Ivor Novello was a very popular Welsh singer, songwriter and actor during the first half of the 20th century. He was one of Britain's most popular matinee idols of this period. He was known as the British Valentino. He made his name in the theatre and for his music before he started to work in films. He was the first British star to work across all these performance styles. With women making up a large proportion of films audiences in the 1920's he appealed to this audience group.
