P. P. Bell 1916

This site is home to a collection of documents relating to the life of Pat (P. P.) Bell, a well known Dundee entertainer who regularly performed in Scotland and London between 1895 and 1942, he was also my great grandfather. All of the materials on this site were collected by myself as part of a masters degree research project at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design here in Dundee. Within these pages you will find audio recordings, photographs and newspaper archives pertaining to the life and times of P. P. Bell. I have gathered as much information as I could find about Patrick but I am aware that much more may still exist in the collections of music hall and variety enthusiasts and maybe even in the possession of distant relatives of the family.

Pat Bell was born in Randalstown County Antrim on 15th February 1870 and as an Irish immigrant to Scotland around the turn of 20th century he was part of a culture in tremendous flux and growth. Cities such as Dundee were host to thousands of incomers seeking work in the booming industrial years. At this time there was no adequate infrastructure in place to deal with such large numbers of immigrants and many were forced to live in squalor and hardship packed into whatever housing they could find. With them they also brought their own cultural and religious practices which the city's existing community often struggled to assimilate and which often gave rise to sectarian tensions and racist ill will. It was into this situation that characters such as Pat Bell brought forth their talents as performers and humorists and who went a long way towards helping integrate the outsider classes through their own particular brand of song, caricature and comedy.

P.P. Bell performed for aristocrats and working people alike and was known to have performed in London, Glasgow and Dundee. He was highly regarded by Mabell Ogilvy the Countess of Airlie who frequently called upon him to perform at Cortachy Castle. He was also invited to tour Canada, an offer which he declined due to his wife's reluctance to leave Dundee. His largely comic or 'pawky' performance style very often involved 'dame' or drag numbers in which he comically caricatured Irish and Scots travelers who were seen as underdog figures in the city at that time.