Moore and Burgess Minstrels
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Established in 1865, the Moore and Burgess Minstrels performed at St. James' Hall, Piccadilly in one continuous season for more than thirty five years. They billed themselves as 'The Oldest Established Entertainment in the World'. They performed every night and gave matinees three times a week. The company also toured and the newspaper cutting below contains a review of their performance in Dublin and an interview with Arthur Gallimore. The photograph of the full company was taken at St Leonards' Pavillion on 16th June 1900 at their final performance as the Moore and Burgess Minstrels. While they were on tour that summer the Mohawk Minstrels had moved from Islington and taken over the lease of St. James' Hall. The other photograph below is of Arthur, Johnny Danvers and Fred Lynne. Arthur remained with the, then renamed, Mohawk Moore and Burgess Minstrels until at least 1901. The Mohawk Minstrels came to an end in 1904 but by then Arthur was with Fred Karno's Company. Anyone interested in the history of Minstrelsy should read Harry Reynolds book 'Minstrel Memories'. In it he describes Arthur (due to a typographical error it says Alf Gallimore) as 'a bright and amusing comedian and a very fine dancer'. |
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