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News Archive

20 February 1908: Wyndham proposes creation of SWET

Published: 23 April 2008

Exactly 100 years ago, on Thursday 20 February 1908, actor-manager Sir Charles Wyndham held a luncheon at the Hyde Park Hotel in order to propose the creation of an association… Read More

21 February 1967: Olivier and McEwan do Dance Of Death

Published: 23 April 2008

On 21 February 1967, Laurence Olivier and Geraldine McEwan opened in a production of August Strindberg’s The Dance Of Death at the Old Vic, directed by Glen Byam Shaw.Strindberg’s darkly… Read More

22 February 1977: Privates On Parade makes award-winning premiere

Published: 23 April 2008

Peter Nichol’s World War II-set comedy Privates On Parade received its world premiere on 22 February 1977, when it was staged by the Royal Shakespeare Company at the Aldwych. The… Read More

25 February 1969: Dotrice opens Brief Lives at Criterion

Published: 23 April 2008

Roy Dotrice took a step to Guinness world record fame on 25 February 1969, when the award-winning actor opened in Brief Lives at the Criterion. His 400 performances at this… Read More

27 February 1962: Crawford makes West End debut

Published: 23 April 2008

Michael Crawford – actor, singer and entertainer – made his West End debut on 27 February 1962 as a 19-year-old, opposite seasoned performer Bob Monkhouse in the London premiere of… Read More

28 February 1968: Dench makes musical debut in Cabaret

Published: 23 April 2008

It was a risky choice to pick a classical actress known for her Shakespearean performances to play a morally dubious singer in a new musical, but that was what happened… Read More

05 March 1998: National Theatre premieres Not About Nightingales

Published: 23 April 2008

Tennessee Williams’s early play Not About Nightingales, which was written by the American playwright in 1938, was given a world premiere at the National’s Cottesloe theatre 60 years later on… Read More

06 March 1978: Conti asks Whose Life Is It Anyway?

Published: 23 April 2008

Brian Clark’s play Whose Life Is It Anyway? premiered at the Mermaid theatre in the city of London on 6 March 1978, with Tom Conti playing a man who tries… Read More

07 March 1989: Steel Magnolias brings Louisiana to London

Published: 23 April 2008

It is often said that there are many more strong male roles than strong female roles in the theatre. American drama Steel Magnolias took a small step towards redressing this… Read More

12 March 1980: Make And Break for 1970s TV names

Published: 23 April 2008

Two actors best known at the time for their television comedy performances opened in a new play at the Lyric Hammersmith on 12 March 1980. Leonard Rossiter and Prunella Scales… Read More

14 March 1994: The perils of messing with Beckett

Published: 23 April 2008

The considerable talents of Fiona Shaw and Deborah Warner are well suited to the idiosyncratic brilliance of Samuel Beckett’s work, but their collaboration on Footfalls, which opened on 14 March… Read More

19 March 1963: Oh! What A Lovely War premieres

Published: 23 April 2008

In a century of London theatre many new plays have had a huge impact on the theatrical scene and the wider community, but there have been few more acclaimed, harder-hitting… Read More

20 March 1986: Kramer’s Normal Heart in London

Published: 23 April 2008

Angels In America may be the better known play about the rise of HIV/AIDS, but Larry Kramer’s 1985 play The Normal Heart is probably the earliest, and, according to one… Read More

26 March 1924: Thorndike is first Saint Joan

Published: 23 April 2008

The role of Joan of Arc, as depicted by George Bernard Shaw in his play Saint Joan, is considered one of the most challenging parts an actress can play. The… Read More

27 March: Mousetrap’s little known records

Published: 23 April 2008

Many people know that at 55 years, The Mousetrap holds the record as the longest running show in theatre history. Less know of the records held by its long-serving cast… Read More

31 March 1953: Donat makes final stage performance

Published: 23 April 2008

Oscar-winning actor Robert Donat’s equally acclaimed stage career came to a suitably applauded end with his performance as Thomas A Becket in TS Eliot’s Murder In The Cathedral, which opened… Read More

