FREDA DAVIES/BOYCE AND ALYS TAYLER – the Knysna connection.

Freda Boyce and her father, Fred Cropper rented the first floor of Anne and Webster’s home in Knysna. They were originally from London where Fred had owned an antique business in Bishopsgate. During World War 2 Freda had driven a truck for the RAF, taking RAF pilots to nightly raids on Germany and collecting them when they returned to the air base afterwards. Sadly, not all the pilots returned safely. She must have been a very young woman when she did this responsible work.

They emigrated to South Africa after the war. Freda had divorced her husband and in the early 1970s she and her father shared Anne and Webster’s first floor flat, paying R75 a month for it. At the time Freda was working for an Estate Agent in Knysna. Along with the letters, Freda sent me the rent book for the property.

They became very friendly with Anne and Webster. Freda had arranged a dinner party for her father’s birthday at the Imperial Hotel in 1972 and Anne and Webster had been guests. They called him ‘Pop’.

Although Anne and Webster left Knysna to live in Somerset West in 1975 they kept in touch with Freda, who had by this time married widower, Len Davies, in Knysna. His first wife Dorothy had been a stalwart in the Knysna and District Choral Society. In fact, I had come across this article in the Port Elizabeth Herald when the SA Oranje docked in Port Elizabeth when I was returning to South Africa in August of 1968. Although they had not been long in Knysna at the time it looked as though they were hoping to sell their first house.

They purchased the second house, a settler’s cottage, and it was there where Freda and her father had lived.

They purchased the second house, a settler’s cottage, and it was there where Freda and her father had lived on the upper floor.

Alys Tayler was the daughter of Len and Dorothy Davies. Before she and her husband emigrated to New Zealand she had some association with Anne and Webster in Knysna and when they went to Port Elizabeth to direct Lady Audley’s Secret for PEMADS, a musical in which Anne and Webster themselves had appeared in the UK shortly before moving to South Africa.

ALYS TAYLER FROM NEW ZEALAND WRITES:

When our family made their annual trip from Port Elizabeth to my parents on Leisure Isle, Knysna, over the Christmas holidays, my mother very kindly paid for me to have three singing lessons with Anne.  Despite being quite famous overseas and in South Africa, both Anne and Webster were gracious and friendly.

She called him “Boo” which I thought was short for Booth.
I learned a lot of unusual singing techniques from Anne, notably how to produce upper register high notes on uncomfortable vowels, e.g. “sea” incorporating the “oo” sound and to go very lightly on the sibilants like “s” and “c” at the end of a word – and everything worked!  Although it was over 30 years ago I remember most of what I was taught.

They produced a pantomime in Knysna with Anne playing principal boy but as she was also producer, musical director and lighting technician, her health and her glorious voice suffered. Shortly before Christmas they put on a concert wherein Webster rehearsed and conducted items from the Messiah, singing with the massed choir, then turned around to render the tenor solos. The last item of the concert was community singing and the first song that Webster announced was: “It’s the wrong way to tickle Mary”. Stunned silence at first, then gales of laughter!  Yes, you guessed it – It’s a long way to Tipperary.

The musical Lady Audley’s Secret was the first show produced by Anne for PEMADS in Port Elizabeth in 1971 and I was so happy to be given the part of Alicia, the second lead.  The actress playing the part of Lady Audley was Elizabeth Shires who later took the lead in Oklahoma.

It was a period show and Liz and I had to wear full crinolines. When I was rushing along a narrow passage from the dressing room up the stairs to the stage, I nearly knocked Anne over with my big dress. She was not at all amused! What did impress her was when I was centre stage on a chair, crying my eyes out and singing “Sorry her lot…” I pulled out a little hankie, wiped my eyes – and wrung it out! Much laughter.

A couple of years later Anne and Webster were commissioned to produce another pantomime in the Opera House, Port Elizabeth and this time I had a part in the chorus. A vivid memory of rehearsals in the PEMADS theatre was Webster completely losing his temper with Peter, the publicity agent. Peter had designed the front page of the programme and the flyers with Webster’s name (as musical director) underneath Anne’s as producer – in smaller letters!! How he raged at Peter for that, in front of the entire cast.  And Anne gave her husband her full support – as she did throughout their marriage.

What a privilege to have known such a wonderful, talented couple.

Alys Tayler and Ted Mayhew in PEMAD’s production of ‘Lady Audley’s Secret’ (1971).

When I was writing my book ‘Sweethearts of Song’ in the early 2000s, I was surprised to hear from Freda Davies. By that time Len had died. She had a collection of letters from Anne and Webster and she offered to let me have them if they would help me with writing the book. Naturally I was delighted to receive them and to see things from a different point of view.

Anne had told me about the kind act Freda performed for the Christmas of 2001. Here is an extract from my book about it.

‘For the first time Anne was set to spend Christmas day entirely alone with only Toby for company. Freda Davies, her old friend from Knysna, was horrified at this, and wrote to the Mayor of Llandudno about it, telling him that she thought it a disgrace that a star like Anne Ziegler should spend Christmas all by herself.

At 10.30 am on Christmas morning the Mayor, in his mayoral chain, carrying a beautiful bouquet of flowers, and accompanied by his entourage, arrived at Anne’s door. Anne was still in her dressing gown and devoid of makeup but, ever a star, she invited him in, and gave him a glass of sherry to thank him for his thoughtful act.’

Anne’s account was in a letter to me, early in 2002:

By that time I got to know Freda she was not in the best of health. She had the first hip replacement done on medical aid which had been fairly successful but needed the other hip to be done also. As there was not enough money left she had the second hip done by a government hospital. Sadly, this operation was not successful. She was in a lot of pain and could not walk easily any more.

We spoke to each other on the phone and corresponded regularly in the days when the postal system in South Africa still functioned. She was forced to move from her pleasant retirement complex in Port Elizabeth to a cheaper one and she was not in a good way towards the end of her life. I was sorry not to have met her as she was a very kind and pleasant person. She had enjoyed my book and arranged for me to send her several other copies for her family and friends.

Jean Collen 30 January 2023.