Background
Lucan was born on 16 September 1885, Sibsey, Lincolnshire, Arthur Towle, the third of seven children born to Tom Towle, a groom, and his wife Lucy Ann Mawer.
Lucan was born on 16 September 1885, Sibsey, Lincolnshire, Arthur Towle, the third of seven children born to Tom Towle, a groom, and his wife Lucy Ann Mawer.
When he was five years old, the family moved to nearby Boston, Lincolnshire, later making his first acting appearance at the town"s Shodfriars Hall. After leaving school, he left home to pursue a career in music hall. He gained a job with a family troupe called the Musical Cliftons, and later as sidekick to a comedian called Will Pepper.
The couple had one son, Donald Daniel Towle (b 2 October 1915, Dublin –d 1970), and became a successful double acting
Foreign this he first wore drag, and began to develop the character of Old Mother Riley. Whilst in Dublin, he changed his name to Lucan, and they continued to perform as "Lucan and McShane".
The act was featured in the 1934 Royal Command Performance at the London Palladium, the most prestigious engagement of its time. After the Royal Command Performance, there followed a film career, a radio series and even a strip cartoon in the Radio Times and Film Fun.
In all, Arthur Lucan made 17 films, 16 as Old Mother Riley.
And in 1943, the Motion Picture Herald voted him the sixth biggest "money-making star" in British films. Lucan, as was last seen on stage at the Theatre Royal, Barnsley on 14 May 1954. The following Monday he was to appear in revue at the Tivoli, Hull.
Ellis Aston was the first on stage to compere the forthcoming show.
But Lucan had collapsed behind the scenes and died shortly after in his dressing room. He was 68 years old. The site now houses a bakery and cafe, where there is a memorial bust of Arthur Lucan, together with various memorabilia from his career.
He is buried in Hull"s Eastern Cemetery. In recent years, the club has held Old Mother Riley evenings, as a tribute to Lucan"s talent.
Following his death Lucan"s understudy Roy Rolland took on the role of Old Mother Riley.
In 1982, Alan Plater wrote a play, On Your Way, Riley, about the life of Arthur Lucan, with songs by Alex Glasgow. This was also broadcast on Independent Television in 1985 with Brian Murphy and Maureen Lipman in the leading roles. A Greater London Council blue plaque, unveiled in 1978, commemorates Lucan at his home, 11 Forty Lane in Wembley.
Lucan died on 17 May 1954 in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire.
Lucan was a member of the Savage Club.