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A Hard Day's Night (film)

A Hard Day's Night is a 1964 musical comedy film starring the English rock band the Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—during the height of Beatlemania. Directed by Richard Lester, it was written by Alun Owen and originally released by United Artists. The film portrays 36 hours in the lives of the group as they prepare for a television performance.

The film was a financial and critical success and was nominated for two Academy Awards, including Best Original Screenplay. Forty years after its release, Time magazine rated it as one of the 100 all-time great films. In 1997, British critic Leslie Halliwell described it as a "comic fantasia with music; an enormous commercial success with the director trying every cinematic gag in the book" and awarded it a full four stars. The film is credited as being one of the most influential of all musical films, inspiring the Monkees' television show and pop music videos, and various other low-budget musical film vehicles starring British pop groups, such as the Gerry and the Pacemakers film Ferry Cross the Mersey.

In 1999, the British Film Institute ranked it the 88th-greatest British film of the 20th century.

Plot
The four Beatles evade a horde of fans while boarding a train for London to film a televised variety show concert. En route, they meet Paul McCartney's trouble-making Irish grandfather John. The band entertains some schoolgirls and plays cards with their manager Norm and road manager Shake before arriving in London. They are quickly driven from the station to a hotel and begin to feel confined. Norm brings each Beatle a pile of fan mail and tasks them with answering each letter, but they sneak out to party. Norm and Shake catch them and order them back to the room, where they find out that Paul's grandfather has gone to a gambling club using an invitation sent to Ringo; they track him down and bring him back to the hotel.

The next day, the Beatles arrive at a TV studio for rehearsals. The television producer assumes bad faith in them due to something Paul's grandfather said. After a mundane cocktail reception where the group tease reporters with comic and evasive answers to interview questions, they leave through a fire escape and cavort in a field until forced off by its caretaker. Back in the studio, they are separated when a woman thinks she recognizes John Lennon but cannot recall who he is. George Harrison is mistaken for an actor, dragged into an advertising agent's office, and auditioned for a clothing advertisement, but offends the agent by calling the shirts he is presented with "grotesque". The band returns to rehearse a second song and, after a quick trip to makeup, smoothly goes through a third before earning a break.

An hour before the final run-through, Ringo Starr is cajoled into chaperoning Paul's grandfather to the studio canteen for tea. He takes issue with a book Ringo is reading and manipulates him into going out "parading" to experience life rather than reading about it in books. Ringo tries to have a quiet drink in a pub, takes pictures, walks alongside the River Thames, and rides a bicycle along a railway station platform. After being ejected from the pub for nearly injuring a parrot with a dart and accidentally causing a woman to fall into a newly dug hole at a construction site, Ringo is apprehended by a policeman. He is shortly joined by Paul's grandfather, who had triggered a ruckus attempting to sell Beatles photos with autographs he had forged. The grandfather antagonizes the policemen at the station before running back to the studio to tell the others about Ringo. Norm sends the other three Beatles to retrieve him, which leads to a Keystone Cops-style foot chase. Arriving back at the studio with only minutes to spare before airtime, the Beatles deliver a smashing performance to an audience of screaming, delirious fans. Immediately afterwards, a helicopter whisks the group away toward a "midnight matinée" engagement in Wolverhampton. Paul tosses the forged autographs out of the helicopter as it takes off.

Cast

 * John Lennon as himself
 * Paul McCartney as himself
 * George Harrison as himself
 * Ringo Starr as himself
 * Wilfrid Brambell as John McCartney, Paul's grandfather
 * Norman Rossington as Norm, the Beatles' manager
 * John Junkin as Shake, the Beatles' road manager
 * Victor Spinetti as the TV director
 * Anna Quayle as Millie
 * Deryck Guyler as police sergeant
 * Richard Vernon as Johnson, the gentleman on the train
 * Edward Malin as the hotel waiter
 * Robin Ray as the TV floor manager
 * Lionel Blair as the TV choreographer
 * Alison Seebohm as Dolly, Simon Marshall's secretary
 * David Janson (as David Jaxon) as Charley, a young boy Ringo encounters

Uncredited:
 * Kenneth Haigh as Simon Marshall
 * Julian Holloway as Adrian, Simon's assistant
 * John Bluthal as a car thief
 * Michael Trubshawe as the casino manager
 * Margaret Nolan as the buxom girl at the casino
 * Pattie Boyd as Jean, a blonde schoolgirl on the train
 * Prudence Bury as Rita, a brunette schoolgirl on the train
 * Jeremy Lloyd as a nightclub dancer
 * Charlotte Rampling as a nightclub dancer
 * Phil Collins as a schoolboy watching the Beatles' TV performance
 * Marianne Stone as Society Reporter at theatre
 * Derek Nimmo as Leslie Jackson, the magician
 * Terry Hooper as casino croupier

Songs
The film's credits incorrectly state that all songs are composed by John Lennon and Paul McCartney – a portion of "Don't Bother Me", written by George Harrison, is heard during one scene. The instrumental versions were recorded by the George Martin Orchestra.
 * "A Hard Day's Night" (opening credits)
 * "I Should Have Known Better"
 * "I Wanna Be Your Man" (sample)
 * "Don't Bother Me" (Harrison) (sample)
 * "All My Loving" (sample)
 * "If I Fell"
 * "Can't Buy Me Love"
 * "And I Love Her"
 * "I'm Happy Just to Dance with You"
 * "Ringo's Theme (This Boy)" (instrumental)
 * "A Hard Day's Night" (sample, instrumental)
 * "Can't Buy Me Love" (reprise)
 * "Tell Me Why"
 * "If I Fell" (reprise)
 * "I Should Have Known Better" (reprise)
 * "She Loves You"
 * "A Hard Day's Night" (reprise; closing credits)

In addition to the soundtrack album, an EP (in mono) of songs from the film titled Extracts From The Film A Hard Day's Night was released by Parlophone on 6 November 1964, having the following tracks:
 * Side A

 * 1) "I Should Have Known Better"
 * 2) "If I Fell"
 * Side B

 * 1) "Tell Me Why"
 * 2) "And I Love Her"

Song notes

 * "I'll Cry Instead" was among several songs considered for the film but ultimately not included either as an on-camera performance or for usage as an audio-only track. It was to be used during the fire escape sequence, but ultimately director Richard Lester vetoed it in favor of the more lyrically upbeat "Can't Buy Me Love". Its status as an early contender for inclusion led to the song being included on the US soundtrack album.
 * In the 1982 US theatrical reissue of the film by Universal Pictures, under licence from Walter Shenson, the song "I'll Cry Instead" was used as the audio track for a prologue sequence to the film which consisted of stills from the film and publicity photographs as a tribute to Lennon consisting of a Swinging Sixties-style collage of photos of the Beatles in 1964 around the time they were shooting the film. The prologue was assembled without the involvement or knowledge of the film's director Richard Lester, who subsequently expressed his disapproval of the addition. The prologue was not included on the 2000 restoration of the film.
 * The song "You Can't Do That" was filmed as part of the film's TV concert sequence but was not included in the final cut of the film. At a point before a decision had been made to excise the song from the film, footage of that performance had been sent by the filmmakers and Brian Epstein to be aired on The Ed Sullivan Show as a tease to promote the forthcoming release of the film. The clip aired on the Sullivan show on Sunday, 24 May 1964 in conjunction with an interview with The Beatles specially filmed by Sullivan in London. An extract of the footage of the song performance was included in the 1994 documentary The Making of "A Hard Day's Night".
 * The song "I Call Your Name" was cut from the film for unknown reasons.

Screenplay
The screenplay was written by Alun Owen, who was chosen because the Beatles were familiar with his play No Trams to Lime Street, and he had shown an aptitude for writing in the group's native Scouse dialect. McCartney commented, "Alun hung around with us and was careful to try and put words in our mouths that he might've heard us speak, so I thought he did a very good script." Owen spent several days with the group, who told him their lives were like "a train and a room and a car and a room and a room and a room"; Paul's grandfather refers to this in the dialogue. Owen wrote the script from the viewpoint that the Beatles had become prisoners of their own fame, their schedule of performances and recording having become punishing.

The script comments cheekily on the Beatles' fame. For instance, at one point a fan, played by Anna Quayle, apparently recognises John Lennon, though she cannot put a name to the face, saying only "you are...". He demurs, saying his face is not quite right for "him"; after she puts on her glasses, she agrees that Lennon doesn't "look like him at all", and Lennon says to himself that "she looks more like him than I do". Other dialogue is derived from actual interviews with the Beatles; when Ringo is asked if he is a mod or a rocker, he replies: "Uh, no, I'm a mocker", a line derived from a joke he had made on the TV show Ready Steady Go! The frequent reference to McCartney's grandfather (Wilfrid Brambell) as a "clean old man" both refers to the Beatles being popularly called “very clean” and inverts the stock description of Brambell's character on the TV series Steptoe and Son as a "dirty old man".

Audiences also responded to the Beatles' brash social impudence. Director Richard Lester said, "The general aim of the film was to present what was apparently becoming a social phenomenon in this country. Anarchy is too strong a word, but the quality of confidence that the boys exuded! Confidence that they could dress as they liked, speak as they liked, talk to the Queen as they liked, talk to the people on the train who 'fought the war for them' as they liked. ... [Everything was] still based on privilege—privilege by schooling, privilege by birth, privilege by accent, privilege by speech. The Beatles were the first people to attack this... they said if you want something, do it. You can do it. Forget all this talk about talent or ability or money or speech. Just do it."

Although the original working titles of the film were first The Beatles and then Beatlemania, the group's name is never spoken in the film.

Production
The film was shot for United Artists using a cinéma vérité style influenced by the French New Wave and British kitchen sink realism in black-and-white. The film was meant to be released in July 1964, and since it was already March when filming began, the entire film had to be produced over a period of sixteen weeks. The film had a low budget for its time of £200,000 and filming was finished in under seven weeks, leaving the rest of the time for post-production. At first, the film itself was a secondary consideration to United Artists, whose primary interest was in being able to release the soundtrack album in the United States before the Beatles' American label Capitol Records could; in the words of Bud Ornstein, the European head of production for United Artists: "Our record division wants to get the soundtrack album to distribute in the States, and what we lose on the film we'll get back on this disc." According to film historian Stephen Glynn, A Hard Day's Night was intended as "a low-budget exploitation film to milk the latest brief musical craze for all it was worth."

