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Ivor Novello

Ivor Novello

Actor and writer · Died March 6, 1951, aged 58 · Cardiff, Wales, UK

Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh composer and actor who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century, on both screen and stage. He was born into a musical Cardiff family and his mother, Clara Novello Davies, was an internationally known singing teacher and choral conductor. As a child, Novello was a successful singer in various eisteddfodau throughout the country. He was educated privately in Cardiff and then in Gloucester and later won a scholarship to Magdalen College School in Oxford. The family moved to London in 1913 and here Novello's career flourished. In 1914, at the start of World War II, he wrote the words to his most popular song, "Keep the Home Fires Burning". Novello lived in a flat above the Strand Theatre, where he remained until his death in 1951. Since 1955 the internationally prestigious The Ivor Novello Awards ("The Ivors") for songwriting and composing are annually awarded by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA).

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 15, 1893
Died
March 6, 1951 (aged 58)
From
Cardiff, Wales, UK
Works as
Actor and writer
Titles
4 on MovieCove · 31 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Official site (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 39 days to Oct 28Down 38% in 30 days

What are Ivor Novello's films like?

Across a limited sample of 3 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
37%
Bonds
26%
Power
11%
Self
9%
Survival
9%
Ideas
7%

What they feel like to watch

their average across 3 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 1 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 1

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 0 · Charged 2 · Intense 1

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 1 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 3 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 1 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 2 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 2 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

2 analyzed roles

Moods and endings

endings shown from 5 titles

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
2
Romantic
2
Melancholic
1
Thrilling
1
Dread
1
Other
1

How their films linger

Feel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Ivor Novello's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 2 of their 4 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Subscription and free streaming for Ivor Novello's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

31 credits, 4 with a MovieCove page.

  • That's Entertainment, Part II(1976)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • King's Rhapsody (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1957)

    Composer · Writer

  • King's Rhapsody (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    Writer

  • The Dancing Years (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    Theatre Play

  • Free and Easy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1941)

    Theatre Play

  • The Rat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1937)

    Theatre Play

  • Glamorous Night (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1937)

    Theatre Play

  • Autumn Crocus (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1934)

    as Andreas Steiner

  • I Lived with You (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1933)

    Theatre Play · as Prince Felix Lenieff

  • Sleeping Car (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1933)

    as Gaston

  • The Lodger (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1932)

    as Michel Angeloff

  • But the Flesh Is Weak (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1932)

    Theatre Play · Writer

  • Tarzan the Ape Man(1932)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • Once a Lady (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1931)

    as Bennett Cloud

  • Symphony in Two Flats (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1930)

    Theatre Play · as David Kennard

  • The Return of the Rat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1929)

    Theatre Play · as Pierre Boucheron

  • The Gallant Hussar (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    as Lieutenant Stephen Alrik / Feri von Noszty

  • A South Sea Bubble (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    as Vernon Winslow

  • The Vortex (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    as Nicky Lancaster

  • The Constant Nymph (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    as Lewis Dodd

  • Downhill(1927)

    Original Story · as Roddy Berwick

    Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all films

  • The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog(1927)

    as The Lodger Jonathan Drew

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • The Triumph of the Rat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1926)

    as Pierre Boucheron, 'the Rat'

  • The Rat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1925)

    Writer · as Pierre Boucheron

  • The Man Without Desire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1923)

    Producer · as Count Vittorio Dandolo

  • Bonnie Prince Charlie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1923)

    Composer · as Prince Charles Stuart

  • The White Rose (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1923)

    as Joseph

  • The Bohemian Girl (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1922)

    as Thaddeus

  • Carnival (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    as Count Andrea Scipione

  • Miarka, la fille à l'ourse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    as Ivor

  • The Call of the Blood (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1919)

    as Maurice Delarey

Career shape

Star power in the 85th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 31 titles from 1919 to 1976.

Biggest box office

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927)

$84K worldwide

Highest rated

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927)

Midcredits 89th

Most popular right now

Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting22 of 31: 15 only acting, 7 with another roleWriting13 of 31: 7 only writing, 6 with another roleProducing1 of 31: 0 only producing, 1 with another roleMusic2 of 31: 0 only music, 2 with another roleOther crew1 of 31: 1 only other crew, 0 with another role

31 titles, 8 with more than one role — acting and writing overlap on 5 of them.

By decade

1910s1 · acting1920s15 · 15 acting · 5 crew1930s10 · 6 acting · 6 crew1940s1 · crew1950s3 · crew1970s1 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it.

How do Ivor Novello's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 81st percentile, the median of all 4; across a limited sample of 3 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 69th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

69thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Approval · how many liked their films

81stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Reach · how many have seen their films

81stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Midcredits score across 4 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up3
  • 25th to 49th1

Shape of the crowd

None of their 4 titles divides audiences: 3 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Crowd Pleaser3
  • Broadly Agreed1

Most loved · actor

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927)

Midcredits 89th · 79% liked

Reviewers score the acting 68/100 in their films, across 3 reviewed titles; fans 76, detractors 43. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Ivor Novello work with?

People who share at least 2 of Ivor Novello's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Alfred Hitchcock shares the most, 2.

Directors

Writers

Editors

Producers