Chapter 4
War Clouds and Family Fractures
As storm clouds gathered over Europe, Julie's family life began unraveling. Her mother started working regularly at concert parties - vaudeville-style shows at seaside venues. In summer 1939, she played for the Dazzle Company in Bognor Regis, becoming accompanist to Canadian tenor Ted Andrews. When he teased that she played piano "like a virgin," she was outraged, proud of her masculine playing strength and technical skill. When she recounted this to Julie's aunt, Aunt Joan sensed immediately that Barbara was attracted to the singer.
That September, World War II erupted, changing everything. During "The Phony War" period, England prepared its defenses. Julie's Uncle Bill joined the air force while her father, with his engineering skills, joined the Home Guard. Food rationing began in January 1940, and Ted worked day and night managing a factory making Spitfire parts.
Meanwhile, Julie's mother joined ENSA (Entertainments National Service Association) with Ted Andrews to entertain troops in France, leaving Julie and Johnny with their father and Aunt Joan. Before departing, she took Julie on an unusual walk through the village, and the young girl sensed when her mother left without saying goodbye that she wasn't coming back - at least not to the family as they had known it.
On May 10, 1940, Germany invaded France, Belgium, and Holland in the "Blitzkrieg." As the Battle of Britain began, Julie's mother sent for her to live in London with her and Ted Andrews, while Johnny stayed with their father. London was a shocking awakening for the young girl - sooty, black, foggy and cold. She suddenly felt grown up, as if she'd been half-asleep until then.
"We lived in a tiny ground-floor apartment in Mornington Crescent, Camden Town," Julie remembers. "I found myself sleeping in a basement utility room with pipes overhead and rats that crept along them at night. I missed my brother, the countryside, and my father terribly."
The war became vividly real with air raid sirens wailing after dark and wardens shouting "Put that light out!" at any glimpse through blackout curtains. They often joined streams of people retreating to Underground stations for safety, where Julie first encountered the unforgettable smell of baked dust.
"People bonded there - smoking, socializing, cooking on Bunsen burners, changing nappies, sleeping under coarse blankets even as trains roared through," she recalls.
While Julie's mother and Ted Andrews built their new life together, her father and Aunt Joan were creating their own arrangements. Aunt Joan shocked everyone by marrying Uncle Bill in Gretna Green, while Ted moved with Johnny to a small flat in Surrey. Later, Ted would meet and eventually marry Winifred Maud Hyde, a young widow who came to work at his factory after her husband was killed defusing a bomb.
In July 1942, Julie's half-brother Donald Edward Andrews was born. Her father, not wanting divorce, even offered to adopt Donald if Barbara would return to him - a testament to his enduring love and commitment to family despite everything.
Chapter 5
A Voice Discovered
As the war continued, Julie found herself navigating between two separate family units, belonging fully to neither. During a lull in the bombing, she reunited with her mother and Ted Andrews in London while Johnny went to live with their father. She enrolled at the Cone-Ripman School where Aunt Joan taught dance.
Ted began giving Julie singing lessons - not because she was "discovered" singing in air raid shelters as publicity later claimed, but likely to keep her occupied. They were surprised to find her voice had phenomenal range and strength for her age. A throat specialist confirmed her vocal cords were healthy despite her secret cigarette experiments with their cleaning lady.
"Reading became my salvation during this time," Julie notes, "though oddly my mother would often interrupt it, calling me lazy for 'wasting time.'"
During the war lull, her mother and Ted bought a house on Cromwell Road in Beckenham, Kent - the "garden of England" that unfortunately lay directly in the Luftwaffe's flight path. Her parents' divorce finalized, and her mother immediately married Ted in a civil ceremony on November 25, 1943. Julie's name was officially changed from Julia Elizabeth Wells to Julie Andrews, without her input or likely her father's consent.
