Gunnedah audiences were last week treated to an hour of music, comedy, and storytelling to hear the true story of wartime comedian and ukulele legend George Formby.
‘The Ukulele Man’ – played by Marcel Cole and his real-life mother Katie – hosted a matinee performance last Friday at the Civic Theatre.
From the music halls of Blackpool to the battlefields of Europe, the production shared the untold history of one of Britain’s most beloved entertainers.
Formby was banned by the BBC and committed to a psychiatric hospital by his wife, yet still rose to become the UK’s biggest star.
The Gunnedah performance transported audiences back to an era when live entertainment reigned supreme, paying homage to a
performer who captured the hearts of a nation.
Among the attendees at the Gunnedah show was Doug Pegg who was looking forward to the trip down memory lane.
“I remember him from the radio,” Doug recalled.
He said it was Formby’s “humour and ‘little ditties'” that struck a particular chord when radio was king of the entertainment scene.
“It was all radio back then,” Doug added.
“We’d all sit around the radio and listen.”
Also attending the Gunnedah show was the community’s very own ukulele band, The Gunnedah Uke-Alypts.
In addition to his Gunnedah show, The Ukulele Man hosted performances in Barraba, Baan Baa and Tamworth last weekend.
