Alan-a-Dale

An illustration of Alan-A-Dale

Alan-a-Dale (first recorded as Allen a Dale;

variously spelled Allen-a-Dale, Allan-a-Dale,
Allin-a-Dale, Allan A'Dayle etc.) is a figure in
the Robin Hood legend. According to the
stories, he was a wandering minstrel who
became a member of Robin's band of
outlaws, the "Merry Men."

He is a relatively late addition to the

legend; he first appeared in a seventeenth-
century broadside ballad, Child Ballad 138,
"Robin Hood and Allen a Dale", and, unlike
many of the characters thus associated,
managed to adhere to the legend. In this
tale, Robin rescues Alan's sweetheart from
an unwanted marriage to an old knight.
They stop the bishop from proceeding with
the ceremony, and Robin Hood, dressed in
the bishop's robes, marries Alan to his
bride. In other versions it is Little John or
Friar Tuck that performs the ceremony.[1]

Another variant appears in which the hero

is not Alan but Will Scarlet, but Alan has
taken over the role completely.[1]

Howard Pyle uses this tale in his book The

Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, but
changes several details. He gives Alan's
sweetheart the name Ellen, and introduces
Friar Tuck into the story; Tuck is sought
out specifically as the only priest who will
perform the wedding in defiance of the
bishop, and therefore, this tale is
combined with that of Robin Hood and the
Curtal Friar.[2]

In Pierce Egan the Younger's story Robin

Hood and Little John, Alan is given the
name Sir Allan Clare; he is an armed
knight, not a minstrel, and he is the brother
of the Maid Marian. His sweetheart is Lady
Christabel, the daughter of the Sheriff of
Nottingham, who wants to give her to an
old knight friend of his. The "Allan-a-Dale"
name is given to his estates in Sherwood
Forest; he is not given a major role after he
and Christabel are married by Little John
(who takes the place of the Bishop of
Hereford), though he helps the Merry Men
from time to time.[3]

Alan plays a prominent role in some later

plays, children's novels, films, and
television shows.

Modern incarnations
Alan-a-Dale was played by John
Schlesinger in two episodes of Robin
Hood (1956).
Alan-a-Dale is the musical narrator of
Disney's 1973 animated Robin Hood
film. He is depicted as a lute-playing
rooster voiced by country singer Roger
Miller and played the role of both
narrator and minor ally to Robin Hood
and Little John. The songs are Whistle
Stop, Oo-De-Lally, and Not in Nottingham.
Alan Dale is the main character in Angus
Donald's novels Outlaw, Holy Warrior and
King's Man.
He is played by Elton Hayes in the 1952
film The Story of Robin Hood and His
Merrie Men.
Alan A ‘Dale was the subject of a comic
song performed on Dudley Moore and
Peter Cook's show, Not Only But Also in
1965. The lyrics consisted of little more
than a repetition of his name. Along with
Cook and Moore, the performers were
Joe Melia, Bill Wallis and John Wells.
He was played by Bing Crosby in the rat
pack film Robin and the 7 Hoods.
Robert O. Cornthwaite played Allan A.
Dale, an accomplice to the supervillain
The Archer, in season 2 of Batman
(Shoot a Crooked Arrow and Walk the
Straight and Narrow, 1966).
He was played by Peter Hutchinson in
the 1984 British television series Robin
of Sherwood, appearing in the fifth
episode, entitled "Alan A Dale". In this
version, Alan's sweetheart is named
Mildred and is to be married to the
Sheriff of Nottingham. Friar Tuck weds
Alan and Mildred.
In the 2002 video game Robin Hood: The
Legend of Sherwood, Allan appears
briefly to disguise himself as Prince
John's man Guillame de Longchamps to
deliver the ransom to save King Richard.
LeVar Burton's character Geordi La
Forge was cast as Alan-a-Dale in a Robin
Hood fantasy episode of Star Trek: The
Next Generation.
Allan A Dale is played by Joe Armstrong
in the 2006 BBC production of Robin
Hood. Here he is portrayed as an expert
pickpocket and a compulsive liar with a
sarcastic nature and no musical ability.
After being captured by Gisborne he
sells him information. When Robin finds
out that he has turned traitor, Allan goes
to work for Gisborne, but he later returns
to the band of outlaws and tries to help
them defeat the Sheriff of Nottingham.
Alan Doyle of the band Great Big Sea is
cast as Alan-a-Dale in the Ridley Scott
production of Robin Hood starring
Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett,
released in 2010. He is a war veteran
who goes home with Robin Longstride
and seems to have some musical talent.
Alan O'Dell is the name of the character
who takes on the identity of Rob Hood in
 "Robin Hood In the Wild West" and is
played by the character of Bobby in
Kander and Ebb's musical Curtains.
Alan-a-Dale is played by Ian Hallard in
the third episode of the eighth series of
the hit BBC1 series Doctor Who entitled
Robot of Sherwood.

References
1. Holt, J. C. Robin Hood p 165 (1982)
Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-27541-6
2. Michael Patrick Hearn, "Afterword",
Howard Pyle The Merry Adventures of
Robin Hood, p 384 ISBN 0-451-52007-6
3. Pierce Egan the Younger "Robin Hood
and Little John of the Merry Men of
Sherwood Forest", ISBN 978-0415220057

External links
Robin Hood and Allen a Dale
 Robin Hood and Allen-a-Dale, the ballad
about him along with additional
information
Allan A Dale character guide (on the
official BBC site for the series), BBC
Online, 2006
Guide to the 1984 Alan A Dale episode ,
Richard Carpenter

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