Billie Carleton
Encyclopedia
Billie Carleton was an English musical comedy
actress. She began her professional stage career at age 15 and was playing roles in the West End
by age 18. She appeared in the hit musical The Boy
(1917), which led to a starring role in The Freedom of the Seas in 1918. At the age of 22, she was found dead, apparently of a drug overdose.
, London, daughter of a chorus singer named Margaret Stewart and an unknown father, Carleton was raised by her aunt, Catherine Joliffe.
Carleton left home at 15 to work on the stage and received her first break when impresario C. B. Cochran
promoted her from the chorus to a role in his 1914 revue Watch your Step. According to Cochran, despite having a weak voice Carleton had a good stage presence and her delicate beauty charmed the audience. When he was informed during the run of the show that Carleton was attending 'opium parties', however, Cochran fired her, only to give her another chance in 1916 with a role in his show Hoop-La. She did not receive a great reception in the part.
Carleton was soon appearing for André Charlot
in another revue, Some More Samples! Although the critics again noted her weak voice, she had better success in this, and was engaged for the part of 'Joy Chatterton, a flapper
' in the hit farce The Boy
when it opened at the Adelphi Theatre
in August 1917. In May 1918 she appeared in Fair and Warmer, this time playing a maid to Fay Compton
's flapper. Then in August she took the star part of Phyllis Harcourt in The Freedom of the Seas at the Haymarket Theatre
, briefly becoming the youngest leading lady in the West End
.
. It was one of many such events held to commemorate the recent end of World War I
, but being under the patronage of a large number of aristocratic ladies it was a particularly long and splendid affair, lasting into the small hours. The next day Carleton's maid found her dead in bed, apparently killed by an overdose of cocaine. Author Marek Kohn
argues that she died not from cocaine but from legal depressants taken to deal with her cocaine hangover. A coroner's inquest found that she had died of a cocaine overdose "supplied to her by Reginald De Veulle in a culpable and negligent manner". De Veulle was charged with manslaughter and conspiracy to supply a prohibited drug under Regulation 40b of the Defence of the Realm Act 1914
, which had been passed in 1916 and made possession of both cocaine and opium illegal for the first time in Britain. The trial was held before Mr Justice Salter
with Sir Richard Muir
for the prosecution. De Veulle was acquitted of the first charge but pleaded guilty to the second, and was sentenced to eight months in prison.
Reports of the trial exposed details of Carleton's private life and those of her friends, particularly De Veulle, who had previously been involved in a homosexual blackmail case and had dressed in women's clothes. Although the milieu in which she moved was stigmatized as immoral and sordid, and although she had been the kept mistress of a man twenty years her senior, Carleton herself was seen largely as an innocent victim.
Noël Coward
, who had known both Carleton and De Veulle, acknowledged her story as a source for his first successful play, The Vortex
.
Edwardian Musical Comedy
Edwardian musical comedies were British musical theatre shows from the period between the early 1890s, when the Gilbert and Sullivan operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of the American musicals by Jerome Kern, Rodgers and Hart, George Gershwin and Cole Porter following World War I.Between...
actress. She began her professional stage career at age 15 and was playing roles in the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
by age 18. She appeared in the hit musical The Boy
The Boy (musical)
The Boy is a musical comedy with a book by Fred Thompson and Percy Greenbank , music by Lionel Monckton and Howard Talbot and lyrics by Greenbank and Adrian Ross...
(1917), which led to a starring role in The Freedom of the Seas in 1918. At the age of 22, she was found dead, apparently of a drug overdose.
Life and career
Born Florence Leonora Stewart in BloomsburyBloomsbury
-Places:* Bloomsbury is an area in central London.* Bloomsbury , related local government unit* Bloomsbury, New Jersey, New Jersey, USA* Bloomsbury , listed on the NRHP in Maryland...
, London, daughter of a chorus singer named Margaret Stewart and an unknown father, Carleton was raised by her aunt, Catherine Joliffe.
Carleton left home at 15 to work on the stage and received her first break when impresario C. B. Cochran
Charles B. Cochran
Sir Charles Blake Cochran , generally known as C. B. Cochran, was an English theatrical manager. He produced some of the most successful musical revues, musicals and plays of the 1920s and 1930s, becoming associated with Noel Coward and his works.-Biography:Cochran was born in Sussex and educated...
promoted her from the chorus to a role in his 1914 revue Watch your Step. According to Cochran, despite having a weak voice Carleton had a good stage presence and her delicate beauty charmed the audience. When he was informed during the run of the show that Carleton was attending 'opium parties', however, Cochran fired her, only to give her another chance in 1916 with a role in his show Hoop-La. She did not receive a great reception in the part.