Ted Andrews tried to connect with his stepdaughter by building her a miniature playhouse in the garden with colored panes and tiny furniture, and gave her a cocker spaniel puppy. But Julie remained emotionally distant, overwhelmed by his physicality and volatility compared to her gentle father. She mentally treated him as a temporary guest, refusing to acknowledge his marriage to her mother.
Soon Julie was taken to Ted's voice teacher, Lilian Stiles-Allen ("Madame"), a stout, bejeweled woman with tiny feet, multiple jowls, and a lovely speaking voice. Though Madame initially suggested waiting until Julie was older to begin formal training, her voice developed so rapidly that by nine and a half, she began weekly lessons.
"We worked extensively on technique - breathing exercises, scales, and mental pictures for vocal placement," Julie explains. "Madame emphasized bringing high notes down and low notes up to create a beautiful string of pearls - a seamless line of sound."
This technical foundation would serve Julie throughout her career, even as her extraordinary voice opened doors she never imagined possible.
Chapter 6
Stepping Into the Spotlight
Just before her tenth birthday, Julie's parents invited her to join their act. With permission from the front-of-house manager, she stood on a beer crate beside Ted to reach the microphone and sang "Come to the Fair" as a duet with him, accompanied by her mother on piano. The audience was entertained by the novelty, and Julie felt no fear.
"Though Ted's voice in my ear was irritating and Mum's piano playing rather heavy, I enjoyed the experience," she admits. "Gradually, I began joining their act more frequently, developing a taste for being in the spotlight."
Julie began attending Woodbrook, a fine girls' school run by Miss Meade and Miss Evans. Though treated like a regular student, she struggled to find her niche. In Brownies, she failed at knot-tying and fire-lighting competitions. Sports were mortifying - she was reed-thin with bandy legs, always placed as guard against stronger girls who would knock her aside.
One pivotal evening, Miss Meade sent Julie home early because her mother wanted her to sing in London. Upon arriving at the theater, they were told they would perform for Queen Elizabeth, wife of King George VI, at the Stage Door Canteen. After their performance, Her Majesty came backstage. Following protocol, Julie curtsied before the Queen told her, "You sang beautifully tonight." The next day at school, everyone was impressed - the school klutz suddenly became the center of attention.
Julie's first major career breakthrough came when her stepfather brought home Val Parnell, managing director of the Moss Empires circuit, to hear her sing. This led to a contract for the musical revue "Starlight Roof" at the London Hippodrome. Charles L. Tucker, an American-born talent agent with a cheerful face and gray curly hair, became her representative.
On opening night, October 23, 1947, her performance of a challenging coloratura piece, ending with a high F above top C, brought the audience to their feet in wild applause. The press followed them home that night, and the next morning's reviews proclaimed "Prodigy with Pigtails!" and "Pocket-money Star Stops the Show!" - marking the first of three major stepping-stones in her career.
Chapter 7
Between Two Worlds
As Julie's career blossomed, her family life grew increasingly complicated. Her stepfather's alcoholism worsened rapidly, affecting the entire household. Her half-brothers Donald and Christopher suffered terribly - Donald receiving regular beatings with a cane or strap, and little Chris once having his nose rubbed in a soiled toilet seat as punishment. Both boys were sent to boarding school despite living nearby, with Chris experiencing terrible homesickness and bed-wetting at just four years old.
Meanwhile, Julie began menstruating while her parents were away, confiding in her aunt who told her "You've become a woman." Yet she still performed as "the little girl with the phenomenal voice," wearing smock dresses to hide her developing chest, with ankle socks and Mary Janes - an awkward transition to womanhood.
Her father and stepmother Win moved to Ockley, a village on the Sussex/Surrey border. When her father collected her for visits, he'd often take "the pretty way" home through winding country roads, teaching her about English hedges, trees, and local history. These moments became precious respites from her increasingly chaotic home life.
"One unforgettable night, Dad drove me to a five-barred gate on Leith Hill near midnight to listen to nightingales singing all around us - his way of providing an 'antidote' to the difficulties at home," Julie remembers with fondness.
