April 7, 1962 was a massive day in the history of pop music but it was not because it was the day the Helen Shapiro Show came to Halifax. On that same evening at Ealing Jazz Club three unknowns met for the first time and changed the face of the modern group line-up forever. Mick Jagger, and Keith Richards went to the club to watch Brian Jones. When she came to Halifax she held the record of being the youngest female chart topper when her second record You Don't Know topped the British charts on August 10, 1961.
Geordie girl Marion Susan Maughan was only 20 when she performed at The Odeon on Larry Parnes Your Lucky Stars package. A bright vivacious girl with a bubbling personality is how she appeared from the stage as she sang her hit record Bobby's Girl and her latest release Hand A Handkerchief To Helen.
On Easter Sunday, 1964, Kathy Kirby walked from the stage of The Odeon in Halifax and the curtain came down on the last live performance at the cinema. With her curvaceous figure, bubbly personality, blonde hair and shiny lip gloss she was the headline attraction. Kathy was just 23 when she came to town after storming the charts in 1963 with a local version of the Shadows instrumental hit Dance On and following it with a tremendous version of the Doris Day's Secret Love which took her into the top five.
The Hollywood sex symbol Jayne Mansfield stayed in Halifax at the Cavalier Club (now called Holdsworth House) from May 6-13 1967 with her boyfriend, Sam Brody. Bernard Hinchcliffe (local promoter) met her at Heathrow and as she left the aircraft she handed Bernard her leopardskin coat. Unknown to him Jayne's two Chihuahua dogs, Popsicle and Momsicle were in the pockets.
The original promoter was Don Arden (father of Sharon Osborne) who was in trouble with Jayne for trying to get her to wear a see through dress and the reason she refused was later confided to Bernard. On another occasion at the Cavalier Country Club at a press conference they wanted to take her photograph reclining on a desk. She declined and whispered to Bernard that she hoped it would be all right with him but she was not wearing any knickers and never did!
