JOHN HENRY'S WIRELESS ELEPHANT
(Clapham)
REGAL G8059 recorded September 1923
A CURTAIN LECTURE
(with 'BLOSSOM') (Henry)
HMV B2120 recorded 31 August 1925
Because at the beginning of broadcasting established music-hall performers refused to appear for fear of giving away their material (most went round the halls for years on one act) the BBC had to create its own stars. One of the very first wireless comedians was John Henry, who presented a depressed Yorkshireman in the tradition of George Formby Senior and Tom Foy, in monologues cataloguing his own disasters or in arguments with his radio wife 'Blossom' (which he usually lost).

He became very popular: the Daily Sketch newspaper ran a cartoon strip of his character's adventures, and a rose was named after him. He made a number of gramophone records, which give a good idea of his style, and two examples are provided here.

You can hear another John Henry recording in Episode 2 of my podcast.
(Mouse over the details for notes on each record)