After a successful run in "Starlight Roof," Julie was offered the role of the egg in the Christmas pantomime "Humpty Dumpty" at the London Casino. During the show's run, she traveled alone on trains with orange pancake makeup still streaking her skinny legs, and even performed through a case of mumps that her mother insisted she keep secret.
As her career progressed, Julie began working as a resident singer on the BBC radio show "Educating Archie," featuring ventriloquist Peter Brough and his dummy Archie Andrews. Though originally planned for just six weeks, the show ran for thirty consecutive weeks and attracted twelve million listeners.
In November, she landed the title role in "Red Riding Hood," a Christmas pantomime at Nottingham's Theatre Royal. After her mother and aunt helped her settle in, she lived alone in a hotel, chaperoned by Cherry Lind who played Prince Valiant. Being a homesick teenager on her own, she became unprofessional - arriving late, going onstage with wet hair, and once missing her cue entirely because she was engrossed in reading.
Through these early professional experiences, Julie was developing not just her talents but a resilience that would serve her well in the challenges ahead.
Chapter 8
The Path to Broadway
In late October 1951, Julie's stepfather secured three tickets to a preview of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "South Pacific" at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. The production was magnificent, featuring Mary Martin washing "that man right out of her hair" onstage and Wilbur Evans singing the glorious "Some Enchanted Evening." The contrast between vaudeville's tackiness and this legitimate American musical with its superb orchestrations left Julie in awe but also feeling hopeless, believing she lacked the talent and experience to enter that world.
Christmas 1951 brought an invitation to play Princess Balroulbadour in Emile Littler's pantomime "Aladdin" at the London Casino. The production was elaborate, featuring dazzling sets and exotic costumes. During this period, Julie had her first romance with Fred, a talented Danish acrobat from the Olanders troupe performing in the show.
As Julie approached her seventeenth birthday, she worried about her changing voice and what appeal she'd have once she lost her "freak voice" gimmick. Her education was practically nonexistent, and she felt trapped in a cycle - taking care of her family and earning money while feeling like "a hamster on a wheel" with no real direction.
Then came a life-changing offer: the title role in "Cinderella" at the prestigious London Palladium. This elegant 1953/1954 production featured spectacular production values - revolving stages, white ponies pulling a gilded coach, magical transformation scenes, and a wedding finale where Julie's crinoline was so enormous she had to walk into it after it was braced on a stand.
"Cinderella was hugely successful, earning great reviews," Julie recalls. "My mother remarked it was 'the perfect part at the perfect age' for my career."
Despite this success, she still doubted her career longevity. Then Sandy Wilson and Vida Hope (director of the hit musical "The Boy Friend") came to see her perform, having been recommended by Hattie Jacques from "Educating Archie." Soon after, she received a surprising offer: a contract to play Polly Browne in "The Boy Friend" on Broadway.
The decision was agonizing. Julie was essentially supporting her troubled family - her alcoholic stepfather, unhappy mother, and miserable brothers. How could she abandon them for years in a strange country? After much deliberation, she sought her father's advice. He gently encouraged her to go, saying it would be "the best thing in your life" and would "open up your head." Later he admitted he was "dying inside" at the thought of not seeing her but knew it was the best opportunity for her.
In an uncharacteristic moment of stubbornness, Julie told her agent Charlie Tucker she would accept only a one-year contract instead of two. Though he was horrified at her presumption with American producers, to her surprise, they agreed to her terms.
Chapter 9
Broadway Triumphs and Personal Growth
Julie's departure for America was emotionally wrenching as she worried about leaving her mother and brothers in such a precarious situation. The entire family came to see her off at Northolt Airport as she boarded a Constellation for her first transatlantic flight.
Upon arriving at Idlewild Airport after an eighteen-hour journey, she was immediately met by photographers demanding "cheesecake" poses. New York overwhelmed her completely - the pace, customs, and pressures of starring in a hit show often left her breathless. Despite her weekly salary, after taxes and sending money home, she had barely enough for rent and food.
