Nottingham Square

 

"This purse was given freely by Robin Fitzooth and his outlaw band, and with it their prayers for King Richard's safe return". This still from The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men beautifully highlights the remarkable attention to detail in Nottingham Square (above), crafted by art director Carmen Dillon and her talented team. And look closely—did you notice the man peering out from the upstairs window?

Seductive Maid Marian

Joan Rice as Maid Marian

Special thanks to John Nelson for this striking publicity shot of Joan Rice (1930–1997) as Maid Marian in Walt Disney’s The Story of Robin Hood (1952). One could easily argue that this version of Marian is far more subtly seductive than anything Walt would have allowed on screen.

Robin Hood Fotobusta and Lobby Cards

Matt Crandall has recently made me aware of an Italian fotobusta (above) from an early release of Walt Disney's live-action movie The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952).

The fotobusta/photobusta serves a similar purpose to the 'lobby card' found in other countries.

They are usually issued in a set, each showing a different image or scene from a film. They can be found in both portrait and landscape formats. 

We now have a huge collection of film posters on this blog, issued during the various release dates of The Story of Robin Hood. But I think these lobby cards are also worth looking at.

The style and quality of this selection make me think they were produced during the early release dates of the film.

After seeing this wonderful film all those years ago, I would have loved to have owned these!

Don't forget to visit my 'Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men' Facebook page.

Belgian Robin Hood Comic

 

Special thanks to Matt Crandall for sending this cover of a Belgian comic of 1952. It shows a colourised still of Richard Todd as Robin Hood from the live-action movie released this year. The movie was of course Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men.

Many black and white images, used to promote the film at this time, were colourised. By today's standards, they often look extremely gaudy. This was due to the limited printing technology at the time. 

To view this web sites vast collection of promotional material from the movie, just click on the relevant label.

Promotional Spanish Magazine Article

A Spanish Magazine article about The Story of Robin Hood

I am sorry my postings have been few and far between. There are a number of reasons - including trying to move house which has been a rollercoaster of experiences! So a big thank you to Matt Crandall for helping me by sending this Spanish magazine article promoting the release of Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men in 1952. 

Joan Rice as Maid Marian

Those of you that have explored the hundreds of pages and images on this blog, will be familiar with the pictures used in that magazine. So I have shared a similar promotional photograph of the lovely Joan Rice above, which I have colourised. 

Richard Todd as Robin Hood

The photograph of Walt Disney with his wife and two daughters in that magazine, is interesting. From the photographs I have seen of him on the set at Denham during the making of The Story of Robin Hood, I am sure he looked older! What do you think?

The Queen and the Archbishop

 

Since starting this blog, I have been amazed at the amount of images that continue to appear from Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952). I have never seen the still (above) before. It shows Queen Eleanor (Martitia Hunt) kissing the hand of the Archbishop of Canterbury (Antony Eustrel). 

As explained in the description below the image, Queen Eleanor and the Archbishop of Canterbury are responsible for the governance of the kingdom while King Richard I is on Crusade. Together they plan to curb the immediate threat of the king's brother Prince John.

My blog has over 800 pages containing hundreds of images from this wonderful movie. Take a look under the label 'Picture Gallery' and Images of a Legend'. If you are aware of any stills that have never been featured, please let me know.

The Sheriff and his Bow

The Sheriff of Nottingham (Peter Finch) 

We have often discussed on this blog, our hopes that one day we might get the chance to see scenes that were edited out of our favourite movie. The image above is a good example. It was kindly sent in by an avid collector of memorabilia from Disney’s Story of Robin Hood (and a regular visitor to this blog) - Christian Roy.

The movie still shows the Sheriff of Nottingham, played by Peter Finch, about to shoot an arrow. This was probably during the scene in which Robin Hood (Richard Todd) and Friar Tuck (James Hayter) are intercepted by the sheriff and his soldiers. But Robin’s band of outlaws appear and soon begin to rain down arrows on the Sheriff’s men.

