Saveen, Daisy May and Friends

Albert Saveen (Albert Langford, 1914-1883) was a British ventriloquist of the postwar era. Saveen was nearly 30 when injured in a bomb explosion during the blitz. During his recuperation period he was given exercises to restore his lungs, some of them having direct application to the ventriloquial arts. That’s when he developed his most popular character, a little girl called Daisy May. He entertained troops after he was able to leave his sickbed, which led to professional engagements in music halls. His 14 characters also included two dogs (a dummy and a real one), and a sketchy Cockney named Andy the Spiv. Val Parnell signed him and by 1945 he was regularly on BBC radio. By the new decade he had his own show Midday with Daisy May. He was also a staple of British variety television throughout the 1950s and ’60s. Though he still performed occasionally during his later years, he also worked as a talent agent.

For more on vaudeville and the variety arts, please see No Applause, Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous,