| Collection | David Drummond Pantomime Collection |
| Admin history | Godfrey Seymour Tearle was born on 12th October 1884 in New York to George Osmond Tearle and Marianne Levy. Godfrey was exposed to the world of show business at an early age because his parents came from theatrical backgrounds; his father was an actor and his mother was an actress and the daughter of F. B. Conway, who was also an actor and manager in the industry. Godfrey’s younger brother, Malcolm, also became an actor.
Whilst it is unclear when Godfrey’s family returned to Britain, by the age of 9, Godfrey had his first speaking part, performing as part of his father’s touring Shakespearian company, which was popular amongst the English provinces. He remained with the company until the death of his father in 1901. Alongside his first-class education both privately and at Carlisle Grammar School in Cumberland, he had natural talents inherited from his parents that gave him a presence and natural authority on the stage. However, during his early career, Godfrey did not achieve leading roles, failing to make an impression upon both theatre managers and the public alike.
The emergence of the First World War also proved detrimental to Godfrey’s career, for he had joined the Royal Regiment of Artillery in 1915. He remained in the army for 3 years during the First World War before he returned to the stage. It was not until 1921, when the theatre manager and producer J B Fagan offered him the title role of Othello at the Royal Court Theatre in London, that Godfrey was able to demonstrate to audiences his skill and theatrical prowess. Whilst classical plays did fall out of fashion following the First World War, his performance as William Shakespeare’s Othello did mark Godfrey as a leading London actor.
Nevertheless, it was not until 1930 at the Haymarket Theatre in London, after years of starring in run-of-the-mill comedies, that he had the opportunity to star in another Shakespeare performance, playing the role of Horatio in Hamlet. He was invited to play the role of Hamlet at the same theatre in 1931 but experienced very little success as the title character of Shakespeare’s tragedy. Following this, Godfrey did not play another Shakespeare character until 1946 when he was cast as Anthony in Anthony and Cleopatra at the Piccadilly Theatre. He starred alongside Dame Edith Evans, who played the other title character, Cleopatra. In 1948, Godfrey reprised his role as Othello at Stratford upon Avon, where he yet again impressed audiences and critics, demonstrating his talent.
Godfrey was a well-skilled actor, yet was described as lacking the brutal ambition that was needed to excel and succeed in the acting business. His stage presence earned him roles and put him in demand as an actor who could effectively and professionally execute the role of a hero of romance. One such role was that of Boris Androvsky in a stage version of The Garden of Allah by Robert Hichens, which was performed at Drury Lane in 1920.
By the mid-1920s, Godfrey had gone into theatre management, becoming the manager at the Apollo Theatre in London. He was able to do this as he had won several thousand pounds in a sweepstake. Success as a manager, however, evaded him; his first production was an outright failure and his second, The Fake by Frederick Lonsdale performed in 1924, had minimal success. Regardless of these setbacks, acting engagements continued to be offered to Godfrey, and he starred as Shakespeare’s Romeo in Romeo and Juliet in 1906 in a one-reel film, and had credits in the films The 39 Steps in 1935, One of our Aircraft is Missing in 1942, and The Titfield Thunderbolt in 1953.
In 1951, Godfrey earned a knighthood, demonstrating the impact he had made to the theatrical industry and his marked career. During his years as an actor, Godfrey was married 3 times; his marriage with his first wife, the actress Mary Malone, was dissolved, he then married his second wife, the actress Stella Freeman, in 1932, who then died in 1936, and, following Stella’s death, he married in 1937 the actress Barbara Mary Palmer, although their marriage was also dissolved. In the last four years of his life, Godfrey was close to the actress Jill Bennett. He had no children. Godfrey died on 8th June 1953 at Bentinck Street in London. "
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| Related Person | Tearle, Sir, Godfrey Seymour (1883-1953), Actor |