"By Thursdays, my roommate Dilys and I were usually broke and hungry," Julie remembers.
Her year in "The Boy Friend" proved invaluable as a learning experience. But an even greater opportunity awaited - a meeting with Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick "Fritz" Loewe, and Rex Harrison about a new musical called "My Fair Lady."
Rehearsals began at the New Amsterdam Theater on 42nd Street. The production team was perhaps the most celebrated ever assembled for one show: Moss Hart (director), Herman Levin (producer), Hanya Holm (choreographer), Oliver Smith (set designer), Cecil Beaton (costume designer), Abe Feder (lighting), and Franz Allers (conductor).
About two weeks into rehearsals, it became obvious Julie was hopelessly out of her depth as Eliza. She hadn't mastered the cockney accent and felt inadequate in everything except the songs. Rex Harrison was cold and ungenerous, and she later learned he had suggested firing her in crude terms.
In a pivotal moment, director Moss Hart dismissed the company for forty-eight hours to work solely with Julie. During this intense weekend, he bullied, cajoled, scolded and encouraged her through every scene. He showed her physically what he wanted, making her scream lines at him and demonstrating Eliza's mannerisms.
"I alternated between hating him and feeling utter despair," Julie admits, "but by the end, he had stripped away my girlish inadequacy and helped Eliza become part of my soul."
When his wife Kitty asked how Julie had responded, Moss replied wearily, "She'll be fine. She has that terrible British strength that makes you wonder how they ever lost India."
"My Fair Lady" opened to tremendous acclaim, and Julie's performance as Eliza Doolittle made her a Broadway star. The show's schedule was grueling, especially "Black Wednesdays" with two performances. Through all the challenges - vocal strain, mishaps, technical failures - Julie learned to perform consistently. As Alan Lerner once said, a long run in one good role provides better training than repertory, allowing an actor to truly hone their craft.
After finishing her run in "My Fair Lady," Julie returned to London to open the West End production. She then went on to star as Guenevere in Lerner and Loewe's "Camelot" opposite Richard Burton as King Arthur and Robert Goulet as Lancelot.
Chapter 10
Hollywood Beckons
After finishing her run in "Camelot," Julie received a visit from Walt Disney who came to see the show and meet her backstage. He charmed her with his natural friendliness as he described a combination live action/animated film based on the Mary Poppins books that he wanted her to star in.
"After hearing the Sherman brothers' wonderful 'rum-ti-tum' vaudeville-style songs for Mary Poppins," Julie recalls, "I realized my years in music hall had prepared me perfectly for this role."
Before filming began, Julie married set designer Tony Walton and gave birth to their daughter Emma Katherine Walton on November 27, 1962. Three months later, the family departed for Hollywood, where Disney Studios had rented them a house in Toluca Lake.
"As we flew first-class with Emma sleeping in a bassinet, I felt supremely blessed," Julie remembers. "Tony and I would work together, we had our beautiful daughter, and Walt Disney awaited us. I was going home."
Though Julie doesn't continue her story beyond this point in the memoir, we know that "Mary Poppins" would earn her an Academy Award for Best Actress, and "The Sound of Music" would follow shortly after, cementing her status as one of Hollywood's most beloved stars.
Throughout her remarkable journey from child prodigy to international star, Julie Andrews never lost sight of what mattered most - the sense of home and belonging she had sought since childhood. Whether performing in underground shelters during the London Blitz, on the stages of Broadway, or on Hollywood soundstages, she carried with her the resilience, discipline, and warmth that audiences worldwide would come to cherish.
As she writes in the book's epigraph: "Silver tinsel on the ground. River, streams. A round water tower. Shining sun flooding woods and meadows. Spun gold and steel. Clouds punctuate the hills and valleys and great white cliffs of Dover. Sea and ships. And, crossing over, my heart soars like this aeroplane, and I know I'm going home again."
