An Historical Pageant of Rothley
Other names
- The Temple and the Town
Pageant type
Performances
Place: Forecourt of Rothley Court Hotel (Rothley) (Rothley, Leicestershire, England)
Year: 1977
Indoors/outdoors: Outdoors
Number of performances: 2
Notes
6–7 June 1977
[Performances were staged in the evening on both days.]
Name of pageant master and other named staff
- Producer and Researcher [Pageant Master]:
Offley, Rodney
- Master of Music: Reg Pilgeam
- Dance and Music Consort: Carolyn Bull
- Stage Stewards: Stephen Bates and Graham
Crowden
- The Setting: Frederick Sleath and
Bernard Perry
- Sound: David Cockshaw
- Lighting: Jack and Kevin Harrison
- Dressing: Rosemary Hilton and Lois
Dalloway
- House Steward: Michael Jones
- Ticket Sales: J.M. Thompson
- Heraldry Research: Frank Hale
- Programme, Tickets, Publicity: Rodney
Offley
- The Chronicler Voices: Gordon Harmer,
David Wilson, and Harry Thackley
Names of executive committee or equivalent
Organising Committee
(this was for the entire Jubilee
Celebrations)
- Chairman: Mrs C.G. Fishbourne
- Vice-Chairman: Mr A. Welsh
- Treasurer: Mr M.F. Ward
- Hon. Secretary: Mr C.R. Poole
Names of script-writer(s) and other credited author(s)
- Offley, Rodney
Names of composers
n/a
Numbers of performers
1 - 200Financial information
n/a
Object of any funds raised
n/a
Linked occasion
The Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II
Audience information
- Grandstand: Not Known
- Grandstand capacity: n/a
- Total audience: n/a
Prices of admission and seats: highest–lowest
n/a
Associated events
Part of wider jubilee celebrations including:
June 5
- Church Service at the Parish Church
- Jubilee Cricket Match on Rothley Park
- Gymkhana
June 6
- Parade
- Trade Exhibition
- Tea for Over 70s
- Tug of War
- Skittling for Pig
- Five-a-side Soccer
- Clay Pigeon Shoot
- Welly Throwing
- Children’s Sport
- Flower arranging and cake making
competition
- Dance and Barbecue
Pageant outline
The pageant told the story of Rothley from BC 55 – AD 1900: from Julius Caeser to Queen Victoria
Key historical figures mentioned
n/a
Musical production
n/a
Newspaper coverage of pageant
n/a
Book of words
- None known
Other primary published materials
- Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee: The Temple and the Town: An Historical Pageant, Rothley B.C. 55-A.D. 1900. Np. [1977].
References in secondary literature
n/a
Archival holdings connected to pageant
- Information on the Pageant taken from ‘The Pageant of Rothley 1977’, Rothley Parish Council Website, accessed 7 December 2016, http://www.rothleyparishcouncil.org.uk/the-pageant-of-rothley-1977.html
Sources used in preparation of pageant
n/a
Summary
The pageant in the small Leicestershire village of Rothley was one of many in a late flourishing of pageants held to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II (see entries on Carlisle, Biggleswade, and Lingfield). The pageant was researched, written, produced and directed by the local historian, Rodney Offley.1 As the Jubilee Programme declared in no uncertain terms, ‘Every village has an history, Rothley is no exception. The Historic Pageant is an attempt to show in both sight and sound, the place of Rothley Village and its inhabitants has played in national and Local events. It is a pageant for villagers by villagers’.2
Footnotes
1. ^ See ‘Rodney George Offley’, Offley Society Newsletter, 46 (Spring 2000), 5-6, The Offley Family Society, accessed 7 December 2016, http://www.offleysociety.co.uk/nl_46.htm
2. ^ ‘Silver Jubilee Celebrations 1977’, Rothley Parish Council, accessed 7 December 2016, http://www.rothleyparishcouncil.org.uk/silver-jubilee-celebrations-1977.html
How to cite this entry
Angela Bartie, Linda Fleming, Mark Freeman, Tom Hulme, Alex Hutton, Paul Readman, ‘An Historical Pageant of Rothley’, The Redress of the Past, http://www.historicalpageants.ac.uk/pageants/1390/