David & Martin
It’s slightly disconcerting being confronted by two of Pantomime’s larger than life ‘Ugly Sisters’, resplendent in full costume, consisting of extraordinarily big hair, full on makeup, including the longest lashes I’ve possibly ever seen in theatre, glaringly bright frocks, huge pearls and gold shoes with heels so high that even Naomi Campbell would think twice about walking down the catwalk in them. It’s pretty obvious that these guys - I mean gals - really know their Ugly Sister couture. Personally, I’ve always been slightly intimidated by Ugly Sisters, maybe because they’re always the scary villains of the piece or maybe because you don’t really know what’s underneath - I’m much the same with clowns but that’s another story.
However, my anxiety was soon abated because Martin Ramsdin and David Robbins, who are playing the Sisters in this year’s panto, Cinderella, couldn’t be nicer. In fact they were so lovely, I felt as though we’d known each other for ages as opposed to just the 30 minutes or so I had to chat with them when they came to the Cliffs to promote Cinderella along with Brian Conley, starring as Buttons and Lesley Joseph as the Fairy Godmother.
I begin by asking them how they both met. Martin tells me, “We met backstage at the Kings Theatre, Southsea back in our amateur days, I won’t say what year because its too embarrassing, but it’s quite a few ‘summers’ ago now isn’t it? We both came into the business separately and then a producer came up with the idea of putting us together. I don’t know if it’s because we’ve both got the same taste in look - bad, obviously!” he jokes.
David continues, “We had the same costume maker - we make a lot of the stuff ourselves as well but we also had a costume maker at the time. Our look was very much the same, so we could easily put our costumes together and they worked, rather than looking as though they clashed.”
It must be quite a perk for the producers of the pantomimes they appear in that they make all their own costumes. Martin says, “A lot of sisters get put together and they have very different looks. It’s quite rare that you get a comedy duo/ugly sister team nowadays that provide their own costume. We have a ‘village’ that comes with us, it’s more than a lot of touring West End shows - just for us - and it’s all our own stuff. We’re a little bit crazy when it comes to it but it’s all worthwhile because you get the reaction from the audience. We realised as soon as we did it the first time that it was so successful that we’ve got to do it again. We did it for a couple of years and then suddenly Michael Harrison (QDos Producer) sort of discovered us. We’re still not sure sure how it happened and I never want to ruin the magic to find out how it happened; but he just sort of invited us for an interview and we were like, 'yes, please, thank you we’d like to do that.'"
David learnt a lot of his dress making skills whilst at college doing a Stage Management Course. “I was learning the technical side of things but I specialised more in costume and props and puppets, which is where a lot of this, sort of, came out of because I could then sew and make hats. With panto a lot of the things are ‘proppy’, like large Christmas puddings on our head and things like that so I was the one able to make these type of things.” he informs me. Martin agrees, “David’s very very practical. I don’t think there’s anything he can’t do, he knows every side of the business. I just fart around and look pretty and hope for the best!”
Working together for so long, I suggest that they must have had quite a few laughs on stage and David tells me about an audience member they had one time, whose laugh sounded just like a sheep. “Unfortunately,” Martin carries on the tale, “It was just at the most pivotal moment in the show. It was at the moment where David is being terrifying and I’m still pretty and gorgeous, obviously - but David is utterly terrifying, I have to look away…” David continues, “I’m just at the point of saying to Cinderella “tear it up…” (the invitation) and literally just as I go to open my mouth the sheep laughs “baaaaaa"…. and we just lost it!”
But audiences love that though don’t they? “I think it made it even more delicious that we were trying to suppress it because normally, for example, if someone falls over and almost hurts themselves on stage, the audience will fall about laughing but on stage, you (the actors) seem to laugh at the silly things, like someone’s wig being slightly wonky or something.” Martin admits.
So what’s the appeal of being an Ugly sister, I wonder. “Playing an Ugly sister” Martin explains, “you can be glamorous, you can be evil and you can be funny; and where Brian is killing them in the aisles, where he’s so funny, we’re sort of there to move the plot and the show along because we’re like 'the threat', aren't we?”
They both confess that it doesn’t actually take that long to put all their make up on these days. Martin tells me it takes him about 5 1/2 minutes. “This is just subtle day make up - obviously.” he grins.
This isn’t really surprising as Martin has an alter ego in the name of Bunny Galore. Bunny hosts classic cult movies on Sky channel Information tv and her new series 'Bunny Galore's Movie Nightmares' premièred in 2015. Last October Bunny hosted the four part tv series ‘ShocktoberFest’ on Brighton’s ‘Latest TV’. Halloween itself saw the premier of her own show ‘Hotel Cinematic’ on the same channel .
