Margery Booth: Difference between revisions
→References: Category:Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama |
add ref for film |
||
| Line 4: | Line 4: | ||
Booth was born in Hodges Street, [[Wigan]], [[Lancashire]], the daughter of Levi and Ada Booth. The family later moved to [[Southport]]. Booth trained in [[Bolton]] with R. Evans, in [[Knightsbridge]] with Eileen D'Orme, and then the [[Guildhall School of Music]], where she won the Merscer'Scholarship in 1925, then the Opera Scholorship and Liza Lehmann Prize. |
Booth was born in Hodges Street, [[Wigan]], [[Lancashire]], the daughter of Levi and Ada Booth. The family later moved to [[Southport]]. Booth trained in [[Bolton]] with R. Evans, in [[Knightsbridge]] with Eileen D'Orme, and then the [[Guildhall School of Music]], where she won the Merscer'Scholarship in 1925, then the Opera Scholorship and Liza Lehmann Prize. |
||
She made her professional debut at the Queen's Hall, Wigan, on October 4, 1935. She then moved back to London to continue her career in [[Covent Garden]] London in 1936, but marriage to Dr. Egon Strohm, from a brewing family in the Black Forest region, took her to Germany.<ref name=marj/> Booth's career blossomed with performances at [[Bayreuth]] and with the [[Berlin State Opera]], but she also made irregular appearances at Covent Garden. She starred as Madalene in 1936, as Flosshilde in Götterdämmerung, as the Shepherd boy in recording of [[Tosca]] with [[Hildegard Ranczak]], but was most |
She made her professional debut at the Queen's Hall, Wigan, on October 4, 1935. She then moved back to London to continue her career in [[Covent Garden]] London in 1936, but marriage to Dr. Egon Strohm, from a brewing family in the Black Forest region, took her to Germany.<ref name=marj/> Booth's career blossomed with performances at [[Bayreuth]] and with the [[Berlin State Opera]], but she also made irregular appearances at Covent Garden. She starred as Madalene in 1936, as Flosshilde in Götterdämmerung, as the Shepherd boy in recording of [[Tosca]] with [[Hildegard Ranczak]], but was most famous for her portrayal as Carmen.<ref name=marj/> |
||
At the outbreak of World War II the [[Nazi]]'s mistakenly trusted her, sening her to Freigegeben [[Stalag]] IIID, a camp for potential recruits to the [[British Free Corps]]. There she worked with British agent and prisoner [[John Brown (British Army soldier)|John Brown]] to obtain details of traitors.<ref name=marj/> On one occasion she sang before Hitler just after a British officer had hidden secret documents in her dress; Hitler subsequently sent her red roses wrapped in a [[Swastika]] flag.<ref name=mail/> |
At the outbreak of World War II the [[Nazi]]'s mistakenly trusted her, sening her to Freigegeben [[Stalag]] IIID, a camp for potential recruits to the [[British Free Corps]]. There she worked with British agent and prisoner [[John Brown (British Army soldier)|John Brown]] to obtain details of traitors.<ref name=marj/> On one occasion she sang before Hitler just after a British officer had hidden secret documents in her dress; Hitler subsequently sent her red roses wrapped in a [[Swastika]] flag.<ref name=mail/> In early 1944, she was arrested by the [[Gestapo]] as a suspected spy, and although tortured, did not reveal any information.<ref name=BGaz/> On release she made her way west, and was liberated in Germany by the advancing [[US Army]].<ref name=BGaz>{{cite web|url=http://www.british-gazette.co.uk/2010/12/30/margery-booth-george-cross/|title=Margarey Booth|publisher=British Gazette|accessdate=24 June 2013}}</ref> |
||
After the war, information she provided was used to convict both [[Lord Haw Haw]] and [[John Amery]], both of whom were hanged for [[treason]].<ref name=marj/> She then returned to London, but was professionally rejected as producers mistakingly concluded that she had been a Nazi, and was offered no work. Emigrating again to [[New York]], on arrival she was referred to a doctor who diagosed her with terminal [[cancer]]. She died in New York in 1952. |
After the war, information she provided was used to convict both [[Lord Haw Haw]] and [[John Amery]], both of whom were hanged for [[treason]].<ref name=marj/> She then returned to London, but was professionally rejected as producers mistakingly concluded that she had been a Nazi, and was offered no work. Emigrating again to [[New York]], on arrival she was referred to a doctor who diagosed her with terminal [[cancer]]. She died in obscurity in New York from complications of cancer in 1952.<ref name=BGaz/> |
||
A biopic-film, planned for release in 2014 around Booth's life and her WW2 activites, is currently being made by director [[Xavier Koller]], nominally titled ''[[The Spy in the Eagle's Nest]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2128497/|title=The Spy in the Eagle's Nest|publisher=[[IMBD]]|accessdate=24 June 2013}}</ref> |
|||
==References== |
==References== |
||
Revision as of 13:14, 24 June 2013
Margery Booth (1905 - 1952),[1] was an English opera singer, who having married a German and emigrated to Germany, became a British spy during World War II, who met Adolf Hitler and sang at a British prisoner of war camp.[2]
Booth was born in Hodges Street, Wigan, Lancashire, the daughter of Levi and Ada Booth. The family later moved to Southport. Booth trained in Bolton with R. Evans, in Knightsbridge with Eileen D'Orme, and then the Guildhall School of Music, where she won the Merscer'Scholarship in 1925, then the Opera Scholorship and Liza Lehmann Prize.
She made her professional debut at the Queen's Hall, Wigan, on October 4, 1935. She then moved back to London to continue her career in Covent Garden London in 1936, but marriage to Dr. Egon Strohm, from a brewing family in the Black Forest region, took her to Germany.[2] Booth's career blossomed with performances at Bayreuth and with the Berlin State Opera, but she also made irregular appearances at Covent Garden. She starred as Madalene in 1936, as Flosshilde in Götterdämmerung, as the Shepherd boy in recording of Tosca with Hildegard Ranczak, but was most famous for her portrayal as Carmen.[2]
At the outbreak of World War II the Nazi's mistakenly trusted her, sening her to Freigegeben Stalag IIID, a camp for potential recruits to the British Free Corps. There she worked with British agent and prisoner John Brown to obtain details of traitors.[2] On one occasion she sang before Hitler just after a British officer had hidden secret documents in her dress; Hitler subsequently sent her red roses wrapped in a Swastika flag.[1] In early 1944, she was arrested by the Gestapo as a suspected spy, and although tortured, did not reveal any information.[3] On release she made her way west, and was liberated in Germany by the advancing US Army.[3]
After the war, information she provided was used to convict both Lord Haw Haw and John Amery, both of whom were hanged for treason.[2] She then returned to London, but was professionally rejected as producers mistakingly concluded that she had been a Nazi, and was offered no work. Emigrating again to New York, on arrival she was referred to a doctor who diagosed her with terminal cancer. She died in obscurity in New York from complications of cancer in 1952.[3]
A biopic-film, planned for release in 2014 around Booth's life and her WW2 activites, is currently being made by director Xavier Koller, nominally titled The Spy in the Eagle's Nest.[4]
References
- ^ a b "Revealed: British opera singer turned spy who performed for Hitler with secret documents hidden in her underwear". Daily Mail. 10 September 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d e "WWII knicker spy Margery Booth photos to be auctioned". BBC news. 10 September 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
- ^ a b c "Margarey Booth". British Gazette. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- ^ "The Spy in the Eagle's Nest". IMBD. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
 | This biographical article related to opera is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |