career and turbulent personal life, and included some footage previously unseen.  Radio Times (in its Welsh edition) billed it: “Cerys Matthews presents a profile of the glittering yet tragic life of Dorothy Squires, the Welsh diva who was one of the biggest stars of the 1940s but died a virtual recluse in 1998.”

Unlike many other programmes of this nature, the Welsh Legends programmes do not have ‘taking heads’ as such and much of the story was told by the featured subject via archive footage (other names in the series have included actress Rachel Roberts, Richard Burton, Wynford Vaughan Thomas and Sir Harry Secombe).  The Dorothy programme included some interview footage originally seen in the Rain Rain Go Away documentary (broadcast in early 1999, just before Dorothy‘s death), and also some not previously seen.  There were also a couple of clips in colour from the Stars In Their Eyes film, as well as an extract from The Big Time (which introduced Sheena Easton to fame and fortune) and film interview footage featuring Sir Roger Moore (previously seen).

The choice of Cerys Matthews (who had a Top 10 hit with Tom Jones on the oldie Baby It’s Cold Outside a while back) was particularly inspired as Cerys, like Dorothy, is also from Llanelli and it was interesting to see a contemporary pop artist presenting the programme, as opposed to an ’older’ name. Overall, the programme was fair and balanced, underlining Dorothy’s climb to success and how popular she was during her heyday. Naturally there was also much emphasis on the latter years when things began to go downhill, but that made for a gripping story.  Hopefully the programme will have helped to ignite further interest in Dorothy Squires, and it is only a pity that it could only be watched in Wales (although it could be viewed via the internet for a week after its transmission).

Thanks for an excellent programme, Dafydd.

Charlie Gracie

Charlie Gracie junior has been in touch with the website, with some fascinating memories of his father’s association (albeit briefly!) with Dorothy Squires.

Charlie wrote: “What a great site for Dorothy! She was indeed a great star who gave her all to her fans - whether on record, or in live performances. My father, whose hits included the number one Butterfly, Fabulous, Wandering Eyes and Nine-Nine Ways, almost got to work with her.

In 1957 Dad and Dot were supposed to have joint top billing at the London Hippodrome, but when Lew and Leslie Grade demoted Dorothy to ‘featured artist’ (not my Dad’s doing) she walked off the show.  Even though my Dad was a hot recording artist at the time, one could understand how Dorothy felt, having been a well-established artist for many a year in her homeland.  However there were never any hard feelings between my Dad and Dot. In fact Dad later attended one of her concerts and Dot introduced him from the stage and gave Dad a kiss on the cheek!

Your site brings back some great memories and I shared it with my father who, although now 72, is still playing all over the world. In November 2008 he completed a UK tour at the Liverpool Empire and was back for more concerts recently.”

Charlie forwarded a recent news item about the fact that The Hippodrome (which later became The Talk Of The Town before reverting back to The Hippodrome, albeit in its latest guise as a dance club) and its need for preservation (the latest talk is that it is to become a gambling casino).

The London Hippodrome has had a temporary reprieve as it has it has now re-opened as a nightclub for a limited period.  Here is an impassioned please from Charlie Gracie junior on the possible future demise of the venue.

“I was greatly distressed to hear that one of the great entertainment venues of the 20^th century, the London Hippodrome might be shut down - or demolished completely.  My father Charlie Gracie, the first solo rock ‘n’ roll star (after Bill Haley’s Comets) to bring the music to the UK (1957), was the last star to appear at the venue before its conversion into a cabaret house (The Talk Of The Town) in 1958.”

The article recalled: “Charlie Gracie created quite a stir when the Grade agency booked him on an exclusive tour in the late summer and fall of 1957.  Dorothy Squires, your ‘Bette Davis of Song’, refused to take second billing to my father at The Hippodrome. Claiming she ‘had never heard of him’ and the fact that he was an ambassador of this ‘new-fangled rock ‘n’ roll stuff), didn’t improve her opinion of him. 

“However all this created a big publicity circus for my father and garnered him a wealth of press coverage. He was a smash at The Hippodrome and later in the provinces, and he returned for another extensive tour in the spring of 1958. Ms Squires later apologised and they met at some other venue.  This is such fun stuff to look back upon, and it is one of the many great stories surrounding The Hippodrome, I’m sure.”

Many thanks to Charlie for sharing this with us.  The late George Harrison, Cliff Richard, Van Morrison and Graham Nash have all credited Charlie senior’s singing and guitar style on their own careers, and Sir Paul McCartney covered Charlie’s Fabulous in 1999. For further information about Charlie’s career and activities, check out his website www.charliegracie.com.

   In incidentally, as a footnote to Charlie junior’s story, this was when Dorothy subsequently did a ‘Palladium’, hiring the Edgware Road Metropolitan Theatre for a week from 26 August 1957 - and packed the place out. Her support bill included an up-and-coming Russ Conway and The Ramblers, an Irish harmony outfit whose line-up included Val Doonican, but who had to wait another eight years before he hit the big time in his own right!

