Kath Pagdin has some interesting memories about those early days.  The ladies’ dressing room was at Stage Right, and in cold weather had a roaring fire going.  This was also the “Beginners” room (as in “Overture and Beginners”), all huddled around the fire

If the script meant that someone had to get to the other side of the stage for an entrance, there were two options.  Option 1 was through the kitchen, then go outside, and then come back in again.  Option 2 was to crawl under the stage, in darkness, trying to keep your costume clear of dirt and spiders

Alan Hanwell had a big dog called Saxon which he would bring to the dressing room.  If there was a gap before his next entrance, he’d take the dog for a walk in full costume (Alan, not the dog…).  Kath also remembers cast members eating fish and chips backstage in the gaps between their appearances!

Later on, when Kath was Secretary, she remembers going from house to house, visiting potential singers and cajoling them to join

In the early days, the orchestra was led by William Wheeldon, whose daughter Christine was Kath’s best friend.  William’s sister-in-law was Marjorie Hornbuckle, and she was the accompanist.  Apart from not liking housework, she had another odd quirk…… she would always play the piano with a cigarette dangling from her lower lip!

Harry Crofts was another character.  Kath remembers his false teeth coming out while singing in Iolanthe!

She also remembers Thompson Sellars being at the back of the chorus in one of the operas, and dropping something, perhaps a pipe, on the stage.  An unremarkable thing perhaps, but Thompson made it memorable by choosing his moment (presumably with a stage full of people), then crawling onto stage behind them to retrieve the lost item.  Maybe that’s where Morecambe and Wise got their idea from!