In this dramatic scene in the movie, we never see the Sheriff pick up a long bow. It was probably one of many clips that eventually found there way onto the cutting room floor. But, a similar image (below) was used later in ‘Walt Disney's Robin Hood Stamp Book’    published in New York in 1955 by Simon and Schuster. 

The image used in the stamp album

Lets hope that one day we will get a chance to see some of the edited scenes from this wonderful movie.

A Signal Arrow Arrives

I have recently posted a still from Walt Disney’s Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952) showing the scene where the sheriff is led into the outlaws camp. Here is another detailed image of the camp,  created on one of the huge sound stages at Denham Studios by Disney’s art department. This time it shows the moment a whistling arrow arrives, warning Robin Hood (Richard Todd) and his men of imminent danger. 

Those of us who have seen this wonderful film, will know that Little John (James Robertson Justice) has been seen making his way through Sherwood Forest in search of Robin Hood and his men. Eventually Little John meets up with Robin and we witness their fight with quarter-staffs.

Robin Hood is pulled out the stream by Little John

In my opinion this legendry duel has never been bettered on the silver screen.

Nottingham's Robin Hood Statue

The duplicate statue of Robin Hood

Like many I have visited the statue of Robin Hood at Nottingham Castle. But have you ever wondered who created it? Or the history behind it? Did you also know there are now two of them?

Four months after the premier of Walt Disney's film The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men, the city of Nottingham, unveiled a statue to their world famous outlaw, by the castle walls, in the presence of the Duchess of Portland.

James Woodford working on his statue of Robin Hood

The ceremony took place on July 24th 1952 on Castle Green, in a specially landscaped area at the foot of Castle Rock, in the remains of the old moat, by local architect Cecil Howitt. The seven foot statue, including four bas-relief plaques were a gift to the city, by local businessman Philip E. Clay and was designed and cast out of half a ton of bronze, one inch thick, by Royal Acadamician, James Woodford (1893-1976) in his studio at Hampstead. 

The Robin Hood statue today at Nottingham Castle

Woodford was the son of a lace designer and was born in Nottingham. He attended the Nottingham School of Art and after military service during the First World War he trained at the Royal College of Art in London.

A year after his statue of Robin Hood was unveiled at Nottingham Castle, James Woodford RA was commissioned to carve a set of ten heraldic figures out of Portland Stone, to be placed at the entrance of Westminster Abbey for the coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. These heraldic beasts were selected from the armorial bearings of her royal ancestors and can be seen today along the walkway between Palm House and the pond at Kew Gardens.




The bronze statue of Robin has now been copied by experts of Nottingham University and the replica has recently been flown to China as a gift to Nottingham's twinned city - Ningbo.

Favourite Pictures

Maid Marian in the outlaws camp.

I have neglected this blog recently, due to my other projects. But I never grow tired of this wonderful movie. So for this post, I have uploaded some of my favourite images from the film.

Richard Todd (Robin), Walt Disney and Joan Rice (Marian)

James Robertson Justice as Little John

Richard Todd as Robin and Joan Rice as Marian

Peter Finch as the Sheriff of Nottingham

Prince John is confronted at Nottingham Castle

Marian helps Robin recover

There are of course hundreds more images on this blog. And I have many other favourites! Just click on the task bar to view the various subjects.

Scathelock's Farm

We have recently looked at some pages from the original script of the film The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men and seen how certain dialogue and scenes were dropped. 

Below is a very rare still from the movie that shows the moment when one of the Sheriff's men grabs a child at William Scathelock's farm. But this very rare still is taken from an unusual angle in the field. A shot not shown in the movie. Is this perhaps another example of a scene that ended up on the cutting room floor. What do you think?

If you have any rare images from the film, please get in touch.

The Sheriff Shoots an Arrow !

Peter Finch as the Sheriff shooting an Arrow

John Nelson has been in touch recently and sent this fascinating close-up image of Peter Finch in his role as the Sheriff of Nottingham shooting and arrow. A scene that doesn't appear in the movie, Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952).