Unlike most productions, the film was shot in near sequential order, as stated by Lennon in 1964. Filming began on 2 March 1964 at Marylebone station in London; the four Beatles had joined the British actors' union, Equity, only that morning. The first week of filming took place on a train travelling between London and Minehead, Somerset. On 10 March, scenes with Ringo were shot at the Turk's Head pub in Twickenham, and over the following week various interior scenes were filmed at Twickenham Studios. From 23 to 30 March, filming moved to the Scala Theatre in Fitzrovia, and on 31 March, concert footage was shot there, although the group mimed to backing tracks. On the 17 March and the 17 April scenes were shot at the Les Ambassadeurs Club in Mayfair. The "Can't Buy Me Love" segment, which featured creative camera work such as undercranking and the band running and jumping around in a field, was shot on 23 April 1964 at Thornbury Playing Fields, Isleworth. The final scene filmed was shot the following day in West Ealing, where Ringo obligingly drops his coat over puddles for a lady to step on, only to discover that the final puddle is actually a large hole.

Before A Hard Day's Night was released in America, a United Artists executive asked Lester to dub the Beatles' voices with Mid-Atlantic accents. McCartney angrily replied, "Look, if we can understand a fucking cowboy talking Texan, they can understand us talking Liverpool." Lester subsequently directed the Beatles' 1965 film, Help!

The film's costumes—except for those of the Beatles themselves—were the work of future Academy Award winning designer Julie Harris. The clothes of the Beatles were credited to Dougie Millings & Son.

Casting
Irish actor Wilfrid Brambell, who played Paul McCartney's fictional grandfather John McCartney, was already well known to British television audiences as co-star of the sitcom Steptoe and Son. The recurring joke that he was very "clean" reflects a contrast to his sitcom role, where he was always referred to as a "dirty old man". For American audiences, the comment was more of a spoof on the Beatles continually being referenced as "very clean". Norman Rossington played the Beatles' manager Norm, John Junkin played the group's road manager Shake, and Victor Spinetti played the television director.

The supporting cast included Richard Vernon as the "city gent" on the train and Lionel Blair as a featured dancer. There were also various cameos. John Bluthal played a car thief and an uncredited Derek Nimmo appeared as magician Leslie Jackson. David Janson (billed as David Jaxon here) played the small boy met by Ringo on his "walkabout". Rooney Massara, who went on to compete in the 1972 Munich Olympics, was the sculler in the river in the "walkabout" scene by the river at Kew (uncredited). Kenneth Haigh appeared as an advertising executive who mistakes George for a "new phenomenon". David Langton also made a cameo appearance as an actor in the dressing room scene.

Mal Evans, one of the Beatles' road managers, also appears briefly in the film—moving an upright bass through a tight hallway as Lennon talks with the woman who mistakes him for someone else.

George Harrison met his wife-to-be, Patricia Boyd, on the set when she made a brief (uncredited) appearance as one of the schoolgirls on the train. His initial overtures to her were spurned because she had a boyfriend at the time, but he persisted and they were married within 18 months. The girl with Boyd in the dining car scene is Prudence Bury. Phil Collins, later a member of the band Genesis, was an uncredited schoolboy extra in the concert audience and would subsequently go on to be a very successful musician in his own right.

Playing the buxom woman with Paul's grandfather in the casino scene was popular British 1960s pinup model Margaret Nolan, who also appeared as "Dink", the golden girl during the opening credits of the James Bond film Goldfinger, later that same year.

Cut for BBFC
The film had to be edited slightly to obtain the U certificate for British cinemas. The phrase "get knotted" (allegedly in reel 7 of the original submission) was judged inappropriate for a U film and had to be removed. When the film was submitted for release on VHS, the British Board of Film Censors (BBFC) could not locate the phrase and presumed that the clip was "pre-cut", but stated that the phrase was no longer of any concern. The BBFC noted a number of innuendos and one subtle reference to cocaine, but concluded that it was still within the "natural category" for a U certificate.

Reception
The film premiered at the Pavilion Theatre in London on 6 July 1964. The film and its soundtrack were widely released on 10July. A Hard Day's Night set records at the London Pavilion by grossing over $20,000 in the first week, ultimately becoming so popular that more than 1,600 prints were in circulation simultaneously. The film opened in 500 theatres in the United States on 12August.

Critical response
Contemporary reviews of the film were mostly positive; one oft-quoted assessment was provided by Andrew Sarris of The Village Voice, who deemed it "the Citizen Kane of jukebox musicals." When The Village Voice published the results of its first annual film poll, A Hard Day's Night placed second among the films of 1964, behind only Dr. Strangelove. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 98% based on 112 reviews, with an average rating of 8.50/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "A Hard Day's Night, despite its age, is still a delight to watch and has proven itself to be a rock-and-roll movie classic." It is number four on Rotten Tomatoes' list of the Top Ten Musicals and Performing Arts films. On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 96 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Time magazine called the film "One of the smoothest, freshest, funniest films ever made for purposes of exploitation." Film critic Roger Ebert described the film as "one of the great life-affirming landmarks of the movies", and added it to his list of The Great Movies. In 2004, Total Film magazine named A Hard Day's Night the 42nd greatest British film of all time. In 2005, Time.com named it one of the 100 best films of the last 80 years. Leslie Halliwell gave the film his highest rating, four stars, the only British film of 1964 to achieve that accolade.

The New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther noted that the film was a subtle satire on Beatlemania and the Beatles themselves, faced with screaming crowds, journalists who ask nonsensical questions, and authority figures who constantly look down upon them and mock youth culture at large. The New Yorker critic Brendan Gill wrote: "Though I don't pretend to understand what makes these four rather odd-looking boys so fascinating to so many scores of millions of people, I admit that I feel a certain mindless joy stealing over me as they caper about uttering sounds."

A Hard Day's Night was nominated for two Academy Awards: for Best Screenplay (Alun Owen), and Best Score (Adaptation) (George Martin).

By 1971, the film was estimated to have earned $11 million worldwide.

Influence
British critic Leslie Halliwell states the film's influence as "it led directly to all the kaleidoscopic swinging London spy thrillers and comedies of the later sixties". In particular, the visuals and storyline are credited with inspiring the Monkees' television series. The "Can't Buy Me Love" segment borrowed stylistically from Richard Lester's earlier The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film, and it is this segment, in particular using the contemporary technique of cutting the images to the beat of the music, which has been cited as a precursor of modern music videos. Roger Ebert goes even further, crediting Lester for a more pervasive influence, even constructing "a new grammar": "he influenced many other films. Today when we watch TV and see quick cutting, hand-held cameras, interviews conducted on the run with moving targets, quickly intercut snatches of dialogue, music under documentary action and all the other trademarks of the modern style, we are looking at the children of A Hard Day's Night". Film theorist James Monroe writes, "The lively 1960s films of Richard Lester—especially his Musicals A Hard Day's Night (1964), Help! (1965), and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966)—popularized jump cuts, rapid and 'ungrammatical' cutting. Over time, his brash editorial style became a norm, now celebrated every night around the world in hundreds of music videos on MTV and in countless commercials." A Hard Day's Night also inspired a 1965 film featuring Gerry and the Pacemakers, entitled Ferry Cross the Mersey. In an interview for the DVD re-release of A Hard Day's Night, Lester said he had been labelled the father of MTV and had jokingly responded by asking for a paternity test.

Title
The film's title originated from something said by Ringo Starr, who described it this way in an interview with disc jockey Dave Hull in 1964: "We went to do a job, and we'd worked all day and we happened to work all night. I came up still thinking it was day I suppose, and I said, 'It's been a hard day ...' and I looked around and saw it was dark so I said, '... night!' So we came to A Hard Day's Night."

According to Lennon in a 1980 interview with Playboy magazine: "I was going home in the car, and Dick Lester suggested the title, 'Hard Day's Night' from something Ringo had said. I had used it in In His Own Write, but it was an off-the-cuff remark by Ringo. You know, one of those malapropisms. A Ringo-ism, where he said it not to be funny... just said it. So Dick Lester said, 'We are going to use that title.'"

In a 1994 interview for The Beatles Anthology, however, McCartney disagreed with Lennon's recollections, recalling that it was the Beatles, and not Lester, who had come up with the idea of using Starr's verbal misstep: "The title was Ringo's. We'd almost finished making the film, and this fun bit arrived that we'd not known about before, which was naming the film. So we were sitting around at Twickenham studios having a little brain-storming session ... and we said, 'Well, there was something Ringo said the other day.' Ringo would do these little malapropisms, he would say things slightly wrong, like people do, but his were always wonderful, very lyrical ... they were sort of magic even though he was just getting it wrong. And he said after a concert, 'Phew, it's been a hard day's night.'"

Yet another version of events appeared in 1996; producer Walter Shenson said that Lennon had described to him some of Starr's funnier gaffes, including "a hard day's night", whereupon Shenson immediately decided that that was going to be the title of the film.

Regardless of which of these origin stories is the true one, the original tentative title for the film had been "Beatlemania", and when the new title was agreed upon it became necessary to write and quickly record a new title song, which was completed on 16 April, just eight days before filming was finished. John Lennon wrote the song (credited to Lennon–McCartney) in one night, writing the lyrics on the back of a birthday card sent to his young son Julian, and it went on to win a Grammy for Best Performance by a Vocal Group.

The film was titled Yeah Yeah Yeah in Germany and Sweden, Tutti Per Uno (All for One) in Italy, Quatre garçons dans le vent (Four Boys in the Wind) in France ''Yeah! Yeah! Tässä tulemme!  (Yeah! Yeah! Here We Come!) in Finland and Os Reis do Iê-Iê-Iê'' (The Kings of Yeah-yeah-yeah) in Brazil.

Novelisation
In 1964, Pan Books published a novelisation of the film by author John Burke, described as "based on the original screenplay by Alun Owen". The book was priced at two shillings and sixpence and contained an 8-page section of photographs from the film. It is the first book in the English language to have the word 'grotty' in print.

