Randall was born in England, the only son of Henrietta Randall (c. 1870 – 26 April 1939) who, as stage name "Henrietta Cavendish", played in the
Leon Gordon Company and
Herbert Randall (c. 1858 – 1 February 1942), at one time manager of
Daly's Theatre, London and an old
Savoyard who, using stage name "Herbert Ralland", appeared in the first production of
Utopia, Limited and in several other
Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. Randall helped his father manage a pantomime company and in 1907 became manager of the
Holloway Empire Theatre. By this time, the
Great Depression was squeezing family incomes, and the "talkies" provided a cheaper form of amusement than live theatre, so many professional actors were forced to supplement their reduced incomes by other forms of employment, but kept their names before the public in
repertory theatre. In 1931 Randall and Hal Percy, both "between engagements", founded a "little theatre" to present quality drama to the theatre-loving public at moderate prices. Their first venue was a kiosk at
Fawkner Park,
South Yarra, and slowly attracted a dedicated audience. After a few years they lost their lease and Percy left to pursue a career in radio. Led by Randall, they changed their name to the
Melbourne Little Theatre Company, and took a lease on St Chad's, a small disused church in the same district, and set about converting it to a theatre for an audience of around a hundred. It was not ideal: the stage was too small (4.5 by 3.5 metres), and there was no backstage or
fly area, but the talented and hard-working company prospered and for twenty years produced each year eight 3-week seasons of high-class dramatic productions. A notable new member in 1934 was
Irene Mitchell, whose talent and enthusiasm were noted by Randall, who acted as a kind of mentor, encouraging her to take on increasingly responsible roles, until by 1950 she was producing most of the company's more challenging productions. In 1948 Randall and the (Victorian)
Council of Adult Education (CAE) founded "Everyman Theatres", a touring company managed by Max Bruch, which took plays to country centres. ==Personal==