[A postcard image posted by Didier Ghez has piqued my interest. It depicts the interior of the Seven Dwarfs cottage, with Snow White perched on a tiny balcony inside. But this is a photo of an actual place. The back explains that it was built at "the Olympia," based on the work of Walt Disney.
Here's a quick look at what I was able to find on line. That's the fun part of the internet-- tracking things like this down.
Based on what's out there, I'm fairly certain that this was part of the 1938 "Radiolympia." This was a British trade show that introduced new radios and (later) television sets to the public. It started in 1926. In 1936 television was first demonstrated. By 1938 there was such interest that a complete model TV studio was built, with free exhibition broadcasts by the BBC. (Although you did have to pay 6 pence to go into the studio, rather than watch through viewing windows from the outside.)
The 1938 Radiolympia opened on Wednesday, August 24 with a gala live broadcast.
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Part of this has been preserved in silent footage from the collection of Desmond Campbell.
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At 2:40, there is an appearance by a familiar group of dwarfs!
http://www.youtube.com/
According to one of the participants in the broadcast, Maureen Potter, the Snow White section was performed only for the broadcast, and was not a regular part of the stage show. (It was repeated throughout the run of Radiolympia.)
http://www.reference.com/
So... does this mean that the charming Dwarf's cottage was part of the broadcast studio? Another part of the show? Or entirely separate?
Historians???]