Release history

 * 1964: A Hard Day's Night was released by United Artists.
 * 1967: The film premiered on American television on the NBC network on 24 October; the usual Peacock introduction, which preceded all NBC colour broadcasts of the era, was replaced by a humorous black-and-white animated cartoon penguin, with cartoon representations of the Beatles jumping out of its stomach, as A Hard Day's Night was not shot in colour;
 * 1970: The film premiered on UK television on BBC1 on 28 December. John Lennon watched the broadcast at home and was inspired to write the song "I'm the Greatest", which was later recorded by Ringo Starr on his 1973 album Ringo.
 * 1979: Rights to the film were transferred to its producer, Walter Shenson.
 * 1982: Universal Pictures, under license from Shenson, reissued the film in theaters. This release included a prologue consisting of production stills set to the song "I'll Cry Instead", which would remain on subsequent home video editions until 2000.
 * 1984: MPI Home Video, under license from Shenson, first released A Hard Day's Night on home video in the VHS, Betamax, CED Videodisc, and Laserdisc formats, which all included the prologue.
 * The film was also released by Janus Films as part of The Criterion Collection in both a single-disc CLV and a two-disc CAV Laserdisc format. The additional features section on the CAV edition include the original theatrical trailer, an interview with Richard Lester, and his The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film.
 * There were notable pitch problems with the songs in this version, precisely one semitone lower than the original recordings. This was fixed in subsequent releases.
 * 1993: Voyager Company produced a CD-ROM for Mac and PC platforms with video in QuickTime 1 format, containing most of Criterion's elements, including the original script.
 * 1997: MPI Home Video released the first DVD edition. It contains the 1982 prologue and trailer, newsreels, an interview with Richard Lester, and The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film.
 * 2000: Miramax Films reissued the film in theatres in the United States and then as a collector's edition DVD two years later, as well as its final issue in the VHS format. The film had been transferred from the restored 35 mm negative and presented in 1.66:1 Widescreen. The prologue that Universal added in 1982 is absent on the Miramax releases.
 * In addition to the original film, the DVD edition contained a bonus disc with over 7 hours of additional material, including interviews with cast and crew members and Beatles associates. The DVD was produced by Beatles historian and producer Martin Lewis, a longtime friend of Walter Shenson.
 * 2009: The film was released on Blu-ray Disc in Canada; however, the disc is region-free and will play in any Blu-ray machine. It contains most of the 2000 DVD bonus features.
 * 2010: Miramax was sold by Disney to Filmyard Holdings, LLC, and the home video sub-licence transferred to Lionsgate, although no U.S. Blu-ray release date had been announced.
 * 2011: A new Blu-ray edition was released in Mexico; this version has Spanish subtitles.
 * 2014: Janus Films acquired the rights to the film from Miramax (on behalf of the Shenson Estate, managed by Bruce Karsh) and announced a domestic video re-release via The Criterion Collection on 24 June 2014. This dual-format edition (which incorporates the first ever U.S. issue on Blu-ray) contains various supplements from all previous video re-issues. This marked the return of this film to Criterion for the first time in two decades. The film was also released in theaters across the U.S. and in the UK (by Metrodome in the latter region) on 4 July 2014. On 6 July 2014, the film was shown in re-mastered HD on BBC Four in the UK to mark its 50th anniversary. Criterion's DVD/Blu-ray release of A Hard Day's Night was duplicated by Umbrella Entertainment in Australia (released 2 July) and Second Sight Films in the UK (released 21 July).
 * 2015: On 15 December, Criterion re-released its Blu-ray as part of The Rock Box, a collection of rock music-related films that also includes Monterey Pop (1968), Gimme Shelter (1970) and Quadrophenia (1979).
 * 2022: On 11 August 2021, Criterion announced that its first 4K Ultra HD releases, a six-film slate, would include A Hard Day's Night. Criterion indicated that each title would be available in a 4K UHD+Blu-ray combo pack, including a 4K UHD disc of the feature film as well as the film and special features on the companion Blu-ray. A Hard Day's Night was released on 18 January 2022.

40th anniversary cast-and-crew-reunion screening
On 6 July 2004, the 40th anniversary of the film's world premiere, a private cast-and-crew-reunion screening was hosted in London by DVD producer Martin Lewis. The screening was attended by McCartney, actors Victor Spinetti, John Junkin and David Janson, and many crew members. In media interviews at the event, McCartney disclosed that while he had seen the film many times on video, he had not seen the film on the "big screen" since its 1964 premiere.

title: A Hard Day's Night (film)


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Voice acting in Japan

Voice acting in Japan is an industry where actors provide voice-overs as characters or narrators in media including anime, video games, audio dramas, commercials, and dubbing for non-Japanese films and television programs.

In Japan, voice actors (声優) and actresses have devoted fan clubs due to a crossover with the idol industry, and some fans may watch a show merely to hear a particular voice actor. Many voice actors have concurrent singing careers and have also crossed over to live-action media.

There are around 130 voice acting schools in Japan. Broadcast companies and talent agencies often have their own troupes of vocal actors. Magazines focusing specifically on voice acting are published in Japan, with Voice Animage being the longest running.

The term character voice (abbreviated CV) has been commonly used since the 1980s by such Japanese anime magazines as  and Newtype to describe a voice actor associated with a particular anime or game character.

Definition and role
A voice actor (声優) provides voice-overs for characters and narration for various types of media, including anime, video games, audio dramas, live-action stunt and puppet shows, and commercials. A voice actor also provides dubbing for non-Japanese television programs and films. The initial term for voice actors in Japan was "koe no haiyū" (声の俳優), but was later shortened to a compound word to make the word "seiyū" (声優). While several voice actors opposed the term, believing it devalued their roles as actors, only after voice acting became more prominent did the word become more widespread.

There are three main factors that set voice actors and actors apart.

 * Their professional upbringing by the Tokyo Broadcasting Drama Troupe (東京放送劇団), formed by NHK and other private networks during the golden age of radio.
 * The lack of Japan-made movies and dramas forced TV networks to air foreign shows, which raised demand for voice actors.
 * The boom in the anime world market, which produced a wave of young talents who wanted to become voice actors, rather than actors.

History
Voice acting has existed in Japan since the advent of radio. It was only in the 1970s that the term seiyū entered popular usage because of the anime Space Battleship Yamato. According to a newspaper interview with a voice talent manager, "Since the Yamato boom, the word 'seiyū' has become instantly recognised; before that, actors and actresses who introduced themselves as seiyū were often asked, 'You mean you work for Seiyu supermarket?

Early history
The earliest Japanese animation would predate the introduction of audio in film by at least a decade. Much like their live-action contemporaries during this period, screenings would have musical accompaniment and oftentimes include a benshi (narrator). The benshi would fulfill a role similar to ones in the Japanese puppet theater and magic lantern shows, where the narration would fill in dialogue and other story elements. With the introduction of sound in film, voices were often pulled from the available staff. For example, in Benkei tai Ushiwaka animator Kenzō Masaoka cast himself and his wife as the titular Benkei and Ushiwaka, respectively.

Radio drama era
In 1925, the Tokyo Broadcasting Company (predecessor to the NHK, Japan's public broadcasting system) started radio broadcasts. In that same year, twelve students who were specialising in voice-only performances became the first voice actors in Japan when a performance of a radio drama was broadcast. They referred to themselves as "seiyū", but in those days the term "radio actor" (ラジオ役者) was used by newspapers to refer to the profession.

In 1941, NHK opened a training program to the public to prepare actors to specialise in radio dramas. This was called the "Tokyo Central Broadcasting Station Actor Training Agency" (東京中央放送局専属劇団俳優養成所). Then in 1942, the Tokyo Broadcasting Drama Troupe debuted its first performance. This was the second time that the term "seiyū" was used to refer to voice actors.

There are several theories as to how the term "seiyū" was coined. One theory is that Oyhashi Tokusaburo, a reporter for the Yomiuri Newspaper, coined the term. Another theory is that Tatsu Ooka, an entertainment programming managing producer for the NHK, came up with it.

At first, voice actors, like those at the Tokyo Radio Drama Troupe and similar companies specialised in radio dramas; with the advent of television, the term took on the additional meaning of one who does dubbing for animation. Television broadcasting aside, when radio was the leading mass medium, actors who played in radio dramas were not without their fans; for example, actors in the Nagoya Radio Drama troupe who played the lead love interest roles often received many fan letters.

1950s: First voice actor boom
Starting in the 1950s, a rise in the popularity of radio dramas as well as foreign television and film created many new opportunities for voice actors. After the, the Nippon Hōsō Kyōkai (NHK) began public broadcasting. Among these new broadcasts were several radio dramas, such as the 1952 drama , which would receive several adaptations on film, television, and stage due to its popularity.

Actors that were famous for their roles in dubbing and radio were used for their star power to voice similar characters in several anime productions. For example, Yasuo Yamada, who was famous for his Japanese dub of Clint Eastwood, was chosen to voice Lupin III for the Lupin the Third series.

1960s
In 1961, during the early days of commercial television broadcasting, the Five-Company Agreement (Gosha Agreement) caused the supply of Japanese movies that were available to Japanese television stations to dry up. As a result, in the 1960s many foreign dramas and other foreign programming was imported and dubbed into Japanese language for television broadcast.

At first, the NHK subtitled most foreign shows; however, shows dubbed in the Japanese language soon became the standard. At the centre of the first voice acting boom were actors like Nachi Nozawa, who dubbed the same foreign actors, in Nozawa's case Alain Delon, Robert Redford, and Giuliano Gemma. Because of problems with pay guarantees arising from the Gosha Agreement, cinema actors were prevented from dubbing foreign movies for television. Television actors were also prevented from dubbing because of a similar agreement. This caused studios to turn to actors from the radio age and actors from the Shingeki style of acting. Around this time dubbing of foreign animation was done by Rakugo story tellers, Asakusa comedians, and the like, and voice actors were called "dubbing talents" if they specialised in dubbing, while those giving voice to a character went under the name of "ateshi". It is during this golden age for dubbing that the Tokyo Actor's Consumer's Cooperative Society was founded. Later, Haikyo voice acting managers left and opened their own management agencies. Voice actors in Japan also voiced anime.

The first dubbed show broadcast in Japan was an episode of the American cartoon Superman, on October 9, 1955, on KRT (today TBS), and the first non-animated dubbed show broadcast was Cowboy G-Men, again by KRT, in 1956. Both were dubbed live; the first show to be broadcast with pre-recorded dubbing was The Adventures of Television Boy (テレビ坊やの冒険) on April 8, 1956.

