Brodrick Haldane
Encyclopedia
Brodrick Vernon Chinnery-Haldane (12 July 1912 - 3 February 1996) was a Scottish-born society photographer whom his English contemporary Sir Cecil Beaton
allegedly once described as the founder of modern society photography.
. His early years were spent at Alltshellach, the family's home in the Inverness-shire district of Nether Lochaber
, where his grandfather had been Bishop of Argyll and the Isles. In 1918, his father inherited a 7000 acres (28.3 km²) Perthshire estate and became the 26th Laird of Gleneagles.
Having attended Lancing College
, Brodrick was well aware that he had not made the best of his scholastic opportunities. Attracted to the stage, he became an extra at Elstree Studios
and featured in such early films as Murder in Monte Carlo, starring Errol Flynn
, and Two Hearts in Waltz Time.
and Margot Asquith
, the Countess of Oxford & Asquith, to sit for him. Being well-connected, he gained easy access to the balls and dances of the London Season. Surprisingly, his parents took a lenient view of his new found vocation. “So long as you don't disgrace the family name,” was his father's only advice.
Throughout the 1930s, it was fashionable for the wealthy to spend their summers in the South of France and winters in Austria or Switzerland. Every year, the routine would be similar, the same people being found in the same places, and as a consequence, unexpected familiarities were established. When he was rushed to hospital for an appendix operation shortly before the Second World War, one of those who came to visit him was Rose Kennedy, mother of the future American president. One of Brodrick's most striking group portraits is of Rose with her children, including the future President, on holiday.
In Monte Carlo
, he hunted down the Duke
and Duchess of Windsor at a charity gala, and they invited him to join their table. “They seemed rather lonely,” he recalled. “ I had photographed the duchess before when she was married to Ernest Simpson, and she recognised me.”
Serving as a gunner with the 83rd Battery during the war, Haldane was stationed at Chatham. After peace was declared in 1945, he recognised immediately that the glittering social world of between the wars would never be the same again, then a chance encounter with Michael Powell
, the film director, led him to two years' work at Pinewood Studios
.
This completed, he was invited to stay in Switzerland. with the Countess Chevreau d'Antraigues, daughter of the Scottish shipping tycoon Sir John Latta
. She was to become his greatest benefactor and for twenty years her home L'Elysee in Lausanne
, became his operational European base. With Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain, Queen Victoria's granddaughter, living in the house next door, there was a constant coming-and-going between the Royal Houses of Europe. In addition, Charles Chaplin was in tax exile
in nearby Vevey
, and Noel Coward
had bought a villa at Les Avants
, where Marlene Dietrich
was a regular visitor.
In 1964, Haldane returned to Scotland where his elder brother, Captain Alexander Chinnery-Haldane, had by then become 27th Laird of Gleneagles. Although the two brothers were entirely different in character, there was a strong bond between them. For the remaining thirty years of his life, Haldane lived in great style at 56, India Street in Edinburgh's Georgian New Town while continuing to photograph many of the well-known personalities of Scottish life. Among those who regularly stayed in his home were Margaret, Duchess of Argyll, and her successor as wife of the 11th Duke of Argyll
, Mathilda, Duchess of Argyll.
In 1984, Haldane officially opened his Edinburgh flat to the general public and visitors could enjoy a tour for fifty pence. On his drawing room walls he displayed some of the more memorable portraits of the rich and famous, and at the time of his death in 1996 was planning a retrospective exhibition of his life's work.
Cecil Beaton
Sir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton, CBE was an English fashion and portrait photographer, diarist, painter, interior designer and an Academy Award-winning stage and costume designer for films and the theatre...
allegedly once described as the founder of modern society photography.
Early life
Brodrick Haldane was the youngest of four children from one of Scotland's oldest landed families, the Haldanes of GleneaglesClan Haldane
Clan Haldane is a Lowland Scottish clan.- Origins of the Haldanes of Gleneagles :[The following text is copied verbatim from The Haldanes of Gleneagles, General Sir J. Aylmer L. Haldane, 1929, William Blackwood & Sons, Ltd., London and Edinburgh, which book is in the Public Domain since 2004...
. His early years were spent at Alltshellach, the family's home in the Inverness-shire district of Nether Lochaber
Nether Lochaber
Nether Lochaber in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, is the modern name for the Parish of 'Ballachulish and Onich'. This Parish was formed, in 1911, out of the Quoad Sacra Parish of 'Ballachulish and Corran of Ardgour' which itself was formed, in 1829, out of the Parish of 'Kilmallie' when the Thomas...
, where his grandfather had been Bishop of Argyll and the Isles. In 1918, his father inherited a 7000 acres (28.3 km²) Perthshire estate and became the 26th Laird of Gleneagles.
Having attended Lancing College
Lancing College
Lancing College is a co-educational English independent school in the British public school tradition, founded in 1848 by Nathaniel Woodard. Woodard's aim was to provide education "based on sound principle and sound knowledge, firmly grounded in the Christian faith." Lancing was the first of a...
