Maudie Edwards

Maudie Edwards
Born	Elizabeth Maud Edwards (1906-10-16)16 October 1906 Neath, Glamorgan, Wales
Died	24 March 1991(1991-03-24) (aged 84) London, England
Occupations	Actress broadcaster singer dancer comedienne
Years active	1910-1972

Elizabeth Maud Edwards (16 October 1906 – 24 March 1991), professionally known as Maudie Edwards, was a Welsh actress, radio broadcaster, comedian, dancer and singer, best remembered for having spoke the first line of dialogue in soap opera Coronation Street, and playing Elsie Lappin in the first two episodes Prior to Corrie, she was best known to listeners of the radio programme Welsh Rarebit, that attracted 10 million viewers weekly

Career

Born in 16 Florence St. Neath, Glamorgan, Wales, to semi-professional comedian and singer Ned Edwards, she appeared on stage at the age of four, with her sister May, as Ned Edwards' Two Little Queenies. She later played the principal boy in many pantomimes.

Edwards would present her signature tune before radio broadcasts

I bring you the voice of the people from over the hills and dales

and the voice of the people is brought to you by a voice that come's from Wales

Edwards had a talent for comedy and formed her own repertory company, The Maudie Edwards Players, who performed in the Palace Theatre, Swansea. In films of the 1940s, she provided a singing voice for film stars Diana Dors and Margaret Lockwood and Gene Tierney and wrote some of her own material.

She made her first screen appearance in 1936 and her last in 1972. In 1950, she appeared on stage with Frank Sinatra at the London Palladium. She played Elsie Lappin in the first two episodes of British soap opera Coronation Street in 1960 and was the first performer to speak during the first scene in the show's history: "Now the next thing you've got to do is to get a signwriter in - that thing above the door'll have to be changed."

She died in London, aged 84, in 1991. Archive material is held by the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Filmography

• The Flying Doctor (1936) (this included a cameo appearance by Australian cricket legend Sir Donald Bradman
• My Learned Friend (1943)
• The Shipbuilders (1943)
• I'll Be Your Sweetheart (1945) (singing voice of Margaret Lockwood)
• Query (1945)
• Pink String and Sealing Wax (1945)
• Walking on Air (1946)
• School for Randle (1949)
• Girdle of Gold (1952)
• Diamond City (1949) dubbed singing voice of Diana Dors
• Night in the City as dubbed singing voice of Gene Tierney
• Take a Powder (1953)
• The Strange World of Planet X (TV series 1956)
• The Errol Flynn Theatre (TV series 1956)
• Life at Stake (1957)
• The Ugly Duckling (1959)
• Coronation Street (TV series 1960)
• The Edgar Wallace Mystery Theatre (TV series 1961)
• The Clue of the New Pin (1961)
• Only Two Can Play (1962)
• Dixon of Dock Green (TV series 1962)
• Band of Thieves (1963)
• Under Milk Wood (1972)
• Burke & Hare (1972)

External links

• Maudie Edwards at IMDb
• The Maudie Edwards Collection is held by the Victoria and Albert Museum Theatre and Performance Department.