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 17th-century broadside ballad, Child Ballad 138, "Robin Hood and Allan-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 who 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.
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 animated series Young Robin Hood, Alan-a-Dale (Voiced by Michael O'Reilly) is a very young, romantic minstrel and good friend of Robin.
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, but at the same time is a skilled swordsman and fighter. After being charged and sentenced to death for hunting a deer in the King's forest, Allan is one of four people rescued by Robin in his first demonstration of defiance against the Sheriff of Nottingham. Upon their escape, Allan joins Robin's band of outlaws and helps them aid the poor. 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 reconciles with Robin and returns to the band of outlaws and tries to help them defeat the Sheriff of Nottingham.
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.
