All
of these minor bits of business aside, this past week has dropped into our laps
a couple of new Lloydalists-worthy tidbits of news, as well as Harry’s latest
project, a radio broadcast.
Image: © Scotsman/Lee Randall, 2012.
Every
Duchess in England (1931)
First
broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on January 23, 2013, the 45-minute performance of Alan
Pollock’s Every Duchess in England
was led by a cast of actors including Tobias Menzies and Harry Lloyd. The program is listenable HERE or four more
days (until January 27th).
Produced
and directed by Gaynor Macfarlane, the 1931-occurring male-dominated story
shows England straining beneath the burden of financial crises. The BBC Radio 4 site adds that “austerity
measures and a Coalition government” do not help to make matters any better. “Frustrated
by the failure of the political class to take on the might of the banks,
maverick Labour MP Oswald Mosley,” called “Tom” and played in the radio program
by Tobias Menzies, “attempts to take things into his own hands by forming a New
Party” (Pollock). Of course, Mosley’s
plans have been mostly initiated while his co-founder and fellow Birmingham MP
John Strachey (Harry Lloyd) has been out of the country and touring Europe. When Strachey returns, however, it does not
take long for him to see through the growing agitation, concern, and pretense
of his old friend “Tom” Mosley. In fact,
Lloyd’s Strachey, in an affected, slightly-posh, upper-crust voice, “quickly
comes to question the motives of his larger-than-life friend” (Pollock). “When you speak, things happen,” Lloyd’s Strachey reminds Tom at one point: indeed,
such remarks are leading precursors to Strachey’s growing realization that
something is troubled in England and within the person of his old friend. At another point, John remarks to Mosley,
“This is not like you. This is not like
you at all!” Meanwhile, Mosley’s
continued, tenacious insistence that Harry’s John is acting strange because he
is tired from his long journeys seems a glaring beacon of distress.
Harry
is skilled at revealing and “showing” through sound frustration. In one heightened moment, he complains most
assiduously to Tom, “I suddenly feel like one of those creatures from the
newspaper cartoons,” dangling “over the cliff!”
Any hint of cartoonishness in the expression is overtaken by the
sobriety of the moment between the two men.
Tom
reassures John that the only reason he feels this way is “[b]ecause you have
had the courage to stick your head over the wall, and people are beginning to
take shots,” which “proves that there is something worth taking a shot at.”
Or
that they’ve made a big mistake, as Lloyd’s John very seriously suggests.
At
another juncture in the story, perhaps the most climactic portion and encounter
between the two men, John tells an impatient Tom, “something rather ugly happened” during his trip when he
happens to have encountered an old Oxford friend. It’s the beginning of a warning that Tom does
not seem ready to accept, or aware that it is coming. He is wholly distracted and not keen about
listening to Strachey’s travel narratives. Yet, the story about the Nazis who come
calling and an unexpected encounter with “a subversive” begins to rattle the
nerves of both men. It is Harry Lloyd’s brash, engaging, powerful retelling of
this story, though, that paints it
for us, the listeners. Quickly and
fluidly, he shifts from his story into the pressing present circumstances.
“[W]e
are in the grip of the most profound
crisis this country has ever faced,”
John gently yet intensely reminds Tom, who agrees, and that they need a way to
get “out of this mess. We’ve been
calling this idea a ‘new start,’” and Tom quickly interjects, insisting that it
must be a “corporate” decision, of all the people in society “acting as limbs,”
orchestrated together as one moving body. John reassures his friend, “I know
what you’re up against…political party doesn’t pay for itself, I know, but the
fact is—the plain fact—” but then the
growing roar of John’s voice is interrupted by a knock at the door.
The
mood is temporarily dispelled and even though it is a radio broadcast, the
program is well-orchestrated enough that the scene of these two men in a
closeted chamber watching the roaring crowd below from a perch at a window
seems reasonably tangible.
After
the interruption, Tom tells John that he believes that England is on the edge
of “catastrophe,” based upon “the evidence of our eyes, John.” It is the swelling, clamorous crowd against
Tom Mosley, or so the latter thinks, having felt imprisoned by his thoughts and
political limitations since the War. John won’t hear of it, though: “this is
nothing more than fury against us,
[…] for betraying the friends who supported us.”
Tom
feels the fury will spread, but John assures him, “it won’t. This is fantasy, Tom; pure fantasy.” And yet,
there is hesitation and apprehension in his fiery tone. “Put my mind at rest,” he commands Tom. “Tell me you did not intend for this to happen.”
A
moment of hesitation, a slight sound of the crowd outside, and then, Tom’s
response: “no.”
And
soon after, John starts talking about the “rumors” going around and the “vacuum
[that] is opening up.” The crowd begins to get unruly, and Tom and John seem
heavy-breathed and worn. An escape plan
is then decided by Ted “Kid” Lewis (Jonathan Tafler), Mosley’s devoted
assistant: but is it viable or wishful-thinking? And is John even willing to let Tom get away
so fast before he can continue sharing his stories and working psychologically
upon his old friend? “Chipping away,” as
he says at one point, at Tom’s mental state?
Indeed, the main criticism that may be launched at the story is that
John’s motives seem awkwardly misdirected or misplaced, as if he’s fumbling
between the roles of friend and enemy without any sense of which is which. Never mind: the banter between John and Tom,
and the movement between their moments of accordance and discordances, often
juxtaposed against the crowd’s din, is enough to keep the listener listening
for the just-under-an-hour broadcast.
