Welcome to the website of
Tony Lidington & Promenade Promotions (Prom-Prom) Limited
“The art of British popular entertainment”
This website is for booking Prom-Prom’s accessible, family-friendly acts for 2024/5… it is also a treasure-trove of vernacular entertainments, containing Dr Tony Lidington’s research outputs, publications and archives on British popular performance forms.
Tony Lidington
“… some sort of unreconstructed music hall anarchist”
– John Fox, Welfare State International & Dead Good Guides
“A national treasure…”
– the late Duke of Edinburgh
This website is for booking Prom-Prom’s accessible, family-friendly acts for 2024/5… it is also a treasure-trove of vernacular entertainments, containing Dr Tony Lidington’s research outputs, publications and archives on British popular performance forms.
Tony Lidington
“… some sort of unreconstructed music hall anarchist”
– John Fox, Welfare State International & Dead Good Guides
“A national treasure…”
– the late Duke of Edinburgh
“Come and see the wonders of all wonders that ever the world has wondered at!” – Gustavus Katterfelto
– Wise words –
“One of the ways to avoid being beaten by the system is to laugh at it” – Peter Cook
“We don’t have a plan, so nothing can go wrong” – Spike Milligan
“This too shall pass…” from Hebrew and Sufi folklore
Latest Socials and Posts
I recently received the fabulous news that I have been commissioned to write & direct the R&D phase of a project which I have been nurturing for nearly a decade! ![]()
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'Shuff & Byng' is a collaboration with Slaget Theatre, exploring the lives, work and enduring legacy of Dougie Byng and Mrs. Shufflewick: two iconic, pioneering figures in the art of female impersonation - long before the era of RuPaul's Drag Race.![]()
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Please follow the project by subscribing to our creative blog here (it doesn't cost you anything and will keep you up to date on everything we are doing):![]()
substack.com/home/post/p-157315330?r=53jcxo![]()
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Dougie "bawdy but British" Byng was the UK's notorious king of double entendre, enjoying a 70-year career as a cross-dressing society entertainer, gracing film, stage, variety and cabaret, which started in the 1920s. His friends, lovers, and acquaintances spanned royalty, aristocracy, and celebrities: I knew Dougie in his later years and wrote a BBC Radio 4 series from his memoirs called 'The Byng Ballads', which was performed by Julian Clary.![]()
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In contrast, Mrs. Shufflewick, was the glorious creation of Rex Jameson of a working class charlady in semi-residence at her local pub, 'The Cock and Bull'. Jameson brought Mrs. Shufflewick to life with impeccable timing and risque humour, becoming one of variety, TV & radio's most original and brilliant talents in the post-war years.![]()
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I am joined on the project by producer Matthew Linley, Kinny Gardner (Lindsay Kemp Company, Rocky Horror Show) as Byng, Dusty Limits and Billie Bottle (Giffords Circus, Mike Westbrook Band & Temple of Shibboleth) as Musical Director. ![]()
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The R&D of "Shuff & Byng" will culminate in two public sharings:![]()
● Eastern Angles: June 19th at 7:30 pm (Pay what you can). Book here![]()
● The Electric Palace Harwich (in association with Harwich Arts Festival): June 20th at 3:00 pm (Pay what you can). buytickets.at/harwichfestival/1600489![]()
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The project has been made possible thanks to the generous support of the Noel Coward Foundation and funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England. The project is supported by our venue partners Harwich Arts & Heritage Centre, Eastern Angles, the Electric Palace Harwich and Colchester Arts Centre.
Select tickets – Shuff n Byng: A Celebration of two Drag Pioneers – The Electric Palace
buytickets.at
Harwich based Slaget Theatre is thrilled to announce its next production in development. Shuff & Byng is an exploration of ...
I am very excited to announce that the Arts Council of England are supporting the research and development of a project that I have been planning for almost a decade... 'Shuff & Byng' is finally underway! It is a play about two drag queens of the past - Douglas Byng (whom I knew briefly at the end of his life) and Mrs Shufflewick (Rex Jameson). I shall be working with the prolific arts producer Matthew Linley and alongside the fabulous creative artists - Kinny Gardner and Billie Harbottle. ![]()
Here is a link for updates, to which I urge you all to subscribe and follow: open.substack.com/pub/matthewlinley1/p/introducing-shuff-and-byng?r=5b3wyf&utm_campaign=post&utm_...![]()
The coming week is our first time working together on the project over in Colchester and Harwich... I'll keep you posted!
We had such a great time working with all our trainees, mentors and wonderful community organisations and artists for our At The Hop! project. It culminated in a packed out dance event at The Strand Centre in Dawlish that was full of merriment and memories! ![]()
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Thank you to everyone involved! Teignbridge District Council Daisi Sarah Bell Wandering Tiger Wren Music ![]()
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www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7doqwZEq2E![]()
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#tapfunded #UKSPF
'At The Hop!' - the launch event
www.youtube.com
A brief video showing the launch event of 'At the Hop!' - an intergenerational oral history project about going out dancing in the 1950s & 60s. The event was...
Here are a couple of links about 'At the Hop!'- an intergenerational project about dancing in the 1950s & 60s. ![]()
Here's a link to the Soundcloud audio of the 30-minute ‘At the Hop!’ programme: soundcloud.com/uncle-tacko/sets/at-the-hop?si=c742cad1a9c0411aaee78fabe697a46b&utm_source=clipboa...![]()
Here's a link to the short video of the launch on Youtube: youtu.be/Q7doqwZEq2E?feature=shared![]()
Thank you to everyone involved and all those who contributed their memories - this was a heart-warming celebration of people and our town.
'At The Hop!' - the launch event
youtu.be
A brief video showing the launch event of 'At the Hop!' - an intergenerational oral history project about going out dancing in the 1950s & 60s. The event was...
Here are some really useful statistics about the contribution to the economy of the Creative Industries located in the greater South West. These figures were published in the Annual Population Survey & Business Counts Survey 2014-2023 (released 27th September 2024):![]()
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Turnover = £2.3+ Billion![]()
Employment = 34,600+ people (this is more than the energy and defence sectors combined!) - in addition, there are a further 40,000 freelancers.![]()
Number of registered Cultural Industry companies = 15,870 ![]()
Job growth (2019-2022) = 4.1%. This is the joint-fastest growth in this sector for the entire UK over this period.![]()
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Feel free to use these when advocating for our sector and our region!