For 10 years she performed in the West End revue show ‘Lady Alex's THE WAM BAM CLUB’ at the London Hippodrome and Café de Paris.
However, my anxiety was soon abated because Martin Ramsdin and David Robbins, who are playing the Sisters in this year’s panto, Cinderella, couldn’t be nicer. In fact they were so lovely, I felt as though we’d known each other for ages as opposed to just the 30 minutes or so I had to chat with them when they came to the Cliffs to promote Cinderella along with Brian Conley, starring as Buttons and Lesley Joseph as the Fairy Godmother.
I begin by asking them how they both met. Martin tells me, “We met backstage at the Kings Theatre, Southsea back in our amateur days, I won’t say what year because its too embarrassing, but it’s quite a few ‘summers’ ago now isn’t it? We both came into the business separately and then a producer came up with the idea of putting us together. I don’t know if it’s because we’ve both got the same taste in look - bad, obviously!” he jokes.
David continues, “We had the same costume maker - we make a lot of the stuff ourselves as well but we also had a costume maker at the time. Our look was very much the same, so we could easily put our costumes together and they worked, rather than looking as though they clashed.”
It must be quite a perk for the producers of the pantomimes they appear in that they make all their own costumes. Martin says, “A lot of sisters get put together and they have very different looks. It’s quite rare that you get a comedy duo/ugly sister team nowadays that provide their own costume. We have a ‘village’ that comes with us, it’s more than a lot of touring West End shows - just for us - and it’s all our own stuff. We’re a little bit crazy when it comes to it but it’s all worthwhile because you get the reaction from the audience. We realised as soon as we did it the first time that it was so successful that we’ve got to do it again. We did it for a couple of years and then suddenly Michael Harrison (QDos Producer) sort of discovered us. We’re still not sure sure how it happened and I never want to ruin the magic to find out how it happened; but he just sort of invited us for an interview and we were like, 'yes, please, thank you we’d like to do that.'"
David learnt a lot of his dress making skills whilst at college doing a Stage Management Course. “I was learning the technical side of things but I specialised more in costume and props and puppets, which is where a lot of this, sort of, came out of because I could then sew and make hats. With panto a lot of the things are ‘proppy’, like large Christmas puddings on our head and things like that so I was the one able to make these type of things.” he informs me. Martin agrees, “David’s very very practical. I don’t think there’s anything he can’t do, he knows every side of the business. I just fart around and look pretty and hope for the best!”
Working together for so long, I suggest that they must have had quite a few laughs on stage and David tells me about an audience member they had one time, whose laugh sounded just like a sheep. “Unfortunately,” Martin carries on the tale, “It was just at the most pivotal moment in the show. It was at the moment where David is being terrifying and I’m still pretty and gorgeous, obviously - but David is utterly terrifying, I have to look away…” David continues, “I’m just at the point of saying to Cinderella “tear it up…” (the invitation) and literally just as I go to open my mouth the sheep laughs “baaaaaa"…. and we just lost it!”
But audiences love that though don’t they? “I think it made it even more delicious that we were trying to suppress it because normally, for example, if someone falls over and almost hurts themselves on stage, the audience will fall about laughing but on stage, you (the actors) seem to laugh at the silly things, like someone’s wig being slightly wonky or something.” Martin admits.
So what’s the appeal of being an Ugly sister, I wonder. “Playing an Ugly sister” Martin explains, “you can be glamorous, you can be evil and you can be funny; and where Brian is killing them in the aisles, where he’s so funny, we’re sort of there to move the plot and the show along because we’re like 'the threat', aren't we?”
They both confess that it doesn’t actually take that long to put all their make up on these days. Martin tells me it takes him about 5 1/2 minutes. “This is just subtle day make up - obviously.” he grins.
This isn’t really surprising as Martin has an alter ego in the name of Bunny Galore. Bunny hosts classic cult movies on Sky channel Information tv and her new series 'Bunny Galore's Movie Nightmares' premièred in 2015. Last October Bunny hosted the four part tv series ‘ShocktoberFest’ on Brighton’s ‘Latest TV’. Halloween itself saw the premier of her own show ‘Hotel Cinematic’ on the same channel .
For 10 years she performed in the West End revue show ‘Lady Alex's THE WAM BAM CLUB’ at the London Hippodrome and Café de Paris.
