Kenneth Lowndes

Kenneth Lowndes

Date: 1917 - 1919
Object number: PR356.1
DescriptionThese photographs from 21st London Regiment soldier Harry Milner's scrapbook show Kenneth Lowndes in drag. He was part of the 60th Divisional Concert Party 'The Roosters', one of many such theatre troupes who formed during World War One to entertain their fellow troops when stationed abroad. The Roosters formed in 1917 in Salonika and went on to become one of the longest-lasting and popular concert parties, made famous to home crowds across the nation via performances broadcast on BBC radio, and performing to audiences up to the late 1950s. Kenneth Lowndes (1886-1959) was one of their two original 'leading ladies' performing a variety of roles including the lead in 'Cinderella and the Army Boot' as well as his act as the 'Lady de Bathe', impersonating the well-known actress Lillie Langtry. After the war as a civilian he moved to Retford, Nottinghamshire where he ran a Ladies Hairdressing & Beauty Parlour business and although he wasn't a regular member of The Roosters in peacetime, he came back to perform some of his routines and celebrate their legacy at their annual reunion concerts after the end of the Second World War.
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