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{{short description|Australian opera singer, actress, performer (1929–2005)}}
{{Use Australian English|date=October 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name             = June Bronhill
| honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|size=100%|country=AUS-cats|OBE}}
| image            = June Bronhill Allan Warren.jpg
| caption          = Bronhill, photographed by [[Allan Warren]], in 1973
| birth_name       = June Mary Gough
| birth_date       = {{Birth date|1929|06|26|df=y}}
| birth_place      = [[Broken Hill]], New South Wales, Australia
| death_date       = {{Death date and age|2005|01|24|1929|06|26|df=y}}
| death_place      = [[Sydney]]
| background       = person
| occupation       = {{Hlist | Opera singer | actress | performer}}
| years_active     = c. 1949–1993 (retirement)
}}

'''June Mary Bronhill''' {{post-nominals|country=AUS-cats|OBE}} (26 June 1929{{spaced ndash}}24 January 2005), also known as '''June Gough''',<ref name="AusStage">{{cite web| title=My Fair Lady| url=https://www.ausstage.edu.au/pages/event/74425| website=AusStage| access-date=September 8, 2017}}</ref> was an Australian [[coloratura soprano]] opera singer, performer and actress,
 
She was well known for light opera, operetta and musical theatre in London [[West End theatre]]s and Australia as well as on the opera stage.

==Biography==
Born as June Mary Gough in [[Broken Hill]], New South Wales, in 1929, the daughter of George Francis Gough (1892–1963), born in Essex, England, and Mary Isobel Daisy Gough (1895–1964), née Hall,<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article45329554 "Marriages: Gough—Hall"], ''[[The Barrier Miner]]'' (29 May 1915), p. 4.</ref><ref name=":5" />

She married twice, first Brian Martin at [[Marrickville, New South Wales]], on 10 August 1951;<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18496113 "Singer Married"], ''[[The Sunday Herald (Sydney)|The Sunday Herald]]'', Sydney (12 August 1951), p. 19.</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article48650743|title=June Bronhill Married|page=3|work=[[The Barrier Miner]]|location=Broken Hill|date=11 August 1951|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> and second, Richard Milburne Champion de Crespigny Finny (1925–2003), in Sydney, on 17 January 1963.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55475277|title=June Bronhill|journal=[[The Australian Women's Weekly]]|page=134|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017|date=6 October 1976}}</ref> Both marriages ended in divorce.<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article103110564 "Court Order for ''Merry Widow'' Star"], ''[[The Canberra Times]]'', (24 November 1960), p. 21.</ref><ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110436717 "Soprano Estranged"], ''[[The Canberra Times]]'', (4 November 1970), p. 3.</ref><ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110683037 "Decree"], ''[[The Canberra Times]]'', (21 October 1971), p. 4.</ref> She had a daughter, Carolyn Jane Finny, in May 1963 by her second marriage.<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131744808 "Carolyn Jane gets her name"], ''[[The Canberra Times]]'', (21 February 1964), p. 3.</ref>

==Stage name==
Like other noted Australian sopranos, such as Elsie Mary Fischer (1881–1945) ("[[Elsa Stralia]]"), Vera Honor Hempseed (1890–1952)<ref>She married John Louis Cosgrove (1865–1943) in 1917: [http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article191183366 "Marriages: Cosgrove—Hempseed"], ''[[Daily Post (Hobart)|Daily Post]]'' Hobart (26 May 1917), p. 1.</ref><ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18281806 "Deaths: Cosgrove"], ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' (15 September 1952), p. 12.</ref> ("Madame Vera Tasma", after Tasmania), Helen Porter Mitchell (1861–1931) ("[[Nellie Melba]]", after Melbourne), Dorothy Mabel Thomas (1896–1978) ("Dorothy Canberra"), Florence Ellen Towl (1870–1952) ("Madame Ballara", after Ballarat), and Florence Mary Wilson (1892–1968) ("[[Florence Austral]]"),<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article130828282 "Has anyone a recording of soprano Dorothy Canberra?"] by Ian Warden, ''[[The Canberra Times]]'' (10 November 1982), p. 21.</ref> June Mary Gough adopted the stage name "June Bronhill" (after Broken Hill), which was her way of thanking her home town for its support in raising money to send her overseas for professional training as a singer.<ref>{{Cite Australian Dictionary of Biography|author=[[Diane Langmore]]|title=Stralia, Elsa (1881–1945)|volume=12|year=1990|id2=stralia-elsa-8694}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article49969901|title=High Praise for June Bronhill|page=6|work=[[The Barrier Miner]]|location=Broken Hill|date=22 October 1954|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> Her European vocal teacher misheard "Broken Hill" as "Bro-n-hill".