It is a coincidence, because we have recently looked at some pages of the original script and seen how some scenes were altered or even cut completely.

Another version of that image of the Sheriff of Nottingham shooting an arrow, appeared in Vanessa and Christian's stamp books that were featured on this blog three years ago. So this gives me an excuse to re-post that article :

This is Christian's copy of Walt Disney's Robin Hood Stamp Book  (above and below) which was published in New York in 1955 by Simon and Schuster. The story inside was adapted from Lawrence E. Watkin's screenplay by Willis Lindquist with illustrations (that could be coloured) by Hamilton Greene.

But what makes this book a 'must have' for all fans of Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952) is the four pages of coloured stamps that were each titled and numbered. The owner had to stick these sixty stamps in the correct places on each page of the book.

Christian's copy has the stamp's still intact and his book is nearly in mint condition.

Readers of the blog will be familiar with most of these images on the stamps, but seeing them in colour like this shows why this wonderful movie was described as the best Technicolor film ever made in England. 

It also is another example of Walt Disney's phenomenal amount of promotion and advertising behind his movie production. 

"BRING HIM DOWN," SHOUTS DE LACY

Included among the stamps is an image (shown above) of the Sheriff of Nottingham (Peter Finch) using a bow and arrow with a dead soldier in the foreground. It is stamp number '32' and has the title, "BRING HIM DOWN"  SHOUTS DE LACY." This is very interesting as the scene must have ended up on the cutting room floor, because it was never used in the movie.

Vanessa has also very kindly sent me a picture of the Spanish version of the stamp book that is in her collection.

I would like to thank John,Vanessa and Christian for sharing with us their memorabilia of this wonderful movie.

The Sheriff of Nottingham pelted with vegetables!

Peter Finch as the Sheriff of Nottingham

After all these years, I still occasionally discover fabulous unseen stills from Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952). Above is a fine example. It shows Peter Finch as the Sheriff of Nottingham being pelted with vegetables by the townsfolk in the market square. This was after Scathelock is rescued by Robin Hood and his men.

Above and below are some enlarged sections from the same image, showing the detail of art director Carmen Dillon's fabulous set at Denham Studios in Buckinghamshire, England.

To see a lot more images and stills from this wonderful movie please click here.

Richard the Lionheart departs on Crusade

Hubert Gregg as Prince John watches his brother leave on Crusade

A month ago I posted about Peter Ellenshaw (1913-2007) and his amazing matte work for Walt Disney (it can be read here). The image above is a perfect example - and captures one of my favourite scenes from the movie.

As the sun sets, Hubert Gregg (1914-2004) as Prince John, watches from the turrets of Nottingham Castle as his brother King Richard I departs with his knights for the Holy Land. The background music accompanying the scene contained a Gregorian chant that I have been unable to trace.

The day I saw this, in all its Technicolor splendour on the silver screen at my local cinema, I was enthralled. And I have loved this movie ever since.

Before computer-generated-imagery, or CGI as it is called, 'matte' paintings were used. These were created by artists using paints or pastels on large sheets of glass or integrating with the live-action footage via a double exposure. Peter Ellenshaw used this technique flawlessly on more than 30 films for Walt Disney Studios. He began working as a freelancer for Walt Disney in 1947 and became involved in the making of Treasure Island, the studios first live-action movie. It was the art director Carmen Dillon (1908-2000) that recommended Peter’s work to Walt Disney, for his next project in England, ‘The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men’ in 1952.

Thanks to Laurence we now know that on Robin Hood, Peter Ellenshaw actually painted 52 matte shots. A technique that impressed the film’s producer Ken Annakin so much, that in his next picture for Disney, The Sword and The Rose, he used 64 of Ellenshaw’s fine matte work.

So began Peter’s long career with the Disney Studios and a 30 year friendship with Walt Disney himself, of whom he regarded as a 'wonderful inspiration'. Ellenshaw was officially designated a 'Disney Legend' in 1993.

