Gracie Fields was an enormous star in Britain in the nineteen-thirties – first of music hall and then of film. She went to see the play of Love on the Dole early in its first production at the Garrick Theatre at the start of 1935. She expressed in public her great admiration for Greenwood’s play, and said she’d like to play the heroine, Sally Hardcastle, in a film version. The press was keen on this idea and returned to it several times during the thirties. Greenwood seemed enthusiastic at first, but later changed his mind. This is the story of the press interest in Gracie as Sally and some thoughts about why she never did get a chance to play the part.
Walter Greenwood and Gracie Fields
- Best, Chris.
Walter Greenwood: Not Just Love on the Dole 