Ivor Emmanuel

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Ivor Emmanuel (born 1927 in Pontrhydyfen, Port Talbot) is an opera star who led the rendition of 'Men of Harlech' in the film 'Zulu'.

When he was just 14 his father, mother, sister and grandfather were killed by a stray German bomb that hit their village. Ivor's Aunt Flossie took him in and he began working in the coal mine. He went on to follow in the footsteps of his father and grandfather by getting a job in the steelworks. However, early on he developed a keen interest in music and was a member of Pontrhydyfen Operatic Society. Ivor used to carry a wind-up gramophone up nearby mountains to listen to records of Enrico Caruso.

By the time he was 20 Ivor was auditioning for The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. The audition was not a success. He took solace by drinking with an old friend in London and telling him how desperate he was to break into show business. The friend was Richard Burton - who was performing in The Lady's Not for Burning at the time. Two weeks later a telegram arrived from Burton telling him to be in Drury Lane the following day for an audition. He got the part - in the musical Oklahoma!.

His stage career subsequently went from strength to strength. It was during the late '1950s that Ivor made his breakthrough into television. He took part in a Welsh-language singing programme called 'Dewch i Mewn', and then took a leading role in the similar show 'Gwlad y Gan' (meaning 'Land of Song'). The show was broadcast across the UK once a month and regularly attracted an audience of some ten million people.

To a modern audience he will probably best be remembered for his stirring performance as Private Owen in the acclaimed film 'Zulu'. It's Ivor's character that rallies the men with the now-famous 'Men of Harlech'.

Ivor retired to Spain in the 1980s.