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Name:
Mr Malcolm Smith
Email:
malcolmasmith@hotmail.com
Comment:
Good afternoon, In connection with a biography of my grandfather, Sydney Newton Folker, I am compiling information regarding the Brentham Players of which he was a founding member. According to local newspapers, their first performance was on 4 December 1915. It appears that they were then dormant until being re-established in October 1919. The last reference to a performance that I can find was in 1921. Some of their performances seem to have been in the Institute Golf Club.

I wanted to ask if you have any information about the players, their performances and where they performed. I will happily share my findings with you once I have exhausted my searches.

Sydney went on to have a bright, but short, career in silent films.

Kind regards, 
Malcolm Smith 
25 September 2024

Hello Malcolm.
 
This is a very brief response to your query as I am away from Brentham for the next 10 days or so.
 
Sydney Newton Folker appears in the 1921 census as living at 103 Fowlers Walk (part of Brentham Estate) with his wife and daughter.
 
The Brentham Archive holds a number of Brentham Institute publications….
https://brentham.com/archive/archive-brentham-institute-club-publications/
 
… and I have quickly looked at December 1915 which has a review of the performance on 4th December.
 
There are also reviews of subsequent plays in the March 1916 and in the May 1916 editions.
 
I’ve not had a chance to check any further, but you can do so as all publications are on our website.
 
The Brentham Players were still active between 1945/46 and 1958/59, and we have several programmes in our archive (but not all yet digitised)
https://brentham.com/archive/archive-brentham-instituteclub-entertainment/

All performances were held in the large hall at the Brentham Institute (now The Brentham Club  https://www.brenthamclub.co.uk/).
 
I’d be interested in seeing your findings when you’ve exhausted your research – maybe we could include an article in a future edition of our Brentham News.
 
Best wishes

Alan Henderson
Brentham Society Archivist
www.brentham.com
47 Meadvale Road
Ealing
London W5 1NT
07983-672-773
archive@brentham.com
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