1970s: Second voice actor boom
During the late 1970s, Akio Nojima, Kazuyuki Sogabe, Akira Kamiya, Tōru Furuya and Toshio Furukawa were the first to unite into a band,, and perform live. Many other voice actors released their own albums. At around 1979 the first anime magazines began to be published. The then editor-in-chief of Animage, Hideo Ogata, was the first to publish editorials on the ongoing transformation of voice actors into idols. Following his lead, the other magazines created "seiyū corners" with information and gossip about voice actors; this was one of the main causes of young anime fans yearning to become voice actors. This period also saw a gradual split of anime voice actors from their roots in theater. With the rise of voice actor specific training centers and audio-only productions, voice actors could start their careers working full time without any association to a broadcasting theater company. The term "seiyu" emerged to describe these voice actors who focused solely on voicing for anime productions. This boom lasted until the first half of the 1980s.

1980s
In 1989, the voice actors of the five main stars of the animated television show Ronin Warriors (Nozomu Sasaki, Takeshi Kusao, Hiroshi Takemura, Tomohiro Nishimura and Daiki Nakamura) formed an all-male singing group called "NG5". The group was featured as the subject of a special documentary program on MBS.

During this period, voice acting production companies also began to provide specialised courses at on-site training schools specifically for training in animation dubbing.

1990s
The 1960s and 1970s booms were centered on media, such as the TV. In the 1990s, a new boom centred on more personal ways of communication, such as radio shows, Original Video Animation, television quizzes, public events and the Internet, gave way to the publication of the first dedicated voice acting magazines, and Voice Animage. Voice actors acquired many new fans thanks to the radio, and their CD sale figures increased. Concerts began to be held in the bigger halls. While the second boom also saw the voice actors become DJs, this time the recording houses backed the voice actor radio shows as sponsors, and large sums of money began to circulate. Megumi Hayashibara, Hekiru Shiina and Mariko Kouda are the first examples of this new trend. Recording companies and voice acting schools began to devise new ways to raise young voice actors.

When voice acting was introduced in television games, the same voice actors would perform in a series of events related to the television game world, making appearances and participating in radio programs based on the television games to attract the fanbase.

In the second half of the 1990s, the boom in the animation world led to the increase of anime shown in the Tokyo area. With the Internet, gathering information on their favourite voice actors became easy for fans, and voice actors began to appear in Internet-based radio shows.

From 1994 to 2000, the world's first digital satellite radio broadcaster, St.GIGA, transmitted episodic video games with voice acted overdubs in a separate and continually streaming vocal track (a technique called SoundLink), to be played in Japan on Nintendo's Super Famicom video game console with its Satellaview peripheral. BS Zelda no Densetsu was identified by Nintendo as the world's first integrated radio-game.

2000–present: Idol and real-life crossovers
During the mid-to-late 2000s, voice acting talents began crossing over with the Japanese idol industry. Prominent examples include Aya Hirano, Koharu Kusumi, and Nana Mizuki, all of whom were established actors or singers in mainstream entertainment before entering voice acting. While character song tie-ins were already common in the film industry by then, some voice actors also began making crossover television, stage, and concert appearances as their characters as well, leading them to be closely associated with one another. The term "2.5D", which picked up frequent usage in the mid-2010s, was used to describe voice actors who would portray their characters in real life, such as television or stage plays. Over the mid-to-late 2010s, multimedia projects where the voice actors would appear as their characters in real-life became popular, such as The Idolmaster and Love Live! The magazine Seiyū Grand Prix noted that over 1,500 voice actors were active in 2021, compared to 370 voice actors (145 men and 225 women) in 2001.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Voice acting in Japan


text:
West Somerset Railway

The West Somerset Railway (WSR) is a 22.75 mi heritage railway line in Somerset, England. The freehold of the line and stations is owned by Somerset Council. The railway is leased to and operated by West Somerset Railway plc (WSR plc), which is supported and minority-owned by the West Somerset Railway Association (WSRA) charitable trust and the West Somerset Railway Heritage Trust (WSRHT). WSR operates services using both heritage steam and diesel trains.

It originally opened in 1862 between Taunton and Watchet. In 1874 it was extended from Watchet to Minehead by the Minehead Railway. Although just a single line, improvements were needed in the first half of the twentieth century to accommodate the significant number of tourists that wished to travel to the Somerset coast. The line was closed by British Rail in 1971 and reopened in 1976 as a heritage line.

It is the longest standard gauge independent heritage railway in the United Kingdom. Services normally operate over just the 20.5 mi between Minehead and Bishops Lydeard. During special events some trains continue a further 2 mile to Norton Fitzwarren where a connection to Network Rail allows occasional through trains to operate onto the national network.

History
In 1845, when the Bristol and Exeter Railway (B&ER) had recently completed its main line, there were proposals for a number of different and competitive railway schemes in west Somerset. A Bristol and English Channels Direct Junction Railway was proposed as a link from Watchet through Stogumber and Bishops Lydeard to Bridport on the south coast, which would be an alternative to ships taking a long and dangerous passage around Land's End. This prompted the promotion of a connecting line from Williton to Minehead and Porlock, a line designed to attract tourists to Exmoor. Shortly afterwards, a Bristol and English Channels Connection Railway was suggested from Stolford to Bridport which would have passed through the Quantock Hills near Crowcombe. Alternatively, the Bridgwater and Minehead Junction Railway would link with the B&ER at Bridgwater and run through Williton to Minehead with a branch to Watchet and a connecting Minehead and Central Devon Junction Railway would provide a line to Exeter. An alternative link to South Devon was proposed by the Exeter, Tiverton and Minehead Direct Railway through Dunster and offered an extension to Ilfracombe.

West Somerset Railway Company
None of these schemes were pursued and it was to be more than ten years before schemes for railways in the area were to be again proposed.

On 9 July 1856, local land owner Sir Peregrine Fuller Palmer Acland of Fairfield House, Stogursey arranged a meeting at the Egremont Hotel in Williton. The advertised purpose was to discuss a "Railway from the West Somerset iron-fields and coast, to the Bristol & Exeter Railway," proposed to connect Watchet - then a major port on the River Severn, as well as one of the largest industrial towns in Somerset, although in decline in importance thanks to the railways - to join the B&ER at either the county town of Taunton or the large port town of Bridgwater. The promoters had already approached Isambard Kingdom Brunel for his views as the former engineer of the B&ER, and by the time of the meeting he had already undertaken a preliminary survey of the alternative routes. There were three alternate options:

 * The Rev. J. Llewellyn, of Wiveliscombe, suggested a route leaving the existing WSMR at Washford, then passing through Monksilver, Elworthy, Brompton Regis, Ford, Milverton and Hillfarrance, and onwards to the B&ER.
 * The second and third options bypassed the WSMR, running directly from Watchet to Williton to follow the Donniford valley to Crowcombe, and then either:
 * To Triscombe and via a tunnel through the Quantock Hills to Bridgewater. The promoters were initially keen to build the tunnel, as the Ironstone in this part of Somerset was similar to that found in South Wales, amongst which were found rich seams of coal
 * Or directly onwards to Taunton, and via the B&ER to Bridgwater

In his contribution, Brunel described the valley of "a little brook called Donniford Brook " as being of prime importance to any route. He had concluded that the starting point should be either Watchet or Porlock, then direct to Williton to follow the Donniford Brook as far as Triscombe. Brunel then gave the initial calculations on the required tunnel to reach Bridgwater, which being 70 to 80 chains in length would require 50 shafts to be sunk, and as it also required approaches with a 1 in 50 gradient, would be very expensive. In his conclusion, Brunel stated his preference as a route from Watchet via Williton to Taunton, stating it to be both cheaper and offering more development options to increase passenger loading.

The first meeting had been dominated by people from Minehead, Wiveliscombe and Bridgwater but, on 1 August 1856, a second meeting was held in Taunton. Brunel explained to those present the advantages of the different routes and gave some weight to the argument for a route to Bridgwater with a long tunnel under the Quantocks. He also suggested that the line should be continued to Minehead or Porlock but the meeting resolved to construct a railway only from Taunton to Watchet.

Brunel was engaged to undertake a more detailed survey and the B&ER agreed to operate the line for ten years in return for 45% of the receipts. Plans were produced as required by British law in November 1856 and the West Somerset Railway Company was incorporated on 17 August 1857 by an Act of Parliament to build a railway from Taunton to Watchet. A prospectus was issued to raise the required £120,000 and these were all subscribed by the end of the year.

The railway's engineer, George Furness of London, started construction on 7 April 1859 at Crowcombe and construction lasted for nearly three years. The railway opened for passengers from Watchet Junction (2 mi west of Taunton) to Watchet on 31 March 1862; goods traffic commenced in August. Trains were operated through to Taunton railway station as no station was provided at the junction. On 8 June 1871 a second junction was brought into use where the WSR joined the B&ER main line for the Devon and Somerset Railway and a station was finally opened here, known as Norton Fitzwarren, on 8 June 1871 but branch line trains continued to operate through to Taunton.

Minehead Railway
The West Somerset Mineral Railway (WSMR) was intended to link the iron-ore mines of the Brendon Hills with the harbour at Watchet. In 1856, before it was even opened, it was suggested that the WSMR should be extended to Minehead instead of the WSR and an Act of Parliament for this work was passed on 27 July 1857 but it was never constructed. Instead, an Act for a new Minehead Railway was passed on 5 July 1865 to build a line from the WSR at Watchet to Minehead. This again failed to be built but a renewed Minehead Railway Act of 29 June 1871 finally saw the construction begin the following year.

The new railway was opened on 16 July 1874. In 1871, the WSR had agreed a new perpetual lease to the B&ER for a fixed sum each year which rose annually to a maximum of £6,600. The new Minehead Railway too was leased to the B&ER which then operated the two railways as a single branch from Taunton. To break up the 22.75 mi of single track, a passing loop and second platform were installed at Williton, 13 mi from the junction.

Part of the Great Western
On 1 January 1876, the B&ER was amalgamated into the Great Western Railway (GWR). To increase the capacity of the West Somerset line, another loop was opened in 1879 at Crowcombe Heathfield. The broad gauge was converted to  standard gauge in 1882. Trains ran as usual on Saturday 28 October but the track was lifted the following day and reopened for traffic on Monday afternoon.

The Minehead Railway was amalgamated into the GWR in 1897 but the West Somerset Railway remained an independent company for the time being although all its assets continued to be leased to the bigger company. Under Great Western influence, there were steady improvements in the line as it carried an increasing level of holiday traffic to the Somerset coast and Exmoor. The platform at Stogumber was extended in 1900, a new passing loop was opened in 1904 at Blue Anchor and, the following year, a second platform was opened at Minehead. A third loop was installed in 1906, this time at Bishops Lydeard and the loop at Williton was lengthened in 1907.

