The townspeople had gathered outside the Sheriff’s house to watch the fate of poor Scathelok and Will Stutely, the poacher. Scathelok had been clapped in the stocks, but Stutely lay sewn up in the skin of the deer that he had dared to slay.There was a murmur from the crowd when the Sheriff appeared, gazing down with satisfaction...
I would like to wish all my readers a very merrie Christmas and I look forward to hearing from some of you in the new year!This is how Robin, Marian and the outlaws might have enjoyed themselves at Christmas, taken from the ballad Robin Hood And Maid Marian :A stately banquet they had full soon,All in a shaded bower,Where venison...
The use of whistling arrows, by Robin and his band of outlaws in Disney’s Story of Robin Hood, is a unique addition to the legend by Lawrence Edward Watkin. But not as far fetched as some might think.In fact, although now hardly ever used, whistling arrows were invented probably by the Nomads of Central Asia around 1,500 years...
Michael Murrey Hordern is one of the many delightfully talented actors that appeared in Walt Disney’s Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men. He was born on 3rd October 1911 at Berkhampstead, Hertfordshire in England, the son of Captain Edward Joseph Calverly Hordern of the Royal Indian Navy, and his wife Margaret Emily Murray....
(Walt Disney with Ken Annakin on the set of Robin Hood)After ten weeks of shooting The Story of Robin Hood, the film crew were sitting around, one day, waiting for the Special Effects men to fix four whistling arrows onto wires ( to make them fly into Robin’s camp) and disgruntled at the fact that the pay cheques had been delayed....
As soon as the Sheriff and his foresters had gone, the Palmer stepped grim faced out of the shadows. The Palmer was Robin Hood. He reached inside a hollow tree and took out a longbow and a quiver filled with arrows. The arrows were bright red and curiously made. Below the steel tip, the round head of the arrow was pierced with...
“In the forests,” wrote Richard Fitz Nigel (d.1198) treasurer of Henry II, “are the secret places of the kings and their great delight. To them they go for hunting, having put off their cares, so that they may enjoy a little quiet. There, away from the continuous business and incessant turmoil of the court, they can for a little...
Will Stutely is played memorably in Disney’s Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men by the great multi-talented British character actor Bill Owen. This is a brief look at his fascinating career.Born William Rowbotham in Acton Green, London on March 14th 1914, Bill knew from an early age what he wanted to do, he wanted to go...
It was Bishop Thomas Percy (1729-1811) who first brought to our attention the fact that it is in “The Vision of William Concerning Piers the Plowman,” that we have our first literary reference to Robin Hood.“Piers Plowman” is one of the most famous poems of the late fourteenth century and is written in the West Midland dialect,...
But further down the forest road another group of foresters were dragging and beating a captive towards the Sheriff.“Another poacher?” He asked.“Caught red handed, sire, shooting the king’s fallow deer.” The head forester boasted. “I had no other meat,” Will Stutely said simply. “To pay the tax to graze my swine, I sold my...
O.K. Time for a bit of self indulgence! My Favourite Robin Hood painting by Edmund George Warren in 1858, with my favourite Robin Hood poem by Alfred Noyes (1880-1959) and my favourite Robin Hood film stars! A SONG OF SHERWOODSherwood in the twilight, is Robin Hood awake?Grey and ghostly shadows are gliding through the brake,Shadows...
The recent article was a review in the New York Times of the movie in 1952.What I would like is a review of this Blog. Up until today there have been 260 visits from people all over the world. So what do you think of this Blog? Have you ever seen the movie? Would you like to see the DVD on worldwide release? Do you like reading...
New York Times, June 27, 1952 "In presenting his latest picture package at the Criterion—a trio including the feature, The Story of Robin Hood ; the newest entry in the True-Life Adventure series, "Water Birds," and the cartoon short, "The Little House"—Walt Disney is again proving that his organization can provide the variety...
Ex-Royal Marine Physical Training Instructor, Rupert Evans puts Peter Finch, as the Sheriff of Nottingham, through his paces. Evans was a member of ‘Mickey Wood’s Tough Guys’ and had been brought in to see that all the actors were trained in the use of swords and quarterstaffs, before using such weapons in Disney’s ‘Story of...
The Sheriff of Nottingham was played by Peter Finch, in one of his first major film roles. ‘Finchie’ was a protégé of Laurence Olivier and became a good friend of film producer Ken Annakin.Born in South Kensington, London, on 28th September 1916, Frederick George Peter Ingle Finch was the natural son of Major Jock Campbell,...
Every day for the following weeks and months, the Sheriff’s men were kept busy collecting the new crippling taxes. These were dreadful times as Prince John tried to invent more ingenious ways of raising money.William Scathelok was a poor farmer who had already paid one levy, when the Sheriff and his men were demanding more.“I...
In Disney’s ‘Story of Robin Hood’, Robin’s father is shot in the back by Red Gill, one of the Sheriff’s foresters, who had been hiding up in the fork of a tree in the forest. After waiting in the bushes for a while, Robin soon discovers the tree in which his fathers assassin is concealed. Robin quickly let fly a shaft that...