==Career==
She won third prize in the singing competition [[Sun Aria]] in 1949<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=The Oxford Companion to Australian Music|last=Bebbington|first=Warren|author-link=Warren Bebbington|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1997|isbn=978-0195534320|location=Melbourne|page=77}}</ref> and first prize in 1950.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article182510269|title=Aria Winner to Sing in Mobil Quest|page=3|work=[[Glen Innes Examiner]]|date=25 May 1951|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> She used her prize money to fund a trip to London to further her studies.<ref name=":0" />

In the 1951 [[Mobil Quest]] singing competition, June Bronhill was awarded third prize.<ref>{{cite news |last1=The Age (Melbourne) |title=Soprano Wins Mobil Quest |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/205330690 |access-date=27 December 2024 |publisher=The Age (Melbourne) |date=6 September 1951}}</ref>

Bronhill trained in London and gained early exposure with the [[English National Opera]]<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article49968024|title=Social Happenings; June Bronhill Established in London|page=5|work=[[The Barrier Miner]]|location=Broken Hill|date=6 October 1954|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> (Sadler's Wells Opera) company in [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]]'s ''[[The Marriage of Figaro]]''. She also sang leading roles in ''[[Die Fledermaus]]'',<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article49419020|title=June Bronhill Stars at Sadler's Wells|page=4|work=[[The Barrier Miner]]|location=Broken Hill|date=8 March 1954|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> ''[[The Gypsy Baron]]'', [[Gian Carlo Menotti|Menotti]]'s ''[[The Telephone (opera)|The Telephone]]'', [[Friedrich von Flotow|Flotow]]'s ''[[Martha (opera)|Martha]]'' and ''[[Hansel and Gretel (opera)|Hansel and Gretel]]''.<ref name="trove.nla.gov.au">{{Citation|title=Bronhill, June (singer) : programs and related material collected by the National Library of Australia|url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/14903430|date=1900|author=Bronhill, June|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> Her roles in [[Jacques Offenbach|Offenbach]]'s operas, with the Sadler's Wells company, included Eurydice in ''[[Orpheus in the Underworld]]'' and Gabrielle in ''[[La Vie parisienne (operetta)|La Vie parisienne]]''.

In 1961 and 1962, she appeared as [[Maria von Trapp]] in ''[[The Sound of Music]]'' on the Australian stage.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article133980868|title=Top Soprano to Return Home|page=28|work=[[The Canberra Times]]|date=24 May 1961|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article43202216|title=Gay Italian Period Opera – A boisterous opera of a type unfamiliar to Australian TV viewers will soon be shown on A.B.C.-TV|page=4|work=[[The Australian Women's Weekly]]|date=31 October 1962|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> In 1964 she appeared as [[Elizabeth Barrett Browning]] in the musical ''[[Robert and Elizabeth]]'' at the [[Lyric Theatre, London]], alongside [[Keith Michell]] as [[Robert Browning]],<ref name=":5">{{Cite Grove|title=Bronhill, June [Gough, June Mary]|last=Webb|first=Paul|id=48357|year=2001}}</ref> a show she took to Australia in 1966. She also appeared in England in tours of two [[Ivor Novello]] musicals, ''[[Glamorous Night]]'' and ''[[The Dancing Years]]'', the latter playing a season at the [[Saville Theatre]] in London. She also appeared as the Mother Abbess in the 1981 London revival of [[Rodgers and Hammerstein]]'s ''The Sound of Music'' at the [[Apollo Victoria Theatre]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite magazine|year=2005|title=Obituaries: June Bronhill|magazine=[[Opera News]]|volume=69|number=10|page=92|id={{ProQuest|224228029}}}}</ref>