Under the Railways Act 1921, the West Somerset Railway Company was finally amalgamated into the Great Western Railway but the Minehead branch, as the route was now known, continued to be operated by the newly enlarged GWR.

In the 1930s, alterations were made to significantly increase the number and length of trains that could be handled. The mainline from Norton Fitzwarren through Taunton to Cogload Junction was increased from two to four tracks on 2 December 1931 and the junction station was enlarged which meant that it was better able to cope with the trains on all three routes. In 1933, the platform at Stogumber was extended to accommodate longer trains and two further passing loops were opened. These were at Leigh Bridge south of Stogumber and at Kentford west of Watchet. The following year saw the original single track doubled between Dunster and Minehead and the platform at the terminus was lengthened. The loop at Blue Anchor was also lengthened in 1934, the line was doubled from Norton Fitzwarren to Bishops Lydeard in 1936 and the Williton loop was lengthened for a second time in 1937. Camp coaches were placed at Blue Anchor from 1934 to 1939 and at Stogumber from 1935 to 1939, which encouraged holiday makers to use the train to reach these rural locations. In 1936, the GWR's chairman, Sir Robert Horne, opened the new £20,000 open-air swimming pool at Minehead.

Run down to closure
The GWR was nationalised, becoming the Western Region of British Railways on 1 January 1948. Camp coaches made a reappearance in 1952 and were available to the public at both Stogumber and Blue Anchor from 1952 to 1964; the latter were kept on for British Rail staff holidays until 1970.

However, Washford signal box was closed in 1952 and Minehead engine shed was closed in 1956. Norton Fitzwarren station closed on 30 October 1961, after which passengers once again had to travel through to Taunton to change onto trains travelling west.

Despite the opening of a Butlins holiday camp at Minehead in 1962 which brought some 30,000 people to the town that year, the line was recommended for closure in the 1963 Reshaping of British Railways report. Goods traffic was withdrawn from Stogumber on 17 August 1963 and from the other stations on 6 July 1964 after which British Rail transported any goods traffic by road from Taunton. By this time the passing loops at Leigh Bridge and Kentford had been taken out of use, in April and May 1964 respectively.

The Beatles visited the branch on 2 March 1964 to film part of A Hard Day's Night. They shot a short scene at Crowcombe Heathfield in which Ringo Starr and George Harrison cycle on the platform alongside the train. The train originated at London Paddington and eventually arrived at Minehead where a large crowd of admirers gathered to see the Fab Four.

Minehead signal box was closed on 27 March 1966 after which the two tracks between there and Dunster were operated as two bi-directional single lines, one to each platform. Dunster Signal Box was retained to control the level crossing and points there, and ground frames allowed the train crew to change the points at Minehead to allow locomotives to run round from one end of the train to the other. The original turntable was removed from Minehead in 1967 by which time all trains were operated by diesels.

With the line still proposed for closure, the Transport Users Consultative Committee heard from the Western National bus company that it would require twenty buses in the summer to cope with the influx of holidaymakers, but that most would be idle for much of the year when far fewer people travelled to Minehead and the surrounding district. In an attempt to make the loss-making line profitable, BR reduced the double track from Norton Fitzwarren to one track on 1 March 1970 and closed the signal boxes at Bishops Lydeard and Norton Fitzwarren. This left the branch with three sections (Silk Mills to Williton; Williton to Dunster; Dunster to Minehead) but still required seven staff per shift as there were three signal boxes and four level crossings. The line continued to make a loss so was eventually closed. The last train left Minehead on 2 January 1971; this was a Saturday and the following Monday 4 an enhanced bus service came into operation.

Closure
Over the following five-year period, the line was kept in "possible to return to operations" status, but lineside shrubbery quickly took over the infrastructure. In 1975, after Butlins Minehead holiday camp decided to modernise and refurbish, it was proposed to extract LMS Princess Coronation Class 6229 Duchess of Hamilton, purchased by Billy Butlin in 1966 along with LB&SCR A1 class Knowle (transported out by road), under an offer made by British Railways. This required a full-time two-week incursion of a permanent way team to clear the line pathway, before BR Class 25 diesel No.25 059 and a BR brakevan could make a 20 mph traverse in March 1975. The trackwork of the run round loop of No.1 platform was removed from the upline at Minehead, to allow transporter Pickfords to make a suitable railhead connection to enable release of No.6229 Duchess of Hamilton.

Heritage railway
On 5 February 1971, a Minehead Railway Preservation Society organised a meeting in Taunton and a working party headed by Douglas Fear, a local businessman, was tasked with investigating how the line could be reopened as a privately owned railway. In May, a new West Somerset Railway Company was formed to acquire the line and operate a year-round commuter service from Minehead to Taunton alongside which a limited summer steam service could also run. A deal was agreed with British Rail to purchase the line with the support of Somerset County Council, however the council was wary of the lucrative Minehead station site falling into private hands should the railway fail. Instead, it purchased the line itself in 1973 and leased back the operational land to the West Somerset Railway Company plc.

The proposed commuter service never materialised, due to traffic restrictions between the newly installed Taunton Cider Company sidings at Norton Fitzwarren and Taunton, but the line was slowly reopened as a heritage railway. Minehead to Blue Anchor was the first section to see trains restored, opening on 28 March 1976 and services were extended to Williton on 28 August the same year. Trains returned to Stogumber on 7 May 1978 and they reached Bishops Lydeard on 9 June 1979. A new station at Doniford Halt was opened on the coast east of Watchet on 27 June 1987 to serve a holiday camp at Helwell Bay.

In 2004, work started on constructing a new triangle at Norton Fitzwarren which included a part of the old Devon and Somerset line, and a ballast reclamation depot opened there in 2006. In 2008, a new turntable was brought into use at Minehead. A new station opened on 1 August 2009 at Norton Fitzwarren on a new site a short distance north of the main line.

During 2007 a regular service ran from Minehead to Taunton and Bristol Temple Meads on a couple of days each week. Known as the Minehead Express, it was aimed at holidaymakers travelling to Butlins at Minehead. It left Minehead at 11:10 and Bristol at 14:06 with Victa Westlink's s 31452 and 31454 powering the five coaches. 31128 was available as a spare locomotive but was not used on the service trains. The first of these trains ran on 20 July and operated on a total of 18 days, finishing on 27 August.

Whilst the freehold of the line continues to be owned by Somerset County Council, during 2013 it was announced that both the WSRA and the WSR plc had approached the county council about the possibility of purchasing the freehold of the line. The council made the decision in late May 2014 not to sell the freehold after all.

A May 2018 county transport strategy acknowledged that there were plans to reintroduce services between Taunton and Minehead. Following an inspection by the Office of Rail and Road in 2018, it was announced that the railway would close from 2 January 2019, and would reopen on 1 April. The inspection found that several safety improvements needed to be made.

The line was suggested in 2019 by Campaign for a Better Transport as a 'priority 2' candidate for reopening as part of the national network.

Route
The route is described from Minehead towards Taunton. Features are described as being on the left or right of the line for passengers facing this direction of travel, therefore the right side of the train is generally on the south or west of the line. On the railway this is known as the 'up' direction.

Minehead to Watchet
Communities served: Minehead – Dunster – Carhampton and Blue Anchor – Washford – Watchet

The station at Minehead is situated on the sea front close to the town centre. The platform has a track on each side and the old goods shed, which is now used for locomotive maintenance, is situated on the north side between the platform and the beach. On the opposite side of the station is a turntable and the station cafe. Sidings on both sides of the station are used to hold stock, both operating vehicles and others awaiting repairs in the workshops. At the far end of the station is the signal box and level crossing over Seaward Way, a link road from the A39 to the seafront that was built in the 1990s.

Trains leave Minehead heading south-eastwards on the longest straight and level section of track along the whole line, passing behind Butlin's holiday camp which is on the left between the railway and the sea and then across flat fields. 1.75 mi from Minehead the line crosses Dunster West level crossing and enters Dunster station. It is a mile from the village of that name which is on the hill to the right along with Dunster Castle.

The platform at Dunster is on the right while the old goods yard on the left is now used by the WSR's civil engineering team who keep the tracks in good order. On leaving the station is another level crossing, this time over Sea Lane that leads down to Dunster Beach which can be glimpsed to the left of the train. A footpath leads from the east end of the platform down to Sea Lane to save a long walk round along the road. The line then continues across the concrete channel of the River Avill onto Ker Moor and along the edge of the beach to reach Blue Anchor, 3.5 mi from Minehead and the first passing loop. Approaching the station, the old goods yard is on the right and three camp coaches are kept here where volunteers working on the railway can stay overnight. At the western end of the platform, a signal box overlooks a level crossing on the road from Blue Anchor to Carhampton. The West Somerset Steam Railway Trust's museum is on the right-hand platform.

The line now leaves the sea and swings inland in a south east direction, climbing at gradients up to 1 in 65 (1.5%), the steepest section of the line. After turning back towards the north east, the line reaches the second highest point on the line at Washford. This is 6.75 mi from Minehead and has a single platform on the right. On the opposite side of the line, the goods yard and shed is now used by the West Somerset Railway Heritage Trust for restoration of their heritage carriages, following the vacating of the site by the Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust, who had occupied the site 1976–2023 and ran a museum there with a collection of rolling stock and a display of signalling equipment.

The line now swings north-eastwards and starts to descend, initially at 1 in 74 (1.35%). A footpath on the right of the line at a slightly lower level is the route of the old West Somerset Mineral Railway, which passes beneath the line on the approach to Watchet. After passing the former junction to the Wansbrough Paper Mill on the right, the line passes under a small road bridge, before arriving at Watchet railway station, 8 mi from Minehead.

Watchet to Bishops Lydeard
Communities served: Watchet – Williton – Stogumber and Kingswood – Crowcombe – Bishops Lydeard  The platform at Watchet is on the right of the train but the station building is unusually set back from the line and faces Taunton, a hangover from its construction as the terminus of the original West Somerset Railway. The old goods shed is opposite the platform and now houses the Watchet Boat Museum. A footbridge crosses the line at the Minehead end of the station and a foot crossing leads across the track at the other end of the platform which gives access to the harbour for train passengers.