, Brodrick was well aware that he had not made the best of his scholastic opportunities. Attracted to the stage, he became an extra at Elstree Studios
Elstree Studios
"Elstree Studios" refers to any of several film studios that were based in the towns of Borehamwood and Elstree in Hertfordshire, England, since film production begun in 1927.-Name:...
and featured in such early films as Murder in Monte Carlo, starring Errol Flynn
Errol Flynn
Errol Leslie Flynn was an Australian-born actor. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films, being a legend and his flamboyant lifestyle.-Early life:...
, and Two Hearts in Waltz Time.
Career
It was the purchase of a vest-pocket Kodak which changed Haldane's life. Extrovert in nature, although he always claimed to be shy, he persuaded George Bernard ShawGeorge Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
and Margot Asquith
Margot Asquith
Margot Asquith, Countess of Oxford and Asquith , born Emma Alice Margaret Tennant, was an Anglo-Scottish socialite, author and wit...
, the Countess of Oxford & Asquith, to sit for him. Being well-connected, he gained easy access to the balls and dances of the London Season. Surprisingly, his parents took a lenient view of his new found vocation. “So long as you don't disgrace the family name,” was his father's only advice.
Throughout the 1930s, it was fashionable for the wealthy to spend their summers in the South of France and winters in Austria or Switzerland. Every year, the routine would be similar, the same people being found in the same places, and as a consequence, unexpected familiarities were established. When he was rushed to hospital for an appendix operation shortly before the Second World War, one of those who came to visit him was Rose Kennedy, mother of the future American president. One of Brodrick's most striking group portraits is of Rose with her children, including the future President, on holiday.
In Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo is an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco....
, he hunted down the Duke
Duke of Windsor
The title Duke of Windsor was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1937 for Prince Edward, the former King Edward VIII, following his abdication in December 1936. The dukedom takes its name from the town where Windsor Castle, a residence of English monarchs since the Norman Conquest, is...
and Duchess of Windsor at a charity gala, and they invited him to join their table. “They seemed rather lonely,” he recalled. “ I had photographed the duchess before when she was married to Ernest Simpson, and she recognised me.”
Serving as a gunner with the 83rd Battery during the war, Haldane was stationed at Chatham. After peace was declared in 1945, he recognised immediately that the glittering social world of between the wars would never be the same again, then a chance encounter with Michael Powell
Michael Powell (director)
Michael Latham Powell was a renowned English film director, celebrated for his partnership with Emeric Pressburger...
, the film director, led him to two years' work at Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a major British film studio situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, approximately west of central London. The studios have played host to many productions over the years from huge blockbuster films to television shows to commercials to pop promos.The purchase of Shepperton...
.
This completed, he was invited to stay in Switzerland. with the Countess Chevreau d'Antraigues, daughter of the Scottish shipping tycoon Sir John Latta
Sir John Latta, 1st Baronet
Sir John Latta, 1st Baronet was a Scottish shipping magnate.Latta was born in Old Cumnock, Ayrshire, and was educated at Ayr Academy. He entered the family business, Lawther, Latta & Co Ltd, which owned the Nitrate Producers' Steamship Co Ltd, and later became chairman. In 1896, he married Mary...
. She was to become his greatest benefactor and for twenty years her home L'Elysee in Lausanne
Lausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
, became his operational European base. With Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain, Queen Victoria's granddaughter, living in the house next door, there was a constant coming-and-going between the Royal Houses of Europe. In addition, Charles Chaplin was in tax exile
Tax exile
A tax exile is one who chooses to leave a country with a high tax burden and instead to reside in a foreign nation or jurisdiction which takes a lower portion of earnings. Going into tax exile is a means of tax mitigation or avoidance.-Legal status:...
in nearby Vevey
Vevey
Vevey is a town in Switzerland in the canton Vaud, on the north shore of Lake Geneva, near Lausanne.It was the seat of the district of the same name until 2006, and is now part of the Riviera-Pays-d'Enhaut District...
, and Noel Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
had bought a villa at Les Avants
Les Avants
Les Avants is a village in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is located in the municipality of Montreux, in the east of the canton, in the district of Vevey. It lies north-east of the town of Montreux and east of Lausanne....
, where Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...
was a regular visitor.
In 1964, Haldane returned to Scotland where his elder brother, Captain Alexander Chinnery-Haldane, had by then become 27th Laird of Gleneagles. Although the two brothers were entirely different in character, there was a strong bond between them. For the remaining thirty years of his life, Haldane lived in great style at 56, India Street in Edinburgh's Georgian New Town while continuing to photograph many of the well-known personalities of Scottish life. Among those who regularly stayed in his home were Margaret, Duchess of Argyll, and her successor as wife of the 11th Duke of Argyll
Ian Campbell, 11th Duke of Argyll
Ian Douglas Campbell, 11th and 4th Duke of Argyll was a Scottish Peer. He was the 11th Duke of Argyll, but is chiefly remembered for his unhappy marriage to and scandalous 1963 divorce from Margaret Whigham.-Early life:...
, Mathilda, Duchess of Argyll.
In 1984, Haldane officially opened his Edinburgh flat to the general public and visitors could enjoy a tour for fifty pence. On his drawing room walls he displayed some of the more memorable portraits of the rich and famous, and at the time of his death in 1996 was planning a retrospective exhibition of his life's work.