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Light Console  (1935 - 1955)
Strand


Light Console

Revolutionary lighting control, based on a Compton organ console, giving the operator a view of the stage for the first time. 

The Strand Light Console is designed to give an operator, seated in full view of the stage, absolute control of all the lighting circuits that make up a modern stage installation, whatever the size of the theatre.
This revolutionary lighting control, and the ubiquitous Pattern 23 spotlight became synonymous with Fred Bentham and Strand. The Light Consoles lasting legacy was to progress the technology of lighting control from a complex on-stage mechanical device to a remote control which could be located where the operator could actually see what was being lit.

The recently discovered specifications from 1936 and 1937, for installations which never came to fruition, show the efforts made to customise every detail of the console to each situation. 

A specially-made church organ console remotely controlled banks of resistance dimmers which were connected to constant-speed, motor driven shafts via magnetic clutches

Installations:

[01] 1935: Original / Prototype: King Street Strand Electric Theatre (demo theatre). Moved to London Palladium in 1941 following bombing of King Street. The console was situated at the stage left / auditorium right end of the Grand Circle with a good view of the stage. It was replaced with a larger model in 1949 (below). [Victoria & Albert Museum collection, UK]
[02] 1940: National Opera House, Lisbon (108 ways)
[03] 1946: Theatre Royal, Bristol (60 ways)
[04] 1946: South Short Icedrome, Blackpool (64 ways)
[05] 1949: London Palladium (152 ways, replacing the 1935 original)
[06] 1949: National Opera House, Ankara, Turkey (136 ways)
[07] 1949: Palace Theatre, Manchester (108 ways) [now in Gerriets Museum]
[08] 1950: Empress Theatre, Earls Court, London (90 ways)
[09] 1950: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, London (216 ways) [now on display at White Light]
[10] 1950: Stoll Theatre, Kingsway, London (176 ways)
[11] 1951: Royal Festival Hall, London (84 ways) [now on display at DHA Designs]
[12] 1952: London Coliseum (216 ways)
[13] 1954: Her Majesty's Theatre, London (152 ways)
[14] 1954: Adelphi Theatre, London (152 ways)
[15] 1954: Caracas University, Venezuala (94 ways) [still in situ and still operational in 2019]
[16] 1955: Plaza, Caracas, Venezuala (121 ways)
[17] 1955: Theatre Polski, Warsaw [This was the last Light Console manufactured]


The document 'Technology of the Light Console' by Brian Legge (see below) goes into great detail about how to operate a Light Console.


The 1945 Strand Catalogue includes a large section on the Light Console


See also Nick Hunt's excellent resources on the Light Console installations.

Related Venues:

Extra Information: Comments from Adrian Buesnel (September 2001)
Extra Information: From Fred Bentham's 1976 book 'The Art of Stage Lighting'
Extra Information: Comments from Stephen Hancock (January 2001)

See also:


Documents

Light Console (unknown venue ?Adelphi Theatre)
Light Console (unknown venue ?Adelphi Theatre) 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[51kb  JPEG]
From Alan Ashton Collection
Light Console Controls
Light Console Controls 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[200kb  JPEG]
From Strand Archive

Light Console Instructions 
[25.5Mb PDF]
From Jim Laws Collection
[01] Fred Bentham at the Light Console (from LIGHTS, Feb 1992)
[01] Fred Bentham at the Light Console (from LIGHTS, Feb 1992) 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[57kb  JPEG]
From Strand Archive
[02] Light Console in Lisbon, in the pit
[02] Light Console in Lisbon, in the pit 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[500kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection
[03] Portable Light Console for Bristol Old Vic
[03] Portable Light Console for Bristol Old Vic 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[262kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection
[04] Light Console for Blackpool Icedrome
[04] Light Console for Blackpool Icedrome 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[234kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection
[04] Light Console for Blackpool Icedrome
[04] Light Console for Blackpool Icedrome 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[288kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection
[04] Light Console for Blackpool Icedrome
[04] Light Console for Blackpool Icedrome 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[285kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection
[04] Light Console for Blackpool Icedrome with lid closed
[04] Light Console for Blackpool Icedrome with lid closed 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[278kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection
[07] Light Console for Manchester Palace
[07] Light Console for Manchester Palace 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[401kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection
[12] Light Console for London Coliseum
[12] Light Console for London Coliseum 
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[423kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection

Light Console Preliminary Specification (March 1934)
From Jim Laws Collection

Light Console Specification for Gaumont Palace Chelsea (April 1936)
From Jim Laws Collection

Light Console Specification for Alhambra Odeon (May 1937)
From Jim Laws Collection
Hilary Gould at the Light Console, London Palladium (from TABS March 1964)
Hilary Gould at the Light Console, London Palladium (from TABS March 1964) (1942)
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[240kb  JPEG]

Drury Lane Light Console Proposal - Fred Bentham (November 1943)
[302kb PDF]
From David Bertenshaw Collection

1945 Theatrical Lighting (1945)
From Strand Archive

1945 Strand Catalogue - Photo (August 1945)
From Strand Archive

1945 Strand Electric Brochure (December 1945)
From Jim Laws Collection

1945 Strand Electric Brochure (December 1945)
From Jim Laws Collection

1945 Strand Electric Brochure (December 1945)
From Jim Laws Collection

Drury Lane Light Console Quote (July 1948)
[95kb PDF]
From David Bertenshaw Collection

Letter to Fred Bentham - Drury Lane Console (October 1948)
[80kb PDF]
From David Bertenshaw Collection

Drury Lane Light Console Specification (November 1948)
[270kb PDF]
From David Bertenshaw Collection
[06] Light Console at the National Opera House in Ankara with Memory Box
[06] Light Console at the National Opera House in Ankara with Memory Box (1949)
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[603kb  JPEG]
From Frederick Brown Collection

Britains Oldest Playhouse Reopens (January 1950)
[External Website]
From BBC Rewind

1953 Theatrical Lighting - Control (August 1952)
From Bob Anderson Collection

1953 Theatrical Lighting - Control (August 1952)
From Bob Anderson Collection
[13] Circuit Relay Panel - Her Majestys Theatre
[13] Circuit Relay Panel - Her Majestys Theatre (1954)
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[548kb  JPEG]
From John Gray Photo Collection
[13] John Gray at the Light Console at Her Majesties Theatre
[13] John Gray at the Light Console at Her Majesties Theatre (1954)
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[1.2Mb  JPEG]
From John Gray Photo Collection
[13] The Light Console at Her Majesties Theatre
[13] The Light Console at Her Majesties Theatre (1954)
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[578kb  JPEG]
From John Gray Photo Collection

1961 Lighting for Entertainment - page 17 (1961)
From Strand Archive

1963 Lighting for Entertainment page 18 (April 1963)
From Strand Archive
Light Console - Stephen Hancock
Light Console - Stephen Hancock (1971)
Click on thumbnail to enlarge
[20kb  JPEG]
From Strand Archive

Audio Recording of Strand Mechanical Dimmers at Her Majestys Theatre on their last night (March 1978)
[Youtube Video]
From Hugh Chinnick Collection

ABTT Recordings - Gil Binks (1994)
[External Website]
From ABTT Recordings

Technology of the Light Console by Brian Legge (February 1996)
[72kb PDF]
From Strand Archive

LSI Classic Gear: Light Console (July 2009)
[882kb PDF]
From Lighting & Sound International

Compton Strand Story by Kingsley Herbert (2021)
[2.22Mb PDF]
From Backstage Heritage Collection

Exhibits in the Backstage Heritage Collection


Light Console at Caracas  (1954)

Light Console from Bristol  

Light Console, Manchester Palace  (1949)
From Gerriets Spotlight Museum Collection

Light Console, National Opera Theatre, Lisbon, Portugal  (1948)
From Adam Harrison Collection

Light Console, Theatre Royal Drury Lane  (1950)
3 manuals, 216 ways, 6 speeds. The largest of the Light Consoles, and one of only 14 made. 
From Jim Laws Collection

Relay bank from Bristol Light Console  
From Jim Laws Collection

Royal Festival Hall Light Console  (1951)
From DHA Designs

Catalogue & Journal Entries for Light Console in the Backstage Heritage Collection


Lighting Control III (1957)

The Lighting Control and Its Operator (1958)

Saturday Night and Sunday Morning at the London Palladium (1966)

To Look Forward First Look Back (1977)

Memorabilia (1978)

Control Board Alphabet - S (1987)

Royal Festival Hall - Chief Engineer, Reg Bond (1992)

Back to Control - Manual (Strand)


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