Ronald Frankau (1933)

Titles read: “NOW Pathe Pictorial presents - Ronald Frankau of Variety, Gramophone and BBC fame.“ Pathe Studio, London. The act opens on a set dressed to look like a drawing room. Monte Crick (?) is at the piano. Comedian Ronald Frankau sits on a table with his back to us; he is wearing a policeman’s helmet. We hear a man say “Constable... I’ve just arrived by train and someone’s stolen my bags“. Frankau says the man can’t go about without them so he’d better buy a new pair (referring to Oxford Bags - fashionable trousers of the day). Frankau gets up and walks towards camera. He wears the helmet with a dark jacket, light trousers, monocle and a very long cigarette holder. He sings (or rather speaks) a song about public school-educated men becoming policemen - could be called ’When You’ve Fellows Like Me In The Force“ or ’Hoorah For The Public School Police’. He mentions warning criminals in Latin and charging them in Greek and holding up buses with manicured nails. It’s quite funny. In a b