The line climbs away into a cutting through a headland but soon swings round to a south-easterly direction along the cliff above Helwell Bay. Passing under the Watchet to West Quantoxhead road, the line turns southwards and passes the concrete platform at Doniford Halt, which is on the left of the train 9 mi from Minehead. The agricultural landscape is then soon supplanted on the right by the sidings around the West Somerset Railway Association's (WSRA) workshops, which are housed in a corrugated iron building known as the Swindon Shed as it was originally built there more than 100 years ago. Watchet is being used as the terminus of trains from Bishops Lydeard in March and April 2019 due to engineering works at Minehead.

Williton railway station, at 9.75 mi, is near the midpoint of the operational railway and the second passing loop. Behind the platform on the right, next to the WSRA workshops, are the old goods shed and the more modern workshop which is the home to the Diesel and Electric Preservation Group's fleet of diesel locomotives. The main station building is also on this platform, as is the oldest signal box on the line which stands above the level crossing. This sees little road traffic as most crosses the railway on the A39 road bridge that stands just beyond the end of the passing loop. Next to the level crossing on the left of the line is a garden with a decorative box hedge that is over 100 years old. Leaving Williton, the railway crosses over the A358 road and climbs up onto the side of the Quantock Hills. Passing close to the village of Bicknoller, it crosses the Macmillan Way West, a long-distance footpath. Following the eastern side of a steep valley, it continues to rise with sections at 1 in 100 and 1 in 92 (1.1%) as it approaches the small station at Stogumber, 13 mi from Minehead. This station unusually has its platform on the right of the train but the station offices are on the left. The space alongside the offices is now a well-maintained garden but is where the goods shed used to stand.

The line continues to climb 1 in 92 up the valley until, 15.75 mi from Minehead, it reaches the summit of the line at Crowcombe Heathfield. This is another passing loop but the down platform (on the right) is signalled to allow trains to run in either direction; the original platform was on the left of the line and so the main buildings are all on this side of the line. From the Minehead end, they include the old station master's house, some modern housing in sympathetic style and the station offices.

After leaving Crowcombe Heathfield, it is downhill, with sections as steep as 1 in 81 (1.2%). At Combe Florey, the line crosses the A358 two more times in quick succession and this remains close on the left of the line to Bishops Lydeard. This station has another passing loop and is the terminus of regular operations, 19.75 mi from Minehead. Locomotives are kept in a secure compound on the left at the Taunton end of the station. Both platforms are signalled for running in either direction and most trains run from the one on the left, although the original buildings are all on the right. These include the goods shed which now houses a railway museum and the old station master's house.

Bishops Lydeard to Taunton
Communities served: Bishops Lydeard – Norton Fitzwarren – Taunton  This section beyond Bishops Lydeard carries no regularly scheduled passenger trains nowadays but occasional special services operate. During special events, a shuttle service is often operated between Bishops Lydeard and the new platform that opened at Norton Fitzwarren in 2009. A few special trains also operate over the link between the West Somerset Railway and Network Rail, running through to Taunton and beyond.

The line passes the Norton Manor Royal Marine camp on the left and then passes under Norton Bridge and the new Allerford Junction where a siding has been installed on the right to serve the West Somerset Railway Association's ballast reclamation depot. Just beyond the junction, on the right, is the concrete platform erected in 2009 at Norton Fitzwarren. The West Somerset Railway's line terminates here and trains running through to Taunton run onto Network Rail's tracks. The remains of the station hotel are seen on the left but the track joins the Bristol to Exeter line on the right. Passing the engineers' depot at Fairwater Yard on the right, one soon arrives at Taunton, the traditional junction station for trains running the 24.75 mi to Minehead.

Norton Fitzwarren triangle
On 24 March 2004, the WSRA announced the purchase of 33 acre of land at Norton Fitzwarren. The triangular piece of land is located between: the existing WSR line from Norton Bridge (B3227) south to the junction with Network Rail; the westward running residual trackbed of the Barnstaple branch from Network Rail junction to the first bridge (Allerford Bridge) over the former trackbed in the west; and the Barnstaple branch stub back north to Norton Bridge. The purchase of the land was announced as the first step in a 20-year programme to create a new train turning facility, alongside a national-scale "Heritage Railway Development" encompassing: an engine shed; carriage works; and railway engineering facility.

In 2009, just beyond the new Allerford Junction, the WSR constructed a new 4-carriage length station on the original WSR/Network Rail line, creating a new Norton Fitzwarren station on WSR metals, just west of the original GWR location.

Network Rail's (NR) Fairwater Yard track maintenance facility is a short distance east of Norton Fitzwarren. Due to the high costs of ballast disposal from the site, NR approached the railway about using the triangle site as a commercial recycling site, allowing reclaimed ballast to be used in the local construction industry. After gaining planning permission from Somerset County Council, and approval of a drainage plan from the Environment Agency (conditions of which stipulate that the site must be fully reverted to meadow pasture at the termination of ballast recycling operations) the WSRA came to an agreement with NR to utilise spent ballast and rail from their track renewals programme. NR maintenance trains occasionally run from Fairwater Yard to Norton Fitzwarren to drop off spent materials at the site. A commercial operator sorts the ballast under contract to the WSRA.

The funds generated from ballast recycling allowed the WSRA to develop the triangle as originally proposed and an inner chord to create sufficient space in which to safely turn trains before the junction with the main line. Visiting BR Standard Class 7 70000 Britannia was the first locomotive to officially be turned on the Norton Fitzwarren triangle during the Spring Steam Gala in March 2012.

Operation
A service of four trains each way Monday to Saturday was advertised when the railway first opened to Watchet, but this fluctuated to five or six at times for many years. A very limited Sunday service was introduced in 1862 but was withdrawn in 1869.

An engine shed was provided at originally Watchet so that trains could start from that end of the line. This was moved to Minehead when the line was extended to there, but the frequency of services remained much the same. With the improvements to the line in the early years of the century, the frequency increased to eight trains daily by 1910 and to 14 before World War II. Sunday services resumed in 1926 for the first time in over 50 years. The engine shed was closed in 1956 after which time all trains were provided from the Taunton end and the timetable was cut back to ten round trips. Diesels started to appear regularly from 1962, both locomotive-hauled trains and diesel multiple units (DMUs). As of 2009, regular services operate between Minehead and Bishops Lydeard. The operating season runs from March to October, with infrequent operations from November through to February. Trains run daily during the summer but less frequently during the remainder of the season. Four regular timetables are run on different days depending on expected demand, varying from two to four trains in operation, each of which makes two round trips which gives between four and eight services each way. From February 2009 to January 2010, services were advertised on 243 days. Operating locomotives are based at Minehead and Bishops Lydeard and a spare is generally kept ready at Williton.

During special events, an intensive service is operated and some workings continue through to Norton Fitzwarren. A few railtours each year come through from Network Rail using the connection near Taunton.

The heritage railway also carries some freight traffic from time to time. At one time this was carrying stone for Minehead sea defences, in conjunction with Mendip Rail. In more recent years it has seen Freightliner-hauled Network Rail trains discharge old ballast at Norton Fitzwarren for recycling.

Signalling
The railway is separated into five nominal block sections:
 * Network Rail boundary at Norton Fitzwarren (milepost 1651/4) to Bishops Lydeard: One Train Working (OTW). A "No Signalman" Electric Key Token (EKT) system is used on this section. The token is sent by car to Taunton when through trains operate from Network Rail. There are no intermediate loops, but three ground frame operated points to allow access and turning on the Norton Triangle.
 * Bishops Lydeard to Crowcombe Heathfield: both stations have passing loops controlled by signal boxes. This section is controlled by an EKT system, as is the rest of the line. Crowcombe Heathfield signal box can be switched-out, creating a double section with the next block, with control then via a long section EKT system.
 * Crowcombe Heathfield to Williton: both stations have passing loops controlled by signal boxes, with the block controlled by EKT.
 * Williton to Blue Anchor: both stations have passing loops controlled by signal boxes, with the block controlled by EKT.
 * Blue Anchor to Minehead: both stations have loops or facilities controlled by signal boxes. This section uses Electric Key Token (EKT) control and was the first section to be completed with working EKT.

Communication between signal boxes for block working is by a block bell system with a series of bell codes, with additional phone lines for more in depth conversation to take place.

The signal boxes use two types of frame, both manufactured at the GWR signal works in Reading. The older frames are the 1892 developed Stud frame, which replaced the original twist frames. It operates in a similar manner to tappet locking except that the blades are curved. The remained signal boxes use 5-bar tappet locking frames dating from the 1930s. Power supply within the boxes is standard 110-volt AC, 50 Hz, derived via transformer from the standard UK/EU 230-volts AC individual supplies. Inside the box, most voltages are DC, with standards derived from those in operations during British Railways ownership of the line.

Isolated level crossings are fed direct from mains supply, but use a locally derived railway standard 24-volts DC.

"Switching Out" Crowcombe Heathfield

Crowcombe Heathfield Signal Box can be "switched out". When done, this reduces the amount of block sections on the railway to 4. Switching out is a procedure conducted by the signallers at Bishops Lydeard, Crowcombe Heathfield and Williton. Once complete, bell codes are transmitted between Bishops Lydeard and Williton using separate block bell instruments in their respective signalboxes for the long section, and thus a different, long section token is used for the full line between Bishops Lydeard and Williton. No signalman is required at Crowcombe Heathfield when the box is switched out.

When switched out, the points are set and locked for the main platform (Down Platform) and all signals for said platform are cleared in both directions, transforming Crowcombe Heathfield into a single platform station. The route and signals cannot be changed until the box is switched back in.

Rolling stock

Photographs of the line when operated by the Bristol and Exeter Railway show that their 4-4-0ST locomotives were the regular motive power. Later years saw types such as GWR 4500, 4575, and 5101 'prairie' 2-6-2Ts, 2251 'Collett goods' 0-6-0s, 5700 'pannier tank' 0-6-0PTs and 4300 'mogul' 2-6-0s. In British Railways' time, these were replaced by Western Region NBL Type 2, Hymek Type 3 diesel-hydraulic locomotives, Swindon and Gloucester cross-country diesel multiple units (DMUs).

Today, the line is operated by a variety of preserved steam and diesel locomotives and DMUs. Most of these are typical of GWR branch lines in Somerset or of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway (SDJR). Among the types based on the railway are examples of GWR 4575 and 5100 class 2-6-2Ts and a Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway 7F Class 2-8-0. A unique experiment has been to convert a GWR 5101 Class 2-6-2T into a small 2-6-0 numbered 9351. Diesels include Hymek and Western diesel-hydraulics.

