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Special Feature on London's Windmill Theatre

The feature is centered around two articles in the Glasgow based 1950s publication 'Film and Art Reel' about London's Windmill Theatre with extracts from the Diary of a Windmill Girl by Pat Raphael, and an Article on the Film "Murder at the Windmill."Click the covers for the Main Articles.

But there is also a lot more to be seen here, including programmes pictures and newspaper articles so read on.

The Windmill Theatre Opened on the 22nd of June 1931 with 'Inquest!' a play by Michael Barringer.

But the Windmill is far more famous for Mrs Henderson's creation of 'Revudeville' and her innovative use of the static nude tableau.

Staying open during most of the war years the Theatre also earned itself the now well known phrase:

'We Never Closed.'

Click here for more information on the history of the Windmill Theatre.

Below - Click the covers for Five 1950s programmes from
The Windmill Theatre's Revudeville era

Above Left - Click for 'The Windmill Sails,' an Article about Vivian Van Damm and the Revudeville girls, with images from Revudeville No. 32.

Above Left - Programme for 'Inquest!' the first production at the newly opened Windmill Theatre in June 1931. Click for details.

Above Right - Very early Revudeville programme for the 9th of May 1932, just 3 months after Mrs. Laura Henderson introduced this new form of entertainment at the Windmill Theatre. - Click for details.

Left - Articles and Images from the Revudeville Souvenir Programme - 14th Edition - Nos. 151-157 Courtesy Robert Ludwig.

Above - A selection of Wartime Revudeville Programmes.

Above - Photograph of some of the Windmill Girls - Click for many more images.

Above - Publicty Photograph of the Windmill Girls in various poses from the Windmill Theatre Tableaux. Click for many more images.

Left - On the 31st of October 1964 the Windmill Theatre shut its doors on Revudeville for the last time. Click to see the last 'A' Company programme.

Right - Closure Of The Windmill Theatre - Article on the final days and closure of the Windmill from the Evening News of the 1st of October 1964 - Click for article.

Above - Some pictures of the Windmill Theatre after its Revudeville years can be seen on the site here...

For more on the Windmill Theatre you may be interested in the following publications and films:

Vivian Van Damm wrote a book called 'Tonight and Every Night' (Shown Right) which was first published by Stanley Paul, London in 1952. The book tells the story of the Windmill Theatre in its heyday, with a Foreword by Emile Littler.

Sheila Van Damm authored a book published by Putnam & Co.Ltd., London in 1957 and called 'No Excuses" (Shown Left). There are some chapters in the book on the Windmill Theatre but most are about car rallies.

However, Shelia Van Damm wrote another book about the Windmill Theatre, and her time there, called "We Never Closed" which was published by Robert Hale in 1967.

Another book with photographs called 'Blond and Brunette' (Shown Right) was Published by Chapman and Hall Ltd. There is no date for publication but all the artistes photographed were at the Windmill Theatre in the early 1940's.

Another book with photographs which were taken at the Windmill Theatre and feature Windmill Theatre artistes is "Tap Dancing Made Easy" (Shown Left) by Isolde. The book was published in 1936 by C.Arthur Pearson Ltd., with further editions in 1937 and 1947.

A film called 'Tonight and Every Night' directed by Victor Saville in 1945, with Rita Hayworth, purported to be the first film 'to tell the “true” story of Laura Henderson, who died in 1944.

Another film was 'Murder at the Windmill' which was made in 1949 with Diana Decker, John Pertwee and Jimmy Edwards. This low budget film was about the murder of an usher in the Theatre. It was produced by Danny Angel who was married to one of Van Damm's daughters.

There was another film made at the Windmill Theatre in 1966 called 'Secrets of a Windmill Girl,' (Shown Right) with Pauline Collins, Martin Jarvis and Dana Gillespie. This was produced by Searchlight Films. A DVD was released in 2004 and is now available in region 1 [North American]. It can be purchased on the Internet from the U.S.A. The film has some fan dance scenes by former Windmill Theatre Company artistes.

In the February 4th 1936 Revudeville Programme an advertisement was carried for Columbia Records recording of some of the numbers from Revudeville shows called 'Revudeville Memories' (Shown Left - Courtesy Maurice Poole.)

The dance routines for Paul Raymond's "A Night at the Revuebar" were filmed at the Windmill Theatre, and is still availiable on VHS in some online auction sites.

There are many clips from the Windmill Theatre's early days available to view online at BritishPathe.com.

Finally, if you would like to experience the Windmill Theatre in it's Glory Days for yourself, the film Mrs Henderson Presents [2005] is a wonderful and heart warming recreation of the period. The DVD is a must buy for anyone who remembers the Windmill Theatre's Revudeville period, or wants to see it for themselves. Highly recommended.

Click here to buy the DVD at Amazon.co.uk

This Special Feature on the Windmill Theatre was first created in February 2003 but has been updated and enhanced many times over the years. Updates are all logged on the What's New page.