Noele Gordon 1919-1985

There was a time in the 60's and 70's Noele  above was never off our ATV screens. Over 2000 episodes of Lunchbox  1957-1963 were made at the old Aston studios. One complete episode survives and a few bits and pieces.  

The photo above is a stunner what a looker Noele was? Crossroads ran from 1964 to 1988, Noele was written out in 1981 much to many people's horror, she did reappear in 1983 for a few episodes and then gone forever. Larry Grayson was a close friend of Noele's you can see him on his own This Is Your Life on you tube which I uploaded a few years back so popular it is too take a look!

 Lionel Rubin was the drummer with Jerry Allen and his trio, on Lunchbox he passed away in January 2021. He was contacted in 2017, and asked if he wanted to talk about Noele and his answer was sadly no.

His details were passed on to the Crossroads appreciation society and no more is known. On facebook you can join the Crossroads appreciation society or The Noele Gordon appreciation Society, what fabulous articles to read take a look.

Noele was a stage star of the 40's, and appeared in Diamond Lil with Mae West in 1948, I understand Noele was not a fan of  Mae West?

Brigadoon was Noele's favourite theatre show the part of Meg Brockie in the 1950's Meg was her Crossroads name too in the 60's. 

Noele had 2 roles on screen 29 Arcacia Avenue as an over the top neighbour and The Lisbon Story 1946, Below but Most copies have bits of Noele missing. 

Noele studied Tv in the States and her magazine programmes became the staple diet of early ITV Midlands network, and Lunchbox was another show although her singing was an acquired taste.

Alan Grahame is the only surviving member of the Jerry Allen group, he kindly spoke to me several years ago, his wife had dementia and he told me Noele was godmother to one of his children, his wife was a dancer on Lunchbox.

Nolly left.

Crossroads was a soap that was on between regional and national news programmes on ITV.

I recall the time was 5:25 pm daily.

 I myself met Noele in 1979, at a charity football match at Groves football ground, off the Stourbridge Road Halesowen. All in white she had a double decker bus as a rest room, she could be seen smoking upstairs, Noele did a lot of work for charity. I used to go to the Grosvenor  hotel on the Hagley Road Birmingham, Larry and Noele were quite often there..

I remember Bill Buckley from Tv's That's life singing Meg is Magic outside ATV studios in 1981, when she was fired, that awful picture of Noele with dark glasses and a ciggy in her mouth, was iconic  like Norma Desmond in

 Sunset Boulevard...

 Noele  in an interview said:" Watch Me I will prove there is life after Crossroads and she did just that."..

A friend did not like Noele but was a fan after seeing her on stage he said she was sensational. A British version of Ethel Merman for sure.

Sadly Stomach cancer. took Noele's life in 1985 after two operations it was terminal, sadly Noele stopped living once sacked from Crossroads, it had been her life. I visited Noele's grave the day after her funeral a lovely bouquet from Danny La Rue, and Wayne King, dedicated to a fighter on the card. A tribute from Pat Pheonix, Elsie Tanner from Coronation Street, and a lovely bouquet from The Sunday Mercury who Nolly was writing a column for at the time of her passing.

Nolly the lady of Scottish Heritage born in East Ham is Buried next to Jocky her mother in a Ross On Wye Cemetery, one of her biggest fans was Tigg Gordon known to us as Lynn, who sadly passed late in 2022 hope your watching from above? You would have loved this for sure.

 I am saw "Nolly" with Helena Bonham Carter, written by Russell T Davies, who wrote it's A Sin. Noele and Crossroads are as camp as Christmas it's self  What an outstanding programme I stayed up to the early hours watching it. You will love it...

Chris Rogers 2023,