Most trains are formed from British Rail Mark 1 coaches painted in a chocolate and cream livery, based on the most familiar one used by the GWR but with WSR crests. The WSRA owned and operated Quantock Belle fine dining train is also formed from BR Mark 1 coaches, but each is painted in a livery reminiscent of Pullman cars and also named. There are also a number of freight wagons, some of which are used for engineering purposes or in a demonstration heritage freight train that is used on special occasions.

Films and television
Several films and television programmes have been shot on the railway:
 * A Hard Day's Night (1964) featured The Beatles and was filmed in 1964 at London Marylebone station and on the Minehead branch, much of it in and around Crowcombe.
 * The Belstone Fox (1973), a children's film, partly shot along the line near Crowcombe (village), chronicling the life of a fox much smarter than the dogs that hunt him.
 * The Flockton Flyer (1977–78) was a children's television drama series about a preserved railway that was filmed on the West Somerset Railway shortly after it reopened.
 * The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1988), a BBC television mini-series was filmed at Crowcombe Heathfield.
 * The Land Girls (1997) was filmed on the railway and Crowcombe Heathfield featured as Bamford station.
 * Casualty (2013) the BBC One medical-based soap opera has used the line since shooting its first scenes in December 2013.

Heritage organisations
Although the railway is operated by the West Somerset Railway Company (WSR plc) based at Minehead, it is supported by a number of voluntary and charitable organisations.

The West Somerset Railway Association (WSRA) was formed alongside the WSR plc in 1971, to reopen the line. Based at Bishops Lydeard, it is a major shareholder of the plc. It has workshops at Williton and owns two locomotives (4500 Class 4561 and Manor Class No.7821 Ditcheat Manor) and shares in others. It also owns the Quantock Belle dining train and Hawksworth Saloon which operate on the line.

The West Somerset Railway Heritage Trust (WSRHT) (until 2021 named the West Somerset Steam Railway Trust) was set up in 1972 to operate the summer steam trains alongside the West Somerset Railway plc's commuter service. It had little to do once the railway became a purely seasonal heritage line but, in 1984 to coincide with the GW150 celebrations, was revived for education and historical research into the Minehead branch, and now has a small museum at Blue Anchor. The Trust's restored GWR sleeping carriage is on display in the Gauge Museum at Bishops Lydeard, and the Trust is presently restoring a GWR 'Toplight' coach which will be the first in a set of historic coaches on the West Somerset Railway. The Trust is administered by five voluntary directors. In early 2007, the Trust embarked on a project to restore two rakes of GWR coaches for use on the West Somerset Railway. Some of these were already on the railway, but others will be brought from abroad. The first of these, No 6705, was acquired from Steamtown USA. It returned to England, and after initial works at Crewe, is now at Williton for completion.

The Diesel and Electric Preservation Group (DEPG) is based at Williton, where they use the old goods shed and a newer building as workshops for their fleet of five ex-Western Region diesel locomotives: Class 14 9526; Class 35s 7017 and 7018; Class 47 1661; and Class 52 1010. Williton is also the base for a number of privately owned locomotives which are maintained by the DEPG.

Former
The Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust (S&DRT) was formerly based at Washford, and promotes the education and preservation of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway. It owns S&DJR 7F 2-8-0 number 88, which was part of the WSR's regular operational fleet during their tenure. While Washford was under their custodianship, the Trust developed a workshop and yard, where they restored a number of former S&DJR goods wagons and coaches, as well as "Kilmersdon", a Peckett 0-4-0ST locomotive. The associated museum featured a signalling display based around the small signal box from Burnham-on-Sea. In 2020 the Trust's agreement with the WSR was terminated and slowly the Trust's collection has been relocated to various sites including the Watercress Line and the Avon Valley Railway.

title: West Somerset Railway


text:
Room acoustics

Room acoustics is a subfield of acoustics dealing with the behaviour of sound in enclosed or partially-enclosed spaces. The architectural details of a room influences the behaviour of sound waves within it, with the effects varying by frequency. Acoustic reflection, diffraction, and diffusion can combine to create audible phenomena such as  room modes and  standing waves at specific frequencies and locations,  echos, and unique reverberation patterns.

Frequency zones
The way that sound behaves in a room can be broken up into four different frequency zones:
 * The first zone is below the frequency that has a wavelength of twice the longest length of the room. In this zone, sound behaves very much like changes in static air pressure.
 * Above that zone, until wavelengths are comparable to the dimensions of the room, room resonances dominate. This transition frequency is popularly known as the Schroeder frequency, or the cross-over frequency, and it differentiates the low frequencies which create standing waves within small rooms from the mid and high frequencies.
 * The third region which extends approximately 2 octaves is a transition to the fourth zone.
 * In the fourth zone, sounds behave like rays of light bouncing around the room.

Natural modes

For frequencies under the Schroeder frequency, certain wavelengths of sound will build up as resonances within the boundaries of the room, and the resonating frequencies can be determined using the room's dimensions. Similar to the calculation of standing waves inside a pipe with two closed ends, the modal frequencies $(f_{m,n,l})$ and the sound pressure of those modes at a particular position $(p_{m,n,l}(x,y,z))$  of a rectilinear room can be defined as

$$f_{m,n,l} = \frac{c}{2}\sqrt{\Big(\frac{m}{L_{x}}\Big)^2+\Big(\frac{n}{L_{y}}\Big)^2+\Big(\frac{l}{L_{z}}\Big)^2}$$ $$p_{m,n,l}(x,y,z) = A\cos\Big( \frac{m\pi}{L_x}x \Big)\cos\Big( \frac{n\pi}{L_y}y \Big)\cos\Big( \frac{l\pi}{L_z}z \Big)$$

where $ m,n,l = 0,1,2,3 ...$ are mode numbers corresponding to the x-,y-, and z-axis of the room, $ c $  is the speed of sound in $ \frac{m}{s} $, $ L_{x}, L_{y}, L_{z} $  are the dimensions of the room in meters. $A$ is the amplitude of the sound wave, and $x,y,z$  are coordinates of a point contained inside the room.

Modes can occur in all three dimensions of a room. Axial modes are one-dimensional, and build up between one set of parallel walls. Tangential modes are two-dimensional, and involve four walls bounding the space perpendicular to each other. Finally, oblique modes concern all walls within the simplified rectilinear room.

A modal density analysis method using concepts from psychoacoustics, the "Bonello criterion", analyzes the first 48 room modes and plots the number of modes in each one-third of an octave. The curve increases monotonically (each one-third of an octave must have more modes than the preceding one). Other systems to determine correct room ratios have more recently been developed.

Reverberation of the room
After determining the best dimensions of the room, using the modal density criteria, the next step is to find the correct reverberation time. The most appropriate reverberation time depends on the use of the room. RT60 is a measure of reverberation time. Times about 1.5 to 2 seconds are needed for opera theaters and concert halls. For broadcasting and recording studios and conference rooms, values under one second are frequently used. The recommended reverberation time is always a function of the volume of the room. Several authors give their recommendations A good approximation for broadcasting studios and conference rooms is:
 * TR[1 kHz] = [0.4 log (V+62)] – 0.38 seconds,

with V=volume of the room in m3. Ideally, the RT60 should have about the same value at all frequencies from 30 to 12,000 Hz.

To get the desired RT60, several acoustics materials can be used as described in several books. A valuable simplification of the task was proposed by Oscar Bonello in 1979. It consists of using standard acoustic panels of 1 m2 hung from the walls of the room (only if the panels are parallel). These panels use a combination of three Helmholtz resonators and a wooden resonant panel. This system gives a large acoustic absorption at low frequencies (under 500 Hz) and reduces at high frequencies to compensate for the typical absorption by people, lateral surfaces, ceilings, etc.

Acoustic space is an acoustic environment in which sound can be heard by an observer. The term acoustic space was first mentioned by Marshall McLuhan, a professor and a philosopher.

Nature of acoustics
In reality, there are some properties of acoustics that affect the acoustic space. These properties can either improve the quality of the sound or interfere with the sound.
 * Reflection is the change in direction of a wave when it hits an object. Many acoustic engineers took advantage from this. It is used for interior designs, either use reflections for benefits or eliminates the reflections. The sound waves usually reflect off the wall and interfere with other sound waves that are generated later. To prevent sound waves reflecting directly to the receiver, a diffusor is introduced. A diffusor has different depths in it, causing the sound to scatter in random directions evenly. It changes the disturbing echo of the sound into a mild reverb which decays over time.
 * Diffraction is the change of a sound wave's propagation to avoid obstacles. According to Huygens’ principle, when a sound wave is partially blocked by an obstacle, the remaining part that gets through acts as a source of secondary waves. For instance, if a person is in a room and shouts with the door open, the people on either side of the hallway will hear it. The sound waves that left the door become a source then spread out in the hallway. The sounds from the surroundings might interfere with the acoustic space like the example given.

Uses of acoustic space
The application of acoustic space is very useful in architecture. Some kinds of architecture need a proficient design to bring out the best performances. For example, concert halls, auditoriums, theaters, or even cathedrals.
 * Concert Hall – a place that is designed to hold a concert. A good concert hall usually holds around 1700 to 2600 audience. There are three main attributes of a good concert halls: clarity, ambiance, and loudness. If the seats are well positioned, the audience will hear clear sound from every single seat. For more ambiance, reverberation times are designed as preferred. For instance, romantic music usually requires an amount of reverberation time to enhance the emotions, therefore, the ceilings of the concert hall should be high. Royal Albert Hall - Messiah from Scratch 2015.JPG 2015 at Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London, United Kingdom ]]
 * Theater – a place that is designed for live performances. The first priority for sound design in a theater is speech. Speech has to be heard clearly, even if it is a soft whisper. The reverb is not needed in this case, it interrupts the words spoken by the actors. The intensity has to be increased, in order to enlarge the acoustic space, to cover the theater without disrupting the dynamic. In large theaters, amplification must be used.

 * Cathedral (and church) have an area called a choir, usually located near the transept, where the tower is located in most cathedrals. The choir is for the choir to sing. This kind of singing needs a soft cloudy sound for ambiance and emotion. The height of the cathedral does not only show religious pride but also improves the acoustics. There is more reverb when the source generates a sound in the space

title: Room acoustics


text:
User:Wilmer T

My professional name is Wilmer Thomas, and I have developed an increasing interest in old time history of northern Europe, me myself being born in the supposed origin of Scandinavia, 'Skåne'.