Bronhill was perhaps best known for the title role of Hanna Glawari in [[Franz Lehár]]'s ''[[The Merry Widow]]'', with the Sadler's Wells Opera<ref name="trove.nla.gov.au"/> (now known as [[English National Opera]]), with [[Thomas Round]] as Danilo in 1958 and revised in 1960.<ref name=Gobit>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2005/jan/27/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries|title=Obituary: June Bronhill|last=Blyth|first=Alan|author-link=Alan Blyth|date=2 January 2005|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=26 June 2016}}</ref> She sang the role more than 200 times, capturing a faithful following.<ref name=Gobit />

Bronhill made frequent visits back to her homeland, singing in operas such as ''The Merry Widow'', ''Orpheus in the Underworld'', ''Die Fledermaus'' and ''[[Rigoletto]]'' at the [[Sydney Opera House]] in 1975. In 1976, she decided to move back to Australia permanently. In Australia she appeared in operas such as ''[[Die Entführung aus dem Serail]]'' and a [[Victoria State Opera]] production of [[Gaetano Donizetti|Donizetti]]'s ''[[Maria Stuarda]]'' in July 1976, directed by [[Robin Lovejoy]]<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.liveperformance.com.au/halloffame/robinlovejoy4.html | title=Robin Lovejoy 4 | access-date=14 June 2013 | archive-date=12 March 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190312133927/http://www.liveperformance.com.au/halloffame/robinlovejoy4.html | url-status=dead }}</ref> with a cast including Nance Grant conducted by [[Richard Divall]].<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.operapassion.com/cd5954.html | title=CD5954 Donizetti ''Maria Stuarda'' 1976 Melbourne}}</ref>

She played operetta roles such as Josephine (''[[H.M.S. Pinafore]]''), Phyllis (''[[Iolanthe]]'') and Ruth (''[[The Pirates of Penzance]]''). She also had roles in ''[[The Maid of the Mountains]]'', ''[[Call Me Madam]]'', ''[[A Little Night Music]]'', ''[[Nunsense]]'', ''[[My Fair Lady]]'' and ''[[How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (musical)|How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying]]'' as well as appearing in the non-musical plays ''[[Arsenic and Old Lace (play)|Arsenic and Old Lace]]'' and ''Straight and Narrow''.<ref name="trove.nla.gov.au" />

Bronhill also appeared in the role of Mrs Crawford in the television comedy series ''[[Are You Being Served? (Australian TV series)|Are You Being Served?]]'', the Australian version of the British comedy series, as well as in [[Lipton Tea]] television advertisements singing an adaption of "[[Fugue for Tinhorns]]" from ''[[Guys and Dolls]]''.

{{citation needed span|date=March 2023|text=Bronhill was a [[patron]] of the Australian Girls Choir from the choir's beginning.}} There is a scholarship in her name, the June Bronhill Encouragement Scholarship, awarded each year to the chorister with the most choral prowess.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Australian Girls Choir |title=Australian Girls Choir Senior Chorister Handbook |url=https://ausgirlschoir.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2024-Senior-Chorister-Handbook.pdf |website=Australian Girls Choir |publisher=Australian School of Performing Arts |access-date=27 December 2024}}</ref>

A portrait of Bronhill, painted by [[Andrew Sibley]], was entered into the 1966 [[Archibald Prize]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/prizes/archibald/1966/|title=Archibald Prize finalists 1966|publisher=Art Gallery of New South Wales|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref>

Bronhill released her debut single, "[[The Lord's Prayer]]" in late 1979.<ref name="ARIA80">{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1980/CB-1980-01-19.pdf|title=International Dateline|magazine=[[Cash Box (magazine)|Cash Box]]|via=World Radio History|page=2|date= 19 January 1980|access-date= 3 December 2021}}</ref>
 
Her voice was characterised as a "very crystal clear, diamond bright coloratura soprano"<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/art-and-design/june-bronhill-dies-20050125-gdkk84.html|title=June Bronhill dies|newspaper=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]|access-date=25 March 2023|date=25 January 2005}}</ref> with "absolutely impeccable diction".<ref name=":2" /> ''[[Opera News]]'' noted that "Bronhill's crisp, bright prettiness and crystalline diction made her an ideal exponent of operetta heroines".<ref name=":1" />

