The Fun Palace: An Autobiography

by Agnes Bernelle

Agnes Bernauer was born in Berlin in 1923, daughter of a renowned Jewish-Hungarian theater impresario. She made her main contribution to the war effort in the guise of a German radio announcer, Vicky, the Allied answer to Tokyo Rose. Agnes bartered clothes for hotel bills, performed impromptu cabaret in Barcelona, summered in Cannes and received the affections of, among others, Claus von Bülow and King Farouk. In 1956 she shocked audiences as Salome - the first ""non-stationary nude"" in London theater. While auditioning for Footlights she devised the concept for her original satirical cabaret, based on the work of Brecht and Weil, that became the first solo show at Peter Cook's Establishment in Soho.

250 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful memoir. A fascinating and eventful life moving between pre WW2 Berlin and London during and after that war, to Ireland and the South of France. Captivating.

[Ivan Mulcahy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I knew Agnes a little, via family, in her later life. That feels like a privilege now. She had great spirit - vigour, presence and what a life.