Robin Hood Printed Fan Card

I have shown this image before, but Matt Crandall has managed to help me identify its original purpose. An online auction site describes the item above as:

"... full-color promotional card [10"x 8"] of Robin Hood, Maid Marian, Friar Tuck and two of the Merrie Men was produced by WDP to publicize the studio's 1952 feature film. The Story of Robin Hood was Disney's second all-live-action film, and it was made at Denham Studios in England with funds the could not be repatriated to the USA. Richard Todd, Joan Rice, Peter Finch, Hubert Gregg and Patrick Barr starred in the movie directed by Ken Annakin. 
Disney began producing these handsome prints in the 1930s, and they are called fan cards because they were generally sent to persons who wrote a "fan" letter to the studio or given out to those who attended a Disney promotional event."

Matt runs the excellent Disney's Alice in Wonderland blog which is well worth a visit.

Robin Hood Airport

Sean Bean and Brian Blessed

As regular readers of this blog will know, Robin Hood not only has links with Nottinghamshire but also Yorkshire - both counties continuing to claim him as their own.

In April 2005, when the Peel Group opened their £80 million airport on the former site of RAF Finningley in the borough of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, they provocatively re-named it 'Robin Hood Airport.'

This former long range nuclear bomber base is situated less than 18 miles from the legendary haunts described in one of the oldest tales about the outlaw, A Gest of Robyn Hode printed between 1492-1534.

   Robyn stode in Bernesdale,
  And lenyd hym to a tre;
  And bi hym stode Litell Johnn,
  A gode yeman was he.

The 'Barnsdale' referred to in the early ballad - the base for the outlaw's activities - is often identified with a relatively small area in South Yorkshire near The Great North Road, just north of Doncaster. Wentbridge and Saylis also appear in the stories of Robin Hood and the Potter and the Gest respectively. Legend states that his remains are buried at Kirklees Priory near Brighouse, West Yorkshire.

So two years after the airport's official opening a10-foot bronze statue of Robin Hood, sculpted by Neale Andrew was unveiled by actors Sean Bean and Brian Blessed on the first floor of the airport. Both actors are Yorkshire born and bred and proud of their roots.

During a press interview after the ceremony Sean Bean confessed that he would, "love to play Robin Hood on the big screen," he said. "It's 16 years [2007] since Kevin Costner did it - now it's my turn." 

Sean Bean with the statue of Robin Hood

Sean Bean continued:

"And we all know Robin Hood was definitely a Yorkshireman who was chased into Nottingham. They say he could be from Loxley in Sheffield - thats near where I come from. In fact Robin Hood is possibly my great, great, great, great, great, grandfather." 

Brian Blessed, who played Robin Hood's father in the Costner movie Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, joked that the reason they were both invited was because, " Sean is very talented, but I have the sex appeal."

Sean Bean and Brian Blessed

Blessed said:

"I was born just eight miles away in Mexborough and I lived in Goldthorpe, my dad died about a year ago - he was the oldest surviving coal miner, he was 99 - and he was thrilled to bits with this airport. It's marvellous the way it's revitalised the area. I'm very proud to be part of this."

After the airport was re-named in 2005, Nottingham  council accused Doncaster of 'jumping on the band-wagon'!

To read about Robin Hood's death at Kirklees please click here. Information about the medieval ballads Robin Hood and the Potter and the Gest of Robyn Hode can be seen here and there are many more links and in the sidebars.

Your Favourite Friar Tuck

James Hayter  as Friar Tuck on the set of Disney's Story of Robin Hood

In last week's post I explained how Friar Tuck has been an integral part of Robin Hood's men since Anthony Munday's two Elizabethan plays, 'The Downfall' and 'The Death of Robert Earl of Huntington' (1598). This jovial character has been interpreted thousands of times. But which actor in your opinion portrayed him the best?