==Death==
Bronhill died on 24 January 2005, aged 75,<ref>{{cite web |last1=National Centre of Biography |title=June Mary Bronhill (1929–2005) from Sydney Morning Herald |url=https://oa.anu.edu.au/obituary/bronhill-june-mary-33315 |website=National Centre of Biography: Obituaries Australia |publisher=Australian National University |access-date=27 December 2024}}</ref> in her sleep at a Sydney nursing home. Although she had beaten breast cancer in the 1980s, her later years were marred by [[deafness]]<ref name=":3">{{Cite news|url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/People/Broken-Hill-diva-dies/2005/01/25/1106415595281.html|title=Broken Hill diva dies|last=Shmith|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Shmith|date=2 January 2005|newspaper=[[The Age]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> and social isolation, and she retired in 1993. Her home town, Broken Hill, honoured her by declaring a minute's silence during the 2005 [[Australia Day]] celebrations two days after her death.<ref name=":3" /> Mayor Ron Page noted, "She is very special to us; if you ask every householder in Broken Hill, they'll be able to say, yes, they are proud of June Bronhill."<ref name=":3" /> Then acting prime minister, [[John Anderson (Australian politician)|John Anderson]] noted, "The world is mourning the loss of someone who entertained millions, but it's good to see the local community here recognise one of their own in ... a very proud community celebrating the life of one of their daughters."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2005-01-31/bronhill-ashes-to-be-scattered-in-broken-hill/628362|title=Bronhill ashes to be scattered in Broken Hill|date=3 January 2005|work=[[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]]|location=Australia|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref>

==Autobiography==
Bronhill's "frank and funny" autobiography, ''The Merry Bronhill'', was published in 1987.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Merry Bronhill|date=1987|author=Bronhill, June|publisher=Methuen Haynes|isbn=978-0-454-01343-6}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article122115295|title=Bronhill, frank and funny|page=5|work=[[The Canberra Times]]|date=14 November 1987|via=[[Trove]]|access-date=23 January 2017}}</ref> [[EMI]] Australia produced a [[compilation album]] with the same title to publicise the book.

==Honours==
Bronhill was made an Officer of the [[Order of the British Empire]] (OBE) in the [[1976 New Year Honours]],<ref>[https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/1107490 "Miss June Bronhill"], [[Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (Australia)|Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet]], Australian Government</ref> and was later given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Australian Variety Club.<ref>{{cite web |last1=National Centre of Biography |title=Life Summary: June Mary Bronhill |url=https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/lifesummary/bronhill-june-mary-33315 |website=National Centre of Biography: People Australia |publisher=Australian National University |access-date=27 December 2024}}</ref> In Broken Hill, a street and an auditorium are named after her.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|entry-url=http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/article/epm/51281|entry=Bronhill, June|last=Larkin|first=Colin|author-link=Colin Larkin|encyclopedia=[[The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]|edition=4th|publisher=Oxford University Press|access-date=23 January 2017}}{{dead link|date=March 2023}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* [http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article107066570 "Operation on Singer"], ''[[The Canberra Times]]'' (7 August 1968), p.&nbsp;8.
* [https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8bEpAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_OYDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6833%2C1925033 "Aust. Singer Better"], ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' (7 August 1968), p.&nbsp;3.
* O'Connor, Patrick (1992), 'Bronhill, June' in ''[[The New Grove Dictionary of Opera]]'', ed. [[Stanley Sadie]] (London) {{ISBN|0-333-73432-7}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0111437|June Bronhill}}
* [https://www.ausstage.edu.au/pages/contributor/4441 June Bronhill] at [[AusStage]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110629231956/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/june-bronhill-488438.html June Bronhill obituary] at ''[[The Independent]]''
* [https://liveperformance.com.au/hof-profile/june-bronhill-obe-1929-2005/ June Bronhill] at [[Live Performance Australia]] Hall of Fame
* {{Australian Women's Register|AWE3999b|Bronhill, June Mary (1929–2005)}}
* [https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/14903430 Bronhill, June (singer): programs and related material] collected by the [[National Library of Australia]]

{{Portal bar|Biography|Opera|Australia}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bronhill, June}}
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:2005 deaths]]
[[Category:Australian operatic sopranos]]
[[Category:Australian musical theatre actresses]]
[[Category:Australian television actresses]]
[[Category:Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:People from Broken Hill, New South Wales]]
[[Category:20th-century Australian women opera singers]]
[[Category:Australian people of English descent]]