KING PRAISED.

Auckland Star, 4 September 1939, Page 5

KING PRAISED.

VIENNESE CRITIC. CHOICE OF CLOTHES. AUSTRALIAN'S PIAT OF LONDON LIFE.

(By CHARLES MARTIN.) | King George VI. is one of the beatdressed men in the world, according to Horr Leopold Baum, a Viennese expert on men's clothes, who is now on a \isit to London. Unstinted in his praise of His Majesty'* sartorial tastes, which ensure the correct choice of clothes foi every occasion, Herr Baum was critical of the fashions favoured by other male members of the Royal Family.

The Duke of Windsor, he declared, frequently wore shoes which did not match the suit lie was wearing—very nearly one of tlie seven deadly sins, to men's dress experts. That before the Duke married. Herr Baum disclosed that the Duke had his own special way of knotting his tie, quite different fiom the usual method and intended to picvent creasing. He had learnt the seciet from the Duke's valet, whom he had chanced to meet buying ties in an outfitter's shop in Vienna. •

This authority on clothes was once called to Moscow to advise the Soviet on the production of men'a»wear. If today there are fewer of those picturesque national costumes, 'beloved of the tourist, and rather more_ conventional Western suits to be seen in Russia the change is partly d'ue to the recommendations of Heir Baum, who helped the Russians to overcome their prejudices against the "bourgeois" collar and tie. The Shape of Englishmen. Mention of fashions in men's clothes! reminds me of a recent announcement of the Association of British Clothing Designers that the male physique, at least in England, is changing. The association wish to draw up & standard

"size chart" for men, and in the course [ of a prolonged study of masculine attire ji and the masculine figure they have dis-li covered that the Englishman is not whatjl he was. His shape is changing. I< Twenty-live years ago. when quite a 1 lot of young men had their measurements taken, chests were narrower and waists were fuller than they are to-day, as another recruiting rush would demonstrate. The change is attributed to the 1 growth of sport and the increasing adoption of a more open-air life. Incidentally, Londoners do not lead the way in the matter of physique. According to the clothing designers, men in the northern counties have broader shoulders and deeper chests than have dwellers in the metropolis. Heaven and Charing Cross. Not the least remarkable thing about "Heaven and Charing Cross," a new play of London life, which wis produced recently at the St. Martin's Theatre, is the fact that it was written by a young Australian who gained most of his knowledge of London life from the pay-box of a small cinema in Kent, where he sat and observed the types of 1 people who came to see the films.

Mr. Aubrey Danvers-Walker, whose play has been well received and shows promise of s'.-ttling down for a long run. came to England a year ago and took the cinema, job at a small salary as a stop-gap while he wrote "Heaven and Charing Cross." "I am glad I stuck lat that job," he said, "because I know I have got the local colour correct." There can be no question that the dramatist accurately depicts the atmosphere of a humble family in a London suburb. Most of the action takes place in the back parlour of a small tobacconist's shop, where the loud ring of the street door-bell precedes every transaction. Mr. Danvers-Walker tells a moving story, in which humour and tragedy are well mixed, and has the good fortune to be supported by an admirable cast. He has already had a film offer for the play, from which he hopes to make thousands. London to Lose its Gaiety. After the Lyceum —the Gaiety. One i by one London's famous theatres are disappearing, to make way for blocks ;of offices. Xow it is the turn of the - home of musical comedy in the Strand, ■ where so many celebrated hits have I been produced.

The Gaiety was opened in 1903, replacing an older theatre of the same name, which was , pulled down when the Strand was widened. In the audience ion that first night were King Edward and Queen Alexandra. Sir Thomas Lipton and ill". Alfred de Rothschild, and the cast included George Grossmith, Marie' Studholme and Gertie Millar. It was at tne Gaiety that the late George Edwardes engaged a pretty young actress named Gladys Cooper at i£3 a week, and it was here, too, that Leslie Henson was given a start at £4 a week. Gaiety girls were taught to sing by Tosti, of "Goodbye" fame, and were courted by the peerage into which they not infrequently married. Songs first sung at the Gaiety went round the world. But the theatre is doomed. The London County Council, as a condition of renewing the licciisc. demanded alterations which would have cost £20,000. The lessees have decided that such an outlay would not pay. And so another chapter in London theatrical history is lilosed.

Souvenirs of Waterloo Bridge. One of London's most |>opular free shows has been and still is. the demolition of Waterloo Bridge, which has had a "run" of five years. In addition toj the ordinary sightseer many organised parties of engineers, surveyors and students have come to see the last of Rennie's masterpiece. All parts of the Empire have been represented by these visitors with a professional interest in the work, and they have come also from America, China and various European countries. Budapest sent its chief engineer.