Wolverhampton Grand Theatre at 125: The Wisdom to book Norman
His career spanned seven decades but when Norman Wisdom first appeared at The Grand Theatre in the post-war years he was virtually unknown.
The much-loved comic performed in two pantomimes at The Grand – Robinson Crusoe in 1949 and Cinderella in 1951.
After a spell in the Merchant Navy and then the Army, Wolverhampton audiences were lucky enough to see him on the cusp of a career that would see him eventually knighted for his services to the entertainment industry.
In the Army, he had become a bandsman, graduated to concert parties, and honed his comic skills.
Shortly after the war, actor Rex Harrison saw him perform at a charity concert in Cheltenham and was so impressed he went backstage and advised to turn professional.
Norman was soon touring the country as straight man to the magician David Nixon but when he appeared at the Grand he was still not a name.
His appearances at the Lichfield Street theatre were before he signed to the Rank Organisation and went on to make 19 films during the 1950s and 60s, playing the downtrodden fool in his ill-fitting jacket and flat cap.
In between his two Grand performances, the actor briefly met Charlie Chaplin who told him 'You will follow in my footsteps' and it was three years later that he made his first major film, Trouble in Store.
Although not rated by the critics, the films were among Britain's biggest box-office successes of their day. In 1964 a record 18.5 million people watched his BBC pantomime Robinson Crusoe.
This photograph was published in the programme for Cinderella in Wolverhampton and autographed by the star 'Sincerely Your Pal, Norman Wisdom'.
In The Grand's Memories archives, Eirlais Tomkins who attended Wolverhampton Girls’ High School and later became Head of Music at the school, recalled seeing the diminutive actor in the show.
She said: "Norman Wisdom playing Buttons was a most moving performance because although he was a comic character, it was such a ‘pathetic’ performance, in the best sense of the word, and I shall never forget his expression to this day as he talked to Cinderella and really was in love with Cinderella.
"I can still see him on the stage at the side of Cinderella and I can remember his tunic with the double row of buttons – it was most memorable."