Martin as his alter ego, Bunny Galore
“Yes” Martin smiles, “I dress up as a middle aged lady all the time. It’s very strange because Bunny has kind of taken over my life and my career over the last ten years. With pantomime I’m always billed under my own name, so it’s a bit weird because people know me as the ‘monster’ and then people know me as this monster (Ugly Sister). It’s a little bit strange. Apart from the blonde hair, it doesn’t really cross over a massive amount because Bunny is very sweet and very lovely and even though she presents horror films and things like that, she’s a bit like Diana Dors. She’s very earth mother like - kaftans and big blonde hair sort of thing.”
Martin loves working with David. He says, “It's great when you’re working with a legend like David, who is hilarious and terrifying at the same time, especially if you have to be on stage with that nose! I get hypnotised by him so many times because it’s got so many sparkles. He becomes a different creature. We always come on to the stage together now but we used to start opposite sides of the stage and because of the heaviness of the make up I used to think, 'ooh David’s in a really bad mood today' but he wasn’t, it’s just the makeup!”
Martin loves working with David. He says, “It's great when you’re working with a legend like David, who is hilarious and terrifying at the same time, especially if you have to be on stage with that nose! I get hypnotised by him so many times because it’s got so many sparkles. He becomes a different creature. We always come on to the stage together now but we used to start opposite sides of the stage and because of the heaviness of the make up I used to think, 'ooh David’s in a really bad mood today' but he wasn’t, it’s just the makeup!”
Martin and David with Lauren Hall & Brian Conley
David tells me that quite often the cast of the panto won’t ever see them without their makeup on. “After the first week of rehearsal we tell them, ‘You probably won’t see us again really’ because we’re always like this (in costume), always got our makeup on.” He remembers one time when they were appearing in Plymouth. “That was the one that really shocked me because I was out shopping on Christmas Eve to get some food in M&S and the dancers from the show were in M&S too and I literally walked past them and I went ‘Hiya” and they were just looking at me. Then they came back to the theatre and were discussing how there was this weird man waving at them in M&S; and I said ‘that was me!’ and they were like ‘oh my God, we haven’t seen you without your makeup on for so long’. I also usually have a beard, which I shaved off this morning.” I really want to know what they both look like without the makeup on now. (Note to self: must check Google later.)
When the two aren’t being Ugly Sisters they keep very busy with their day jobs as ‘wiggies’. They both work in Wig Departments and David makes a lot of wigs for musical theatre and shows on tour, whereas Martin works mostly in London theatres. David has only just finished touring on Barnum with Brian Conley, going straight into ‘Mrs Henderson Presents’ in Bath both produced by Cinderella producer, Michael Harrison. They both make a point of keeping the Christmas season free in their busy schedules because pantomime, for them, is really what it is all about. Such is their dedication and enjoyment of being in panto, this will be their 12th year together as Ugly Sisters. “We’ve worked with Brian a few times. Lauren we met for the first time last year and she’s become a very, very close friend over the last year or so.”
Martin concludes, “We love it! This will be my 21st pantomime, which is really frightening!’ he pauses, “I’m now beginning to get older than the boy dancers……obviously I was 3 years old when I started!”
And with that the larger than life pair frou-frou off to pose for some more press photos as I am left wondering how on earth they manage to perform in those heels and whether I should I ask them for any makeup tips...
When the two aren’t being Ugly Sisters they keep very busy with their day jobs as ‘wiggies’. They both work in Wig Departments and David makes a lot of wigs for musical theatre and shows on tour, whereas Martin works mostly in London theatres. David has only just finished touring on Barnum with Brian Conley, going straight into ‘Mrs Henderson Presents’ in Bath both produced by Cinderella producer, Michael Harrison. They both make a point of keeping the Christmas season free in their busy schedules because pantomime, for them, is really what it is all about. Such is their dedication and enjoyment of being in panto, this will be their 12th year together as Ugly Sisters. “We’ve worked with Brian a few times. Lauren we met for the first time last year and she’s become a very, very close friend over the last year or so.”
Martin concludes, “We love it! This will be my 21st pantomime, which is really frightening!’ he pauses, “I’m now beginning to get older than the boy dancers……obviously I was 3 years old when I started!”
And with that the larger than life pair frou-frou off to pose for some more press photos as I am left wondering how on earth they manage to perform in those heels and whether I should I ask them for any makeup tips...
Kim, being out-glam'd by Cinderella's Ugly Sisters
Catch Martin and David as the Ugly Sisters in Cinderella by booking online at www.southendtheatres.org.uk or call the Box Office on 01702 351135
Full filmed interview with Martin and David below.
Full filmed interview with Martin and David below.