Gari Williams and Company in 1979
1979
Episode 3: The Singapore Experience
The trip to Singapore was an amazing experience. The organizers were two old friends of the brothers, two sisters from Rhyl, Heulwen and Lowri. Lowri's husband, Barrie, was the South-East Asia representative of the pharmaceutical company, "The Wellcome Foundation", and during the summer of 1978, the quartet: Lowri, Barrie, Heulwen and her husband, Arthur, came to see us perform at the Golden Gate Holiday Camp in Towyn, Abergele. The evening was a success and after the show, we had a chat with Barrie and Lowri. Barrie mentioned that he would be delighted to invite us to Singapore to entertain the St David’s Society of Singapore on St David's Day, 1979. Now, many visiting Welsh expatriates had invited us to perform at St David’s Societies all over the world, so we didn’t take Barrie’s offer too seriously. However, late in November, while we were rehearsing the panto, Emyr got a phone call from Barrie to say that he had arranged the trip. The flight tickets had been booked, and the nights had been confirmed. The evening prior to St David's Day at The Tanglin Club in Singapore and the evening of the festival itself, at the Lake Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
So, at twenty minutes to two on the afternoon of Sunday, February, 25th, at Llandudno Junction railway station, we caught the train to London, arriving at ten minutes past six. The plane was leaving Heathrow at a quarter to nine in the evening, so we had over two hours to get to the airport.
The flight went well, the journey was a long one through the night, but without any incident. By half past eleven, we had arrived in Bahrain, where the plane had to stop for fuel. Then on to the journey to Singapore, where we arrived at 7 o'clock on Monday night, the 26th of February. As three Welshmen who had never travelled so far before, Singapore was a physical and cultural shock for the three of us! Physically, I remember, as we left the plane Elwyn noticed the heat he felt from the plane's jet engines. By the time we got to the airport terminal, we could still feel the heat from the plane's engines, but of course, it wasn't the jet engines that were causing the heat, Singapore is very close to the equator and the temperature was measuring 35 degrees! That joke ran throughout our time in Singapore. "It’s amazing that you can still feel the heat of those engines, Elwyn".
We only had two engagements in the far-east, one night in Singapore, on St David's Eve, at the "Tanglin Club", and one in Kuala Lumpur at The Royal Lake Club, on the day itself. Both clubs are historical institutions established back in the 19th century by the British, who governed the territory at the time. Malaysia and Singapore are now independent republics and both clubs are open to all who can afford their annual subscriptions.
So, on Tuesday morning, the 27th of February, our priority was to make sure that the Tanglin Club's sound system was working properly and also to make sure that the piano was in tune. It wasn't possible for us to take our own gear all the way across the world, of course, so we had to rely on the clubs' gear. Barrie had arranged for us to have access to the club at 3 o'clock in the afternoon.
"Sound Check", is the term used in the industry and sound and lighting technicians are usually present to balance the sound and focus the lighting Unfortunately, only the soundman had turned up! We could therefore do nothing but hope that the lighting man would turn up the following night!
As I mentioned when we arrived in Singapore, the experience was a cultural and physical shock. On the physical side, the biggest thing we had to get used to was the temperature and humidity. The three of us found it difficult to sleep with the temperature constantly close to 40 degrees. In fact, Emyr was suffering worse than Elwyn and I, he must have been developing a cold before we left the United Kingdom. After three days in the Singapore heat his voice sounded hoarse. We immediately decided to find a pharmacist. As we were staying with Barrie and Lowri, Barrie offered to give Emyr a lift down to the city centre. Singapore is a fairly small island but as a shopping centre, it is amazing. The appropriate medicine was prescribed and Emyr began to feel better.
At half past seven that evening we arrived at the club and met with the Sound technician and the Lighting Engineer. We explained the format of the act, balanced the levels of the piano, the bass guitar and Emyr’s vocal microphone and everything was fine, so there was nothing more for us to do but enjoy the dinner.
The members of the St. David’s Society included not only Welsh people; you were qualified if you had any kind of connection with Wales. For example, one member of the society, who was a member of the Singapore government had achieved an honours degree at Aberystwyth University, so he became a proud member.
After the dinner, Barrie, who was the Toastmaster, proceeded to conduct the “Toasts”. First, the President proposed, "A Toast to St David" and to follow there were several "toasts" to the great and the good of Singapore. During this period, we received a sign from Barrie to start preparing for our contribution to the occasion. Surreptitiously, we left the dinner table and went backstage to prepare. Suddenly, a commanding voice introduced us, "So here they are, direct from their sell-out shows in New York, Paris and Llannerchymedd, let's give a warm welcome to Gari Williams and Company!”
