Dear All,
MYSTERY SOLVED ... or mostly solved!
I have now received a copy of the original photo from my distant relative. On the back is a date, June 14th, 1923 ... so we were close with our dating. It is a post-card sent from a cousin once-removed to her brother, who was awell-known comic of the era, named Jack Herbert.
I attach a scan of the photo. With the help of an old-fashioned magnifying glass, and strong light, the board says:
Gar Kiddie
Nor Kiddie
O.K.
A Magical
Musical Commedy
You will laugh 'till you cry!
Don't miss it!
What's more, just above the head of the second ladt from the right in the back row is another poster, on the wall behind her, which says "Cheltenham Colisseum"
So my relatives were a long way from their base in Yorkshire!
But this still leaves unexplained the name of the theatre preceding "Colisseum" The original photo does not reveal anything new, except that there is some damage along the top of the photo, so the last character of the mystery word consists of an L-shape, with a diagonal going up and to the right, and another diagonal from that one, going up and to the left. The apparent white horizontal line at the top is the damage.
Cheers
Tim