Before Street stardom
was able to visit the docks.
Her father worked on the building of the ‘Queen Mary’ at the John Brown shipyard in Glasgow, and as a big treat the family went to Southampton to see the ship sail on its maiden voyage.
They were privileged visitors and the children saw parts of the ship that was out of bounds to the general public.
When Jean’s father worked locally he would take the children to New Brighton’s Pavilion Theatre and Jean loved it; the orchestra, the red velvet curtains, the excitement as the lights went down.
She fell in love with the theatre. She wasn’t good at dancing, couldn’t sing in tune or juggle but wanted to be a part of it.
Scholarship
Jean won a scholarship to St Edmund’s College, a girls school on the edge of Prince’s Park, where she did well, especially in English, due to teacher, Miss Potter, who encouraged her to read Shakespeare, which she loved.
During her last year at school Jean directed a new-style concert which included the play by Stanley Houghton, ‘The Dear Departed’.
With friends she wrote some sketches and poems for the performance; although Jean didn’t perform the play was very successful.
First performance
Jean and some Sunday School friends then formed an acting group to perform one act plays in local halls for charities, to repair Church roofs, organs and for Christmas parties for pensioners.
One play was ‘ The Dear Departed’, chosen by Jean so she could relive her triumphant moment and to give herself the part of Ma!
This was her first performance before an audience.
Love of Shakespeare
When aged 15 Jean’s class were taken to their first Shakespeare play, Macbeth, at The Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool, starring (Sir) John Gielgud, and she came away in a trance.
She attended various other plays such as ‘A MidsummerNight’s Dream’; ‘Othello’; and ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’, and during that summer Jean cycled every night to the Open Air Theatre in Otterspool Park, revising on the grass for exams before watching a play. The bug had bitten! Next week we will see Jean’s acting career take off – but not before many years of hardship!