Bruce Trent (21 August 1912, St. Helier, Jersey, - 19
November 1995, Burgh Heath, Surrey, England), was an actor and singer with a
fine, baritone voice and matinée idol good looks.
Trent was one of the British theatre’s most popular romantic
leading men in the 40s and 50s. After singing with local dance 
groups, in the
late 30s he spent two years touring the UK with Jack Hylton’s famous showband
as bass player and singer before joining Jack Payne’s new BBC orchestra in
1940.
groups, in the
late 30s he spent two years touring the UK with Jack Hylton’s famous showband
as bass player and singer before joining Jack Payne’s new BBC orchestra in
1940.
He left Payne in 1942 in order to co-star with Frances Day,
Arthur Riscoe, Jackie Hunter and Bud Flanagan in Cole Porter’s musical Du Barry
Was A Lady at His Majesty’s Theatre in London. Trent subsequently returned to
the West End, and then toured, in The Student Prince, before joining the army
and entertaining the troops in the company of the Stars In Battledress. He was
also a guest artist, along with Dorothy Carless, on a BBC broadcast with Glenn
Miller’s Band of the AEF.
After the war, Trent took over the leading roles in
Carissima (1948) and Brigadoon (1950), as well as starring in London in Rainbow
Square (1951), Wish You Were Here (1953) and The Burning Boat (1955, Royal
Court Theatre). He also toured in various other productions, including Lilac
Time, Goodnight Vienna and The Desert Song.
In 1958, Trent joined the all-star cast of Tommy Steele,
Jimmy Edwards, Yana, and Ted Durante, in Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein
II’s lavish Cinderella at the Coliseum. As the dashing Prince, he sang the
show’s big ballad, ‘No Other Love’, and duetted with Yana on the equally
splendid ‘Do I Love You (Because You’re Beautiful)’.
In later years he continued to tour in numerous revivals,
both at home and abroad, notably as Arthur in Camelot in 1966. He also
participated in re-recordings of favourite musicals, and was a regular
broadcaster on BBC light music programmes. After retiring in the 70s, he worked
tirelessly for the Grand Order of Water Rats charity. (Info AMG)
Here’s a few mp3’s of Bruce Trent I’ve put together from his Jack Hylton Days
ReplyDeleteAll from 1938 -1939. Go here:
http://www43.zippyshare.com/v/Xj6JTyZD/file.html.
1. Ride
2.What Goes On In My Heart
3. Change Partners
4. I Used To Be Colourblind
5. All Ashore
6. Don’t Let The Moon go Away
7. You Must have Been A Beautiful baby
8. Say It With A Kiss
9. Deep Purple
10. You Grow Sweet As The Years Go By
11.The Girl Who Loves A Soldier
12. WhiteSails (Beneath A Yellow Moon)
13. If A Grey Haired Lady Says “How’s Your father”
14. I Hear A Dream
15. Drift
16. You’ve Done Something To My Heart
17. Where Or when
Very interested to come across this entry in your blog about my late father.
ReplyDeleteIn Spring of 1976 I appeared in a Variety Show at Cork Opera House. Bruce opened up his star spot with what I can only describe as a signature song, but I can't remember what it was. Did he indeed have a signature tune? I long to know.
ReplyDeleteI used to play the organ on the end of Eastbourne Pier . On some occasions we were honoured to have Bruce Trent sing for us. He was recognised by some of the people from singing at the Hammersmith Palie. On none of the biographies do they mention his work with Lou Prager's band.
ReplyDeleteThe songs that he sang for us were :
Zing went the strings of my heart
Just the way you looked tonight
Blue Moon
I think that he has a friend in nearby Willingdon and came down here to visit her . Also Norman Meadow was pier manager and a very keen member of the ' The Water Rats ' .
Do you think that this was your father ? His voice was lighter than that on the records