Jean Campbell

Glasgow-born popular singer Jean Campbell died in 2003 after a long career as a recording artist and stage performer.  Jean recorded many songs for Embassy Records, the Woolworth low-price label (aah, memories!), covering many of the current hits of the day such as Brenda Lee’s Sweet Nuthins, Connie Francis’ Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool, and Helen Shapiro’s Don’t Treat Me Like A Child (Jean was 34 at the time!).  Jean also sang on many still-remembered TV commercials including for Fairy Liquid (Hands that do dishes can be as soft as your face), Beanz Meanz Heinz, and Keep Going Well, Keep Going Shell. Her obituary in The Independent recalled that Jean had replaced Pearl Carr as the female vocalist with Cyril Stapleton and his Orchestra.  “Encouraged by the singer Dorothy Squires, Campbell made solo recordings for Parophone, although she often found herself competing against major artists who had recorded the same songs such as Frankie Laine and Pat Boone.”

Many thanks to Mark Wallace for bringing this brief item to the website’s attention.

Mark Speight

The late children’s TV presenter Mark Speight died under tragic circumstances in April 2008.  Mark Willerton came across the following news story:

“It’s nearly a year since the death of TV presenter Mark Speight, who committed suicide after not being able to cope with the death of his girlfriend Natasha Collins in January of 2008. Mark was a fan of Dorothy Squires and a friend stated in the Sunday Express soon after his death: “Mark had very eclectic tastes and he loved the Dorothy Squires song We Clowns, which had the lyric ‘We clowns who choose to entertain, with painted smiles that hide the pain’. He would often listen to that and it did get me thinking about why it seemed to resonate with him.”

Mark Willerton, official curator of the website for the late Lita Roza (www.litaroza.co.uk), who died in 2008, as well as for Kathy Kirby (www.KathyKirby.org.uk), with whom he is a close friend), and who also runs the fascinating Burtey Fenn Collection near Spalding in Lincolnshire, has kindly supplied these two cuttings from Lita’s own private collection.  One picture shows Lita arriving with Dorothy at the High Court in London, when Dorothy was suing her former professional partner Billy Reid for permission to re-record some of the many songs that Reid had composed for her.  Dorothy won the case and subsequently recorded the Dorothy Squires Sings Billy Reid album.  The second picture shows Lita, Harry Secombe and Dorothy in party mood.

Avid Records has released The Unforgettable Pat Kirkwood (cat. No. Avid Easy AMSC 966, price £7.99) and it will be of interest to Dorothy Squires fans as it features several recordings that featured in the Fifties film Stars In Your Eyes in which the late Miss Kirkwood co-starred with Dorothy. The songs are I’d Pick Piccadilly, Stars In My Eyes and The Man That Wakes The Man That Blows Reveille. This excellent set has been compiled by the renowned music archivist Hugh Palmer and the extensive line notes have been notated by the highly respected author and newspaper writer Michael Thornton. Spanning 56 years, from the leading role in her first film at the age of 17, to her final stage performance in 1994 at the age of 73, this historic compilation features 66 songs, 29 of which have never been released on CD before.

Sir Roger Moore’s autobiography My Word Is My Bond has been published by Michael O’Mara Books and, as one would expect, Dorothy who was married to the former Saint and James Bond star, and was very influential in helping his career during the Fifties, features extensively.  Sir Roger writes about his marriage to Dorothy with considerable affection, despite the fact that it all ended so acrimoniously, with Dorothy refusing him a divorce for several years after their much-publicised break-up in 1961.  The book includes one photo of the Moores arriving back in Britain from the United States around 1960.  Interestingly his third wife Louisa is also featured just once photographically while his fourth and latest wife Kristina naturally takes top honours with five photos!  Dorothy aside, My Word Is My Bond is a highly enjoyable read for Sir Roger’s many admirers, and underlines his reputation for being a thoroughly decent man (although his ex-wives would probably disagree!). Sir Roger promoted the book with press and TV interviews - frequently mentioning Dorothy - and he did several booking signings in Britain, as well as in the United States and Australia.

 Incidentally, Dorothy is mentioned briefly in composer Leslie Briccuse’s excellent and very entertaining 2006 memoirs The Music Man, published by Metro.  Bricusse of course wrote several stage musicals with the late Anthony Newley, including Stop The World I Want To Get Off and The Roar Of The Greasepaint - The Smell Of The Crowd, as well as the music for the movie hit Doctor Doolittle and Scrooge, while his many hits include Who Can I Turn To?, What Kind Of Fool Am I?, Gonna Build A Mountain, Portrait Of My Love, Goldfinger, You And I (from Goodbye Mr. Chips) and so many more. 

