One-man show marks 155th birthday of Lanarkshire music hall legend Sir Harry Lauder

Daily Record

05-06-2025

Tenor and broadcaster Jamie MacDougall is reviving the much-loved Scottish Opera show Lauder this summer.
He was Scotland's first successful international entertainer – a South Lanarkshire lad whose unique stage image and performances brought world fame.
Now, to mark the 155th birthday of legendary Scottish entertainer Sir Harry Lauder, tenor and broadcaster Jamie MacDougall is reviving the much-loved Scottish Opera show Lauder this summer, in Edinburgh.
‌
It will be at Portobello Town Hall on Monday and Tuesday, August 4 and 5, at 7pm (tickets here), and there will also be shows in London and Buxton.
‌
Ticket sales from the Edinburgh and London performances will go to the charity Erskine Veterans Charity, for which Jamie is an ambassador. It provides support to Veterans in Scotland, through care homes and a Veterans Village.
Sir Harry, who was an international music star and at one point the highest-paid performer in the world, was greatly affected by his son John's death at the Battle of the Somme in 1916. He raised huge sums of money for injured serviceman, donating his music royalties to veterans supported by Erskine Veterans Charity. An exploration into the public and private personas of Sir Harry, Lauder was originally presented by Scottish Opera in 2017 as part of the 150th anniversary celebrations of Theatre Royal Glasgow.
This production of the musical play has been adapted by director Kally Lloyd-Jones and Jamie from the original script by comedian, actor and impresario Jimmy Logan.
In London, Tom Carradine is music director and pianist, and in Buxton and Edinburgh it is former Scottish Opera head of music, Derek Clark who also curated the featured Harry Lauder songs.
‌
Sir Harry premiered his classic song 'I Love a Lassie' onstage at Theatre Royal in 1905 when he appeared in his first pantomime, Aladdin, and in Red Riding Hood in 1910 he performed 'Roamin' in the gloamin'. Featuring these well-known songs as well as 'Keep Right on to the End of the Road' and other familiar favourites, Lauder includes news footage of Sir Harry's funeral and film reel from the trenches.
Jamie MacDougall said: 'I am thrilled to be bringing this tribute to Sir Harry Lauder to audiences in London, Buxton International Festival and Edinburgh for the first time. I was 10 when I was taken twice to see Jimmy Logan in Lauder at the King's Theatre Glasgow. That was the start of my life-long association with these wonderful songs and Sir Harry, an entertainer who was the first truly global star. I am honoured to be an Ambassador for Erskine, and hope audiences can come along to see this special show and raise money for an incredible charity.'
Jimmy Logan wrote and starred in Lauder which he performed for the first time in 1976 in Edinburgh, before it toured around the world. It was also broadcast on television and Logan revived the show in 2000 for the Pitlochry Festival Theatre.
‌
Scottish Opera extends thanks to the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's Archives & Collections, custodians of the Jimmy Logan Archive including the Lauder scripts and scores.
Jamie will also take the one-man show to London's Hoxton Hall on June 22, and Buxton International Festival on July 17.