The performance was a success, Emyr had forgotten his cold and gave one hundred per cent to the audience. The night was an unforgettable one. Now, the only thing to worry about was the next cabaret on St David's Day in Kuala Lumpur.
The next morning, before we went to the airport to fly to Kuala Lumpur, we had one call to make to Raeburn Park Primary School. An English school for the children of the British ex-pats who worked in Singapore. As it was St David's Day, it was Barrie's idea to introduce the children to the Welsh language and St David. This gave Emyr the opportunity to reprise his pantomime audience participation routine. The children and the staff enjoyed the experience. The morning quickly passed and at midday, we had to say goodbye before heading to the airport.
It was a journey of only three-quarters of an hour to Kuala Lumpur, we arrived shortly after 2 o'clock in the afternoon. And straight away we went to the "Royal Lake Club", to do the second "Sound Check" and then to our accommodation for the weekend.
The accommodation had been arranged by the President of the St David's Association in Malaysia. Gary Harnett. Elwyn stayed with Gary and his wife. But for Emyr and I, alternative accommodation had been arranged. After a journey of about twenty minutes, we arrived at a large electronic gate. The driver opened the car window and spoke into a grill, the gates opened and we were driven up to the house. It was a large modern house with classical features. "Who lives in a house like this?" said Emyr. We got the answer right after the owner opened the front door, he was a man in his thirties and he wore an Armani suit and tie. "Welcome to Malaysia, I'll show you your bedroom, follow me". We went up the stairs and into the huge room which contained two beds, and a bathroom with a shower big enough for a football team. "This will be your home as long as you are in Malaysia. I'll show you where to find the kitchen and if you need anything, just ring the bell for the Houseboy". Then he pressed the button that was on the wall near one of the windows, and a boy of about sixteen appeared. "He can't speak English but I'm sure you won't have any problems", said our host.
We thanked him and headed back to the car in order to reach the club in enough time to set up the gear as required. During the journey, we discussed our recent experience and realized we still had no idea who the owner of our accommodation was. We arrive at the club and meet Elwyn and Barrie. The first thing Emyr asked Barrie was "With whom are we staying?” "He's a very important man, he's the younger brother of the King of Malaysia, "The Yang di-Pertuan Agong VI Yahya Petra". He is a very successful businessman; he deals in the stock market and he lives alone in that big mansion". “Good God, a crown prince!” said Em.
Before dinner, there was a "Drinks Reception", where we had the opportunity to meet members of the society. In the same way, we met members of the society in Singapore. After the reception, we heard a bell ring and a voice ordered us to take our seats for dinner. The dinner was wonderful, the first course was Welsh Leek Soup and the main course was Welsh Lamb and Butter and Bread Pudding followed. In the same way as the night in Singapore, after dinner Barrie, the Toastmaster rose to present the "toasts". The first was for the King, the second for Her Majesty the Queen, then the Prince of Wales, Saint David, and finally, our Guests. The response was in the hands of the Chief Guest: Datuk Dr Arshad Ayub, Secretary General, Ministry of Agriculture. Once again, during the speeches we received the signal from Barrie to move quietly to the back of the stage to prepare for our performance. Suddenly the lights went down and Barrie's voice demanded: "Ladies and Gentlemen, direct from their sell-out tour and so on...
Once again, Emyr was at his best with the audience particularly enjoying his spontaneous interaction with the audience. The two nights had been a valuable experience for us as a comedy act performing so far away from home to an audience that was mainly English. But the moment we all remembered was our closing song, "We'll Keep a Welcome", which, for the first time, we found difficult to perform due to the emotionally charged lyrics. Today, over forty years after the occasion, hearing the song takes me straight back to that night in Kuala Lumpur.
The Singapore Crew: Dilwyn, Heulwen, Gari, Lowri, Barrie and Elwyn.
We were in the Far East for two weeks, until the eleventh of March and we were treated like princes for the next ten days by our hosts and sponsors, Barrie and Lowri John, and Gary and Dee Harnett. There was a Mercedes-Benz available to us every day and we got to visit several attractions, to name but two: The Raffles Hotel and Hantu Island. It was an eye-opener for all three of us. Visiting a culture that was so foreign, strange and new to us, was an experience never to be forgotten. Many thanks once again to Barrie, Lowri, Gary and Dee. At 8:15 on Monday night, March 11th, we flew out of Singapore and after two fuel stops in Bahrain and Amsterdam, we arrived back in London at 9-45 the following morning.
In Episode 4 Emyr's talent as an actor is recognized by BBC Wales and Gari Williams & Company are booked for a summer season at the Llandudno Pier Pavilion.