 Recalling the first night of Stop The World In Want To Get Off at the Queen’s Theatre in London’s Shaftesbury Avenue in 1961, Bricusse recalls how nervous he was about the opening:

“The first 20 minutes of the opening night performance seemed to my cat-on-a-hot-tin-roof mind to be interminably dull and boring, and my heart stopped when four people in the middle of Row E got up and walked out, arguing volubly about what I assumed was their disgust with the show. I sank further into my seat, waiting for the rest of the audience to follow them.  They didn’t, and three minutes later Newley brought the house down with Gonna Build A Mountain.”

 A little later in the book, Bricusse remembers Roger Moore introducing his new Italian girlfriend Luisa Matteoli at Maxim’s restaurant. “Roger was still married to, but recently separated from, his second wife, a famous and tempestuous Welsh songstress called Dorothy Squires.  Early in the evening, clearly wishing to get it off his chest, Roger confessed to me that it was one of his many contretemps with Madame Squires that had caused the precipitous departure of his party of four from Row E of the Queen’s Theatre on the first night of Stop The World for which he now wished to apologise profusely and hope that one day I would find it in my heart to forgive him profusely.  I said I was glad he wasn’t a critic.”

 Bricusse adds: “Luisa spoke hilarious Chico Marx English, was deliciously and paralysingly funny, and seemed likely to become a worthy successor to her Welsh forerunner in the tempestuous department.”

 And later in his memoirs: “Back In Denham Roger Moore, after several arduous years of trying, had finally achieved his bitterly fought divorce with the Welsh singing star Dorothy Squires, and was now free to marry the lovely Luisa Matteoli which he promptly did, because the lovely Luisa would have killed him if he hadn’t.”

Finally the 2003 Anthony Newley biography Stop The World by Garth Bardsley (published by Oberon Books) briefly mentions Dorothy. Recalling Newley’s early years, Bardsley writes: “One evening, after a show in Newcastle, Newley was introduced to Ian Fraser who was on contract with Tony’s record label Decca.  A classically trained pianist and phenomenally talented musician, Fraser had already recorded with Jess Conrad and Dorothy Squires as well as recording two albums of his own.”

Ian Fraser went on to working with Newley and Bricusse in particular for many years, and has arranged the scores for many top films and theatre shows.  For the record, he arranged Dorothy’s July 1960 single This Place Called Home/Trust In Me on Decca Records

Gerri Smith reprised her excellent play-with-music The Dorothy Squires Story with two performances at the Arts Wing of Swansea Grand on February 18 2009.  Once again, Gerri captured the essence of Dorothy’s dramatic lifestyle and also reprised several of the songs that Dorothy performed at her 1970 London Palladium comeback concert.  Many of Dorothy’s fans were in attendance and Gerri’s rousing version of My Way brought many members of the audience to their feet.  She was rewarded with armfuls of flowers including a bouquet from the ever-loyal John Lloyd who had travelled all the way from London.

Peter Jones was for many years the editor of the popular pop music magazine Record Mirror and got to know many of the big names of the Sixties and the early Seventies.  Two of his particular favourites were Dorothy Squires and Dusty Springfield who he met and interviewed on many occasions. Peter first met Dorothy when she was performing in Portsmouth at the local Press Ball in the Fifties.  Peter asked Dorothy if she would perform at a charity event to be held on the Clarence Pier in Southsea.

 “Dorothy’s sister-in-law was of course Joyce Golding, who was also a very well known variety act, and she was married to Dorothy’s brother Fred Squires. The whole family used to stage and perform in pantomimes and variety shows, and Fred said that they were all coming down to perform at the charity event. I had to collect Dorothy on the day of the show and it was quite something to see how she got everybody organised!”

 Peter recalls that Dorothy said that her boyfriend was coming down from London on the last train that same evening.  “Apparently he was an up-and-coming actor.  It turned out to be Roger Moore of course who was tall and extremely handsome and who ideally complemented Dorothy’s blonde and petite looks and charismatic personality. Roger had a very warm personality and when I subsequently met him at an amateur boxing tournament he invited me to one of the famous parties that he and Dorothy held at the Bexley mansion, and it was the first of many that I went to. It was amazing the famous people who would be there, not just variety artists but actors as well.

 “Dorothy was always the perfect hostess and Roger was always very polite and courteous. Much later I frequently met Dorothy during my era with Record Mirror and she was always a great interview, providing good copy.  When she released her first President album Say It With Flowers in 1968 I remember championing it in the magazine, and the following year of course she returned to the pop charts with For Once In My Life. It was great to see her making a professional comeback and the icing on the cake was the London Palladium concert in 1970.  Dorothy remains to me one of the greatest female performers that this country has ever produced.”

Thanks for these memories Peter, who is pictured with Dorothy at the Portsmouth Press Ball.

PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORIES OF DOROTHY

MEMORIES ARCHIVE

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