PRINCE GEORGE

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 32, 7 February 1931, Page 18

PRINCE GEORGE

DANCER AND PIANIST

"The Prince of Wales eats ,the plainest food because he docs not give a thought to what he eats; he will often dash into the club he most frequents and dine off some cold beef and a whisky and soda," Btates a writer in a London journal. "Prince George eats the plainest food because he has to. Prince George is by far the best dancer of the Royal Family and a year or two ago he won a dance competition at Cannes. His identity was kept aeere.t and the judges did not recognise him. This ability comes from his musical tastes arid from his sense of rhythm. The Prince of Wales is a fair performer on the tapdrum and; the lkulele. Prince George, though he does not care for classical music, has rather more serious musical tastes than this and is quite a good pianist. When he is,at a party among people he knows well he can be induced to play. ' "At the Duke of Sutherland's home, Sutton Place, I have seen Prince George sit down at the piano and not only accompany diyieing but play from memory selections from the current revues and musical comedies. His touch is good and he has a keen ear and an excellent memory. A FILM FAN. "Prince George's only approach to what one must inevitably call the 'high-brow' in music was his love for the Russian Ballet. He used, to go night after night and sit in the front row of the stalls, was an acute critic of the dancers, and was deeply regretful when the death of Diaghileff brought the dispersal of that inimitable troupe. Probably the sense of colour in the ballet also appealed to him. He designed tho colour scheme of his rooms in Buckingham Palace * himself, favouring vivid tones and very bright chintzes for the chair-coverings. He is l fond, too, of pictures—both sorts. He ,has some very good water-colours. And he is' an enthusiastic film 'fan.' That was why he was so anxious to meet Mary Pickfdrd and Douglas Fairbanks when he visited 'Pickfair,' their, home at Hollywood, when his ship,. Durban, was off the coast of California. The Prince/has also many friends among English theatrical folk, and thoroughly enjoyed himself a few weeks ago at the annual dinner of the Stage Golfing Society. "Prince George does not like making speeches'. But that is not to say the Prince cannot make quite good ones. He has a pleasant voice and a singularly charming smile. He is not by any'means 'spoon fed' in his material, and he keeps himself well informed on public affairs by devouring newspapers with avidity. One of his relaxations is the Turkish bath, which he visits at least once a week, and in the cooling-room he is regularly to be found with a pile of newspapers and a cigarette. The result is that he can talk well about most topics, while his natural modesty prevents him from putting on any 'frills' at any time. Prince George fills efficiently and not without charm a position that is not the sinecure it may seem."