Leonard Bentley
Piccadilly Circus: 1910
This is an anonymously published postcard of “British Manufacture Throughout” showing Piccadilly Circus looking north towards Shaftesbury Avenue. It is the summer of 1906 (but see below) and Miss Pansy Montague aka “La Milo” is appearing on a music hall bill at the London Pavilion. Miss Montague was an Australian artiste who posed barely clothed as pieces of classical statuary such as the Venus de Milo, Diana, Psyche, Dorothea, Venus de Medici and many more. She appeared with a man called Cruickshank who performed lightning sketches during the statuary changes, I think he may have drawn sketches, much in the same way as Rolf Harris used to do on TV, it must be an Australian thing. The London Pavilion advertised La Milo in this manner, “La Milo’s interpretations of classical statuary have been conceived in a reverent and soulful spirit. Her posing’s are intended to honour not to insult the genius of the past. Were the sculptors of old permitted to re-visit the earth, these modern representations of their immortal masterpieces would gratify and not pain them. La Milo has too deep and sincere an appreciation for the work of the Ancient Masters to lend herself to Burlesque. She is no caricaturist – this feature is wisely left in the capable hands of Cruickshank. La Milo the woman of the present with the figure of the past”.
Her performances were very popular to say the least and for one of her fans, his infatuation would prove fatal. At one of her performances in July a journalist named Richard Norman Lucas, a married man from Byfleet became enamoured of the lady and began to write to her. He was a Greek scholar and suggested changes to her poses to make them more historically accurate. They began a correspondence which would last until an eight-page letter overstepped the mark of their acquaintanceship, it appears that during this time Lucas would stalk Miss Montague wearing a disguise which included a red beard. On Monday 8th April 1907 he went to the Holborn Empire where she was appearing wearing the red beard disguise but was told that she was not there, later that evening he was seen staggering up the steps of Kingsway tube station where he collapsed, still wearing the red beard. He had apparently swallowed Prussic Acid.
Piccadilly Circus: 1910
This is an anonymously published postcard of “British Manufacture Throughout” showing Piccadilly Circus looking north towards Shaftesbury Avenue. It is the summer of 1906 (but see below) and Miss Pansy Montague aka “La Milo” is appearing on a music hall bill at the London Pavilion. Miss Montague was an Australian artiste who posed barely clothed as pieces of classical statuary such as the Venus de Milo, Diana, Psyche, Dorothea, Venus de Medici and many more. She appeared with a man called Cruickshank who performed lightning sketches during the statuary changes, I think he may have drawn sketches, much in the same way as Rolf Harris used to do on TV, it must be an Australian thing. The London Pavilion advertised La Milo in this manner, “La Milo’s interpretations of classical statuary have been conceived in a reverent and soulful spirit. Her posing’s are intended to honour not to insult the genius of the past. Were the sculptors of old permitted to re-visit the earth, these modern representations of their immortal masterpieces would gratify and not pain them. La Milo has too deep and sincere an appreciation for the work of the Ancient Masters to lend herself to Burlesque. She is no caricaturist – this feature is wisely left in the capable hands of Cruickshank. La Milo the woman of the present with the figure of the past”.
Her performances were very popular to say the least and for one of her fans, his infatuation would prove fatal. At one of her performances in July a journalist named Richard Norman Lucas, a married man from Byfleet became enamoured of the lady and began to write to her. He was a Greek scholar and suggested changes to her poses to make them more historically accurate. They began a correspondence which would last until an eight-page letter overstepped the mark of their acquaintanceship, it appears that during this time Lucas would stalk Miss Montague wearing a disguise which included a red beard. On Monday 8th April 1907 he went to the Holborn Empire where she was appearing wearing the red beard disguise but was told that she was not there, later that evening he was seen staggering up the steps of Kingsway tube station where he collapsed, still wearing the red beard. He had apparently swallowed Prussic Acid.