Unmasking the Phantom
QUESTION Why did Michael Crawford play the title role in The Phantom Of The Opera rather than first choice, Steve Harley?
In 1986, Andrew Lloyd Webber decided to turn Gaston Leroux’s novel into a musical. He followed his usual method, testing the waters with a single that would encapsulate the story.
Lyricist Richard Stilgoe and Lloyd Webber’s then wife Sarah Brightman were on board — all they needed was a performer to play the Phantom.
Steve Harley of Cockney Rebel was invited to give it a go. An extravagant video directed by Ken Russell accompanied the Phantom Of The Opera single, which reached no. 7 in the charts. Harley hadn’t had a hit that big since his 1975 no. 1 Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me).
nine months before the October 1986 premiere, the score was still in draft form and Lloyd Webber was busy composing the music.
Harley was giving interviews showing his interest: ‘I’m living with fingers and toes crossed. I do want to do it very much.’ He was asked to audition for the creative team.
As he recalled: ‘And did I pass the audition? They phoned my agent the next day and said I had the job.’
Stilgoe had writer’s block and Charles Hart was brought in to give the show a more romantic edge. U.S. legend Hal Prince was confirmed as director.
Harley had been working on the role for several months and had recorded Music Of The night with a full orchestra, but Lloyd Webber still refused to announce him as the Phantom.
With ever more elaborate staging and choreography, Lloyd Webber and producer Cameron Mackintosh got cold feet about the casting.
In the BBC’s 2005 Behind The Mask documentary, a slightly embarrassed Mackintosh explained: ‘He (Harley) wasn’t that experienced an actor. It became obvious to me, then I discussed it with Hal and with Andrew, who also came to the same conclusion, that this was a lovely impulse, but not the right decision for the show.’
Mackintosh contacted Harley’s agent and told him ‘the deal’s off’ — he was given £20,000 compensation and dropped unceremoniously. The team then made the seemingly extraordinary decision to cast Michael Crawford, who was famous for playing the hapless Frank Spencer in the sitcom Some Mothers Do ’Ave ’Em and was famous for his mishaps and ‘Ooh Betty!’ catchphrase.
What most TV viewers didn’t know was that Crawford was a fine singer who had starred in hit musicals Billy and Barnum. He was a remarkable physical performer, able to ride a giant unicycle, walk a tightrope and perform acrobatic stunts.
not only could he express himself with his body when his face was shrouded by a mask and disfiguring make-up, but he was a fearless stunt performer.
He had no qualms about balancing precariously on a gilded angel that soared over the audience’s heads or shooting through the dangerous stage device called the star trap.
There is no doubt that the casting team made the right decision, but it was harsh on Steve Harley.
Joanne Carrington, Broadway, Worcs.
QUESTION Is it correct that Captain Cook was never actually a captain?
JAMES COOK was a lieutenant when commanding his first voyage of discovery aboard HMS Endeavour from 1768 to 1771. However, the commanding officer of any Royal naval ship is still the captain, whatever his actual rank. Furthermore, Cook was a qualified ship’s master.
He was promoted to commander for his second voyage, 1772 to 1775, and to post captain before his third, fatal voyage, which set sail in 1776.
To be posted as captain was not a courtesy title, but one of the most important promotions of an officer’s career. It carried with it enormous prestige, as it does to this day, though the prefix ‘post’ has been dropped.
Cook was in all respects a captain, with the responsibility and dignity of the rank. C. S. Forester’s Hornblower novels describe the Royal navy’s rank system in a lively and enjoyable fashion while Alan Villiers’s Captain Cook, The Seamen’s Seaman, gives an impressive account of his remarkable achievements. Lt Commander Roderick Stewart,
Dronley, Angus.
QUESTION How do you play the early English board game Ludus Anglicorum?
LUDUS Anglicorum, which is Latin for the English game, is a forerunner of backgammon. Its rules are described in an Anglo-norman manuscript in the British Museum.
The game board is the same as in backgammon with 12 points (triangles) on each side of the table. Unlike backgammon, where the 15 counters are placed in set positions around the board, all the counters, or pawns, begin on the first point on the player’s near right.
It was played with three dice rather than backgammon’s two.
It then follows a similar pattern: the counters are moved anticlockwise around the board and must escape from the opponent’s side. Dice can be played singly or combined.
Single pieces may be ‘hit’ by an opposing piece, and must be re-entered in the player’s start table before any other move may be made. Players can’t land on a space occupied by two or more of the opponent’s pieces.
There is some unfamiliar terminology. A player is ‘lympolded’ if they have a piece that must be re-entered but no available point on which to put it.
A player is ‘lurched’ when he can’t move because there is a barrier of six points covered by his opponent.
Charles Rice, London E9.
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