To
find out what happens next, and to enjoy the pervasively desperate yet strict
and tenacious voice of Harry Lloyd as he embodies the shrewd John Strachey,
listen for yourself at the link above!
Or, for those of us on the other side of the pond, Harry Lloyd Tumblr has provided the audio of the program HERE.
Pensive Harry
Lloyd, circa December 2012: Deep in-thought, just as John Strachey likely would
be.
Image: © Scotsman/Lee Randall, 2012.
Image: © Scotsman/Lee Randall, 2012.
Over
all, and like most of its kind, the radio program is an intimate affair,
highly-propelled forward in narrative by the voice-acting of the talented Lloyd
and Menzies. It’s a political piece, as
well as a timeless story of struggle, discrimination (such as anti-Semitism),
and class-differences. The title refers to a line Mosley utters in a
half-joking moment when every duchess in England may want to kiss the hand of
the man who fixes things in the country.
Writer/Producer
Macfarlane has done a substantially fine job tuning-up the additional touches,
such as sound effects and background “voices,” to flesh-out the narrative and
add the necessary touches of ambiance. The
slightly more dramatic music that swells into the story every now and then is a
fine touch, bookending the taut and tight framework of the narrative
complementarily. Yet, it is Pollock’s writing that makes this piece move along
at a palpable rate, not to mention the actors behind it this time around. The dialogue moves quickly when moments of
panic arise; it pauses and crackles to represent the tense moments. The program is like a stage production, the
characters’ language highly-illuminating yet becoming the costume, setting, and
props, too. Yet neither Harry Lloyd nor
Tobias Menzies are heavy-handed (or –voiced) and melodramatic in this otherwise
pedestrian drama. Truly, the actors save
what could have been a dry tale by infusing in it inspired moments of perfected
tones, meaningful exchanges that sound refreshingly vivid, and believable
commentaries.
December Photos Finally See the Light!
Thanks
to Lloydalist “Roox Targaryen,” who Tweets via @ValyriaValkyria, we’ve found
some unseen-by-us-before photographs of Harry that appear to be of the same
shoot as the photo that complemented Lee Randall’s thorough, wonderful
interview with him in December 2012 (read it ONLINE HERE,
and be sure to contribute to the already-encouraging comments there!). We’ll likely smatter our blog with the
occasional image from the shoot whenever we’re in the mood to do so, but for
those of you unwilling to wait: our Twitter feed has all the goods posted on
its photos section. Enjoy!
Casually
Charming.
Image: © Scotsman/Lee Randall, 2012.
Desire (2013)—A Short Film and Long Rumor?
While
Lloydalists has heard nor found anything further to confirm or deny the rumors,
Harry Lloyd has been listed as the lead in an upcoming short film called Desire.
The news emerged this week via Star
Now, a talent and filming website (“‘Desire’”). While no plot or summary or even keywords
have been revealed, we do know (if the rumors are true) that shooting will take
place in Crouch End on February 9th and 10th and that the
production company is currently looking for extras of all ages to work for no
pay but who will “be well fed and looked after,” according to the site
(“‘Desire’”). Other cast members
attached are Natalie Gumede and Lauren Drummond, and Director of Photography is
Paul Jenkins.
Lloydalists
will keep an eye open and an ear out for any further news, but we also welcome
any information from our readers. You
can comment below or email us at Lloydalists@gmail.com, if you have
something worth sharing. You can also,
as always, find us on Twitter: @Lloydalists.
In
the end, we “desire” to know more about Desire,
as well as any other Harry Lloyd projects that may be budding as we speak! Thanks in advance.
Special thanks to the fan(s) behind Harry Lloyd Tumblr for making the
radiocast of Every Duchess in England
so readily-available to others. Also, thanks to Lee Randall for her exceptional interview and photographs that stemmed from that encounter, and to Roox Targaryen (@ValyriaValkyria) for her investigative skills and the sharing of the photographs.
Works Cited
& Referenced
“‘Desire’—a
Short Film—London.” StarNow.co.nz. 21
Jan. 2013. Web. <http://www.starnow.co.nz/listings/ListingDetail.aspx?l_id=421192>.
Harry Lloyd Tumblr. 24 Jan. 2013.
Web. <http://harry-lloyd.tumblr.com/post/41378068431/every-duchess-in-england-starring-harry-lloyd-as>.
Pollock, Alan. Every Duchess in England. Perf. Tobias
Menzies, Harry Lloyd, Jonathan Tafler, et al. BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Drama. BBC.co.uk. 23 Jan. 2012. Web. 26 Jan.
2013. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01pzv2j>.
Randall, Lee. “Harry’s
Gain: Why TV Drama is Banking on Harry Lloyd.” Scotsman.com. 2 Dec. 2012. Web. <http://www.scotsman.com/the-scotsman/books/reviews-and-news/harry-s-gain-why-tv-drama-is-banking-on-harry-lloyd-1-2671559>.
~ Researched by K & C; Written and
Posted by C ~
GOD, I feel famous, thanks for naming me on your blog, it means a lot to me, as always I will try to continue my research news and photos of Harry Lloyd, his fans are the best in the world, I believe it so! - Roox-
ReplyDeleteIt's a group effort--and these days, with slim news, I appreciate what we can get! Cheers!
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