See homepage for more information: http://www.wilmer-t.net

Raised debates in Wikipedia:
 Where lies the Birka of Ansgar? I think Köpingsvik is the natural answer, which fits every description of Adam of Bremen in those accounts where the traditionally held Birka at Björkön fails!

Must we accept Uppsala, Uppland, to be the original cult place for ancient Asa cult in Scandinavia? See talk page of Ancient Uppsala!

Is there a possible similarity in the stories of Beowulf and the Rolf Krake saga that may indicate that they describe the same characters? There is much resemblances between first Beowulf and Bodvar Bjarke, second between Rolf Krake and his uncle, Hrothogar/Roar (supposed founder of Roskilde, i.e. Leire in Själland. Last, the reign of Beowulf in the end have much in common with the aleged reign of Rolf Krake. See talk page on Origins for Beowulf and Rolf Krake.

Is it possible that Odin was in fact a historical person, as stated by Snorri Sturluson in his Edda and Saxo Grammaticus in Gesta Danorum? This also was the hypothesis for Thor Heyerdahl in his last project, Jakten på Odin. See talk page of that article.

Edited/entered pages:
(Actually, mostly entered here for my own purposes. You may consider it as bragging though ;-)

title: User:Wilmer T


text:
User talk:Wilmer T

Hello there Thomas, welcome to Wikipedia! I hope you like the place and decide to stay. If you ever need editing help visit How does one edit a page and experiment at Sandbox. If you need pointers on how we title pages visit Naming conventions. If you have any other questions about the project then check out Help or add a question to the Village pump.

jimfbleak 09:21 18 Jun 2003 (UTC)

I just blanked your page at Origin of Beowulf and Rolf Krake. Wikipedia is an attempt at writing an encylopedia, not a place to do original research. If you can find the published work of others on this subject, please add it to the article. It is fine on the talk page also as a step toward helping write the article. Good luck on Wikipedia. We always need new hands. Rmhermen 12:39 20 Jun 2003 (UTC)

Thank you for editing the more personal stuff into the talkpage. Don't worry, you'll soon get the hang of this place. -- Cimon Avaro on a pogo stick 01:29 21 Jun 2003 (UTC)

Hello, and welcome to this forum. When you write a new article, could you start with a complete sentence rather than a dictionary definition, and follow the highlighting convention? (The title word or title phrase should be highlighted at its first appearance, typically in the first line. See my editing of Canterbury manuscript.) Michael Hardy 22:37 30 Jun 2003 (UTC)
 * Sure thing! Thanks...

title: User talk:Wilmer T


text:
Rie Tanaka

Rie Tanaka (田中 理恵) is a Japanese voice actress and singer. Notable among her numerous roles in anime are Lacus Clyne in Mobile Suit Gundam Seed and Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny, Chi in Chobits, Hikari Kujou/Shiny Luminous in Futari wa Pretty Cure Max Heart, Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke in Strike Witches and Suigintou in the anime adaptation of Rozen Maiden. In video games, she provides the voice of title character Neptune in the Hyperdimension Neptunia franchise, Morrigan Aensland in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Project X Zone, Sesshoin Kiara in Fate/Extra and Fate/Grand Order, Murata Himeko in Honkai Impact 3rd and Himeko in Honkai: Star Rail, Mitsuru Kirijo in Persona 3, Lisa in Genshin Impact and Ciel in Megaman Zero.

Biography
When Tanaka was in elementary school, she was a member of the book club. She loved to read to others, and would give picture story shows to the younger students in the morning before the homeroom teacher came to the classroom. One of the activities of the book committee was to hold a picture-story show competition in the audio-visual room, and when the students saw her picture-story show, they were delighted. She loved reading and illustrations to begin with, especially those of Mutsumi Inomata, and her desire to become a voice actress was directly triggered when she bought and listened to the drama CD CD Theater Dragon Quest, whose jacket illustration was done by Inomata, at a bookstore.

When she was in high school, she was a member of the Manga Research Club and participated in the Manga Nationals, where she directly appealed to Kazuhiko Shimamoto, a judge from her hometown, that she wanted to be a voice actor. After graduating from high school, she moved to Tokyo and enrolled in the voice acting course at Yoyogi Animation Academy. As she was very fond of reading and taking care of children, becoming a nursery teacher was also a big dream of hers. She was torn between going on to higher education and becoming a nursery teacher or becoming a voice actor, but she chose the latter because she wanted to bring her voice to children in a larger world, not stopping at one world. While still in school, Tanaka won the grand prize at the vocal audition held by MediaWorks & Scitron Digital Contents. She made her debut in the entertainment industry when she sang the opening theme song for the PlayStation version of "Eien no Shin'yū" in Yūkyū Gensōkyoku 2nd Album. This is why her debut as a singer was earlier than her debut as a voice actor. At the same time, she also participated in the theatrical anime Rurouni Kenshin: The Motion Picture as a minor role. She made her debut as an agency voice actress in 1999, playing the role of Mitsuki Sanada, one of the heroines in Dual! Parallel Trouble Adventure. 2006 saw her first starring role as Hiroko Matsukata in Hataraki Man.

Due to management reasons, Tanaka moved from Dramatic Department, to which she had belonged for many years, to Retreat on April 1, 2008, and to Office Anemone on March 1, 2019.

In addition to voice acting, Tanaka is also active in music, singing character songs for some works, and sometimes releasing singles under her own name. On April 26, 2019, it was announced that she will be working as a Youtuber under the show name "Rie Tanaka TV."

Personal life
Tanaka's favorite phrase is "Never get discouraged, never run away, never give up," and she has been actively increasing her Twitter friends since around 2010, including Rina Satō and Kenjiro Hata. However, on June 23, 2013, a man with a knife intruded a Neptunia promotion where Tanaka was present, yelling "Give me Tanaka! I am the victim!". In the hustle, Tanaka fell and bruised her knee, and after the incident, she took a break from Twitter  and later returned in 2014.

On June 17, 2012, Tanaka announced on her blog that she had married voice actor Koichi Yamadera. A year later, she disbanded her official fan club, "Cafe de Rie." She co-starred with Yamadera as Kusuo's maternal grandparents in 2016's The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.. On August 3, 2018, she announced on Twitter that she and Yamadera had divorced in July.

Songs anime/video games

 * Azumanga Daioh
 * Oishii Kimitachi (Yomi's image song)
 * Sorezore no One Way (Yomi's second image song)
 * Bakuretsu Tenshi – Breathe (Sei's image song)
 * Chobits
 * Raison d'être (ED1) (Reason To Be)
 * Ningyo hime (ED2) (Doll/Mermaid Princess)
 * I Hear You Everywhere (Chi image song)
 * Hitomi no Tonneru
 * Shiranai Sora
 * Dual! Parallel Trouble Adventure
 * "DUAL!" (alternate version in episode 14)
 * Mega Man Zero Soundtracks
 * L'oiseau du Bonheur (vocal version of Ciel's theme, 'Labo', for Remastered Tracks Rockman Zero IDEA)
 * Freesia (vocal version of the 'Promise -Next New World- (Overseas Version)' and 'Esperanto' songs for Remastered Tracks Rockman Zero PHYSIS)
 * Gundam SEED
 * Shizuka na Yoru ni (静かな夜に, In the Quiet Night)
 * Mizu no Akashi (水の証, Token of Water)
 * Hayate no Gotoku!
 * Epu Romanesque (Maria character song)
 * Kakurenbo (2nd character song)
 * Kanpeki, Egao Desu
 * Gundam SEED Destiny
 * Fields of Hope
 * EMOTION
 * Quiet Night C.E. 73
 * Hyperdimension Neptunia
 * Lady Cool　-パープルハート- (Neptune's image song)
 * スマイル・スパイラル (Neptune/Nepgear image song, performed with Yui Horie)
 * Hanaukyo Maid Tai – Song of the Hanaukyo Maid team
 * Hanaukyo Maid Tai La Verite – Voice of heart
 * Mabinogi – Eternal (for the commercial of the Mabinogi game in Japan)
 * Toradora! Character Song Album
 * TANPOPO (Yuri Koigakubo's theme)

Raison d'être
Released May 22, 2002, Victor Entertainment.

 * 1) Raison d'être
 * 2) Hitomi no Tunnel
 * 3) Raison d'être (Original Karaoke)

Ningyo Hime
Released August 21, 2002, Victor Entertainment.

 * 1) Ningyo Hime
 * 2) Soshite Sekai wa Kyomo Hajimaru -Chii Ver.-
 * 3) Kata Koto no Koi -Chii Ver.-
 * 4) Ningyo Hime (without Rie)

Yasashii Jikan no Naka de
Released August 10, 2009, label unknown.

 * 1) Yasashii Jikan no Naka de
 * 2) Yasashii Jikan no Naka de (Piano version)
 * 3) Yasashii Jikan no Naka de ~Instrumental~

garnet
Released February 7, 2001, Aniplex Music.

 * 1) Eien ni Shinyu (a cappella version)
 * 2) Boku wa kimi ga suki
 * 3) Have You Never Been Mellow
 * 4) KISS Kara Hajimaru Miracle (Jazz Version)
 * 5) Like a favorite song
 * 6) garnet
 * 7) Umi no mieru oka de
 * 8) Anata ni nita hito
 * 9) SKY
 * 10) Tadaima

24 wishes
Released January 3, 2003, Victor Entertainment.

Kokoro
Release: October 20, 2010, Geneon Universal.

 * 1) Let it be
 * 2) Dilemma
 * 3) in or out?
 * 4) Tsuki to Dance (月とダンス)
 * 5) SUPERMAN
 * 6) Ningyo Hime no Namida (人魚姫の涙)
 * 7) FRAME
 * 8) Kokoro (ココロ)
 * 9) Sora Tobu Pierrot (空飛ぶピエロ)
 * 10) Orange

Chara de Rie
Released September 10, 2003, Victor Entertainment. The album reached No. 34 on Oricon weekly chart and stayed on charts in 4 weeks.

 * 1) Katakoto no Koi -Chii Ver.-
 * 2) Let Me Be With You -Chii Ver.-
 * 3) Soshite Sekai wa Kyou mo Hajimaru -Chii Ver.-
 * 4) Mizu no Akashi -Acoustic Ver.-
 * 5) Shizuka na Yoru ni
 * 6) JUDY

title: Rie Tanaka