As regular readers of this blog will know, I have run a couple of surveys to find your all-time favourite Robin Hood and Maid Marian. It was Michael Praed of TV's Robin of Sherwood who achieved the most votes for the outlaw hero and the results of that poll can be seen here. 

Michael Praed as Robin Hood

Joan Rice (1930-1997) gained the most votes for her portrayal of Maid Marian in Disney's live-action movie The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952). The rest of that chart is here.

Joan Rice as Maid Marian

So who was your favourite Friar Tuck? I can now reveal that out of a poll of 134 it was James Hayter (1907-1983) who came out on top with 49 votes.

James Hayter as Friar Tuck

In The Story of Robin Hood, Hayter played one of the most memorable Friar Tucks of all time and went on to re-create his famous role for Hammer Films A Challenge for Robin Hood in 1967. But in his long acting career he starred in countless film, stage and television productions.  He is probably best remembered for being the voice of Mr Kipling Cakes and James Onedin’s father-in-law in the costume drama, The Onedin Line.

But towards the end of his long and illustrious acting career, Hayter was chosen by comedy writer and producer, David Croft, to appear as a new assistant in his successful TV series Are You Being Served. 

Alexander Gauge (1914-1960) gained second place in the poll with 27 votes. His Friar Tuck appeared in 91 of the 143 episodes of the much-loved television series The Adventures of Robin Hood (1955-1959). 

Alexander Gauge

Eugene Pallete's gravel-voiced, sword wielding Friar Tuck was your choice for third place with 20 votes. This legendary Hollywood character actor appeared alongside Errol Flynn in the classic Technicolor screen version, The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938).

Eugene Pallete

Once again we return to TV's memorable Robin of Sherwood for your fourth Friar Tuck. It was Phil Rose who gained 14 votes. Rose is a very popular British actor both on stage and television. 

Phil Rose

Next with 5 votes is Eastenders star Tony Caunter who appeared as the friar in the BBC mini series The Legend of Robin Hood in 1975. This for me was a pleasant surprise. Because, although it was a fine version (nominated for a BAFTA TV award) which included Martin Potter as Robin Hood and Diane Keen as Maid Marian, the series was almost forgotten until a viewers' petition finally made the BBC release it on DVD. Tony's friar made it to number five in our chart.

Tony Caunter

A more recent Friar Tuck reaches number six. This is Mark Addy from York in England, who donned the robes in Ridley Scott's recent version of Robin Hood (2010). As a souvenir collecting bee keeper, Addy's priest is seen brewing mead for profit.

Mark Addy

The late Ronnie Barker is at joint number eight with 3 votes. Barker, famous for his roles in hugely popular tv series like The Two Ronnies and Porridge appeared as Friar Tuck in Richard Lester's Robin and Marian in 1976. Although his appearance in the movie was short and understated it was certainly memorable.

Ronnie Barker

And alongside Ronnie Barker at number eight is Michael McShane who appeared as the chunky, quick-tempered, drunken priest in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves in 1991.

Michael McShane

At number nine, sharing 2 votes each are four 'friars'. Mel Brooks in his hilarious spoof Robin Hood:Men In Tights (1993) as Rabbi Tuckman, with David Harewood's Tuck, the disillusioned priest from Fountains Abbey in BBC TV's Robin Hood (2006-2009). Alongside those, also with 2 votes are Bill Dow as Friar Tuck in the first internet version of Robin Hood, Beyond Sherwood Forest (2009) and the Welsh actor Martyn Ellis who appeared in 52 episodes of The New Adventures of Robin Hood as the friar (1997-1999).

Niall McGinnis gained 1 vote for his Friar Tuck in Sword of Sherwood Forest (1960).

So, the best Robin Hood production of all-time would have Michael Praed as Robin Hood, Joan Rice as Maid Marian and James Hayter as Friar Tuck. Who would be Little John?

I would like to thank all those readers who took part and helped produce this interesting result. Don't forget to vote for your favourite Little John in the task bar.

To see the all the votes for your favourite Robin Hood and Maid Marian please click on the link Favourites.