Carleton was soon appearing for André Charlot
André Charlot
André Eugene Maurice Charlot was a French impresario known primarily for the highly successful musical revues he staged in London between 1912 and 1937...
in another revue, Some More Samples! Although the critics again noted her weak voice, she had better success in this, and was engaged for the part of 'Joy Chatterton, a flapper
Flapper
Flapper in the 1920s was a term applied to a "new breed" of young Western women who wore short skirts, bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered acceptable behavior...
' in the hit farce The Boy
The Boy (musical)
The Boy is a musical comedy with a book by Fred Thompson and Percy Greenbank , music by Lionel Monckton and Howard Talbot and lyrics by Greenbank and Adrian Ross...
when it opened at the Adelphi Theatre
Adelphi Theatre
The Adelphi Theatre is a 1500-seat West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiving house for a variety of productions, including many musicals...
in August 1917. In May 1918 she appeared in Fair and Warmer, this time playing a maid to Fay Compton
Fay Compton
Fay Compton was an English actress from a notable acting lineage; her father was actor/manager Edward Compton; her mother, Virginia Bateman, was a distinguished member of the profession, as were her sister, the actress Viola Compton, and her uncles and aunts. Her grandfather was the 19th-century...
's flapper. Then in August she took the star part of Phyllis Harcourt in The Freedom of the Seas at the Haymarket Theatre
Haymarket Theatre
The Theatre Royal Haymarket is a West End theatre in the Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use...
, briefly becoming the youngest leading lady in the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
.
Death and controversy
On 27 November 1918 she left the theatre after performing and, wearing a daringly diaphanous outfit designed by her friend Reggie De Veulle, attended the Victory Ball at the Royal Albert HallRoyal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
. It was one of many such events held to commemorate the recent end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, but being under the patronage of a large number of aristocratic ladies it was a particularly long and splendid affair, lasting into the small hours. The next day Carleton's maid found her dead in bed, apparently killed by an overdose of cocaine. Author Marek Kohn
Marek Kohn
Marek Kohn is a British science writer on evolution, biology and society. His first two books were on drugs, their cultural history, and their politics. He is the author of seven books and hundreds of articles. He holds an undergraduate degree in neurobiology from the University of Sussex, and a...
argues that she died not from cocaine but from legal depressants taken to deal with her cocaine hangover. A coroner's inquest found that she had died of a cocaine overdose "supplied to her by Reginald De Veulle in a culpable and negligent manner". De Veulle was charged with manslaughter and conspiracy to supply a prohibited drug under Regulation 40b of the Defence of the Realm Act 1914
Defence of the Realm Act 1914
The Defence of the Realm Act was passed in the United Kingdom on 8 August 1914, during the early weeks of World War I. It gave the government wide-ranging powers during the war period, such as the power to requisition buildings or land needed for the war effort, or to make regulations creating...
, which had been passed in 1916 and made possession of both cocaine and opium illegal for the first time in Britain. The trial was held before Mr Justice Salter
Arthur Salter (judge)
Sir Arthur Clavell Salter KC was a British Conservative Party politician and judge who sat as a Judge of the High Court of Justice. Born to Henry Salter and his wife Henrietta, Salter was educated at Wimborne Grammar School and King's College, London, where he studied arts and law...
with Sir Richard Muir
Richard Muir
Sir Richard David Muir was a prosecutor for the British Crown, widely regarded as the greatest of his time; he played a prominent role in many of the most sensational trials of the early part of the 20th century, most notably that of Hawley Harvey Crippen.Muir was born in Scotland, the son of...
for the prosecution. De Veulle was acquitted of the first charge but pleaded guilty to the second, and was sentenced to eight months in prison.
Reports of the trial exposed details of Carleton's private life and those of her friends, particularly De Veulle, who had previously been involved in a homosexual blackmail case and had dressed in women's clothes. Although the milieu in which she moved was stigmatized as immoral and sordid, and although she had been the kept mistress of a man twenty years her senior, Carleton herself was seen largely as an innocent victim.
Noël Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
, who had known both Carleton and De Veulle, acknowledged her story as a source for his first successful play, The Vortex
The Vortex
The Vortex is a play by the English writer and actor Noël Coward. The story focuses on sexual vanity and drug abuse among the upper classes. The play was Coward's first great commercial success....
.