Old Music Hall Act

[gollobfan]

Does anyone remember an old musical act, I think they were called 'The Two Pirates' consisting of a large quy and a small quy who pretended to be athletes but the small one was actually on a wire? I can remember them using the phrase, 'fingertip to fingertip', and 'half tonight and half tomorrow night' when the large one attempted unsuccessfully to do the splits.
They also shouted out 'oh no there isn't' and the audience would shout back 'oh yes there is' a reference to the wire.
I've googled and searched 'you tube' for old videos but can find no reference to them on the internet.

[gollobfan]

Sorry about the spelling mistake. should be 'guy'

[Chinajan]

From the following link, complete with a photograph of the act:

https://www.fulltable.com/vts/h/hero/h.htm

'THE TWO PIRATES, perhaps the most mesmeric variety act I ever saw live on stage. Firstly their costumes were outrageous, stripes, small skirts and Pirate Hats. They would perform a number of simple physical exercises as if they were nearly physically impossible.

Then the highlight of the act. The little one would run up the body of the bigger, and balance finger to finger. Jumping down to receive the applause of the audience he would stare quiizically out into the house, and say in a high pitched lilting voice,"Oh no there isn't..."

The audience knew what was expected of it."Oh yes there is...", it roared.

With a wistful simper, the little one curtailed the interchange.

"Its a lie..." with his voice going up at the end of the sentence.They were perhaps the main source for Tony Hancock's balancing act, The Two Pears.

I still remember the musical pitch of the voices, and the absurdity of the proposition. Of course there is a wire- you could see it clearly in the lights.'

[gollobfan]

Great, many thanks for that and the picture. I thought that was their name but as I had been unable to find any reference to them I began to think I might have been wrong. It's a pity there is no old film of their act on Youtube.

[gollobfan]

Great, many thanks for that and the picture. I thought that was their name but as I had been unable to find any reference to them I began to think I might have been wrong. It's a pity there is no old film of their act on Youtube. I notice that the picture was dated 1951. I would only have been nine at the time, shows what an impression they made.