01 April 1951: Garland debuts at Palladium

Published: 23 April 2008

In 1951 the London Palladium was in its hey day, welcoming a raft of international stars to its stage. One of those stars was a woman who had achieved huge… Read More

08 April 1936: Novello is The Happy Hypocrite

Published: 23 April 2008

Ivor Novello was a romantic matinee idol and Hollywood star in 1936, which is why it was something of a surprise to audiences at His Majesty’s to see him play… Read More

09 April 1987: Hopkins and Dench play ancient lovers

Published: 23 April 2008

Shakespeare’s tragedy Antony And Cleopatra has spawned numerous famous pairings in the title roles. On 9 April 1987 it was the turn of Anthony Hopkins and Judi Dench, who played… Read More

10 April 1957: Olivier is The Entertainer

Published: 23 April 2008

On 10 April 1957 Laurence Olivier, king of the classical stage, Hollywood leading man and husband of film star Vivien Leigh, appeared in a role that would change the direction… Read More

15 April 1975: Sondheim plays A Little Night Music

Published: 23 April 2008

Stephen Sondheim’s new musical A Little Night Music had already been a Tony Award-winning success on Broadway in 1973 when Harold Prince recreated his production in London two years later.… Read More

02 April 1930: Charles Laughton is On The Spot

Published: 23 April 2008

Edgar Wallace is one of the world’s most prolific crime writers, with 175 books, 24 plays, and many more poems and articles to his name. On 2 April 1930, one… Read More

1958: Censor meets its match

Published: 23 April 2008

When Tennessee Williams’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play and Broadway hit Cat On A Hot Tin Roof premiered in London 50 years ago this spring, it was to set in motion a… Read More

11 April 1983: Brothers spill first blood

Published: 23 April 2008

It is currently the third longest running musical in the West End, surpassed only by Les Misérables and The Phantom Of The Opera, but when Blood Brothers first graced a… Read More

18 March 1982: Bogdanov obscenity trial collapses

Published: 23 April 2008

The fight against censorship in the theatre prevailed when, on 18 March 1982, the case trying director Michael Bogdanov for gross indecency with regard to his production of The Romans… Read More

26 February 1981: The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas, had its UK premiere

Published: 23 April 2008

American musical The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas, had its UK premiere at the Drury Lane on 26 February 1981. The musical, with a book by Larry L King and… Read More

17 April 1917: Barrie’s Old Lady examines the effects of war

Published: 23 April 2008

To many, the name JM Barrie conjures only images of a green-clad young boy who wouldn’t grow up, by the name of Peter Pan. Yet the Scottish author was a… Read More

11 March 1943: Attenborough plays Pinkie at Garrick

Published: 23 April 2008

The early work of Richard Attenborough is strongly linked with one character which saw him crowned a star of both stage and screen: young south-coast criminal Pinkie in Graham Greene’s… Read More

23 April 1654: World’s greatest playwright is born

Published: 23 April 2008

Though not a date that strictly falls within the 100 years of Theatreland, 23 April 1564 is a date that resonates through London theatre’s history; it is the birthday of… Read More

1998-present

Published: 23 April 2008

Hollywood comes to Theatreland When Hollywood star Nicole Kidman stripped naked on the stage of the Donmar Warehouse in 1998 in The Blue Room, she caused a sensation and sparked… Read More

1988-1997

Published: 23 April 2008

Perhaps more than ever, theatre was affected by, and reflected, world events in this decade. It was a time of great change – the early part of this period saw… Read More

Gone With The Wind

Published: 23 April 2008

It was one of the most anticipated musicals of the year: a new stage adaptation of Margaret Mitchell’s famous Civil War-era novel Gone With The Wind, adapted for the stage… Read More

1978-1987

Published: 23 April 2008

The late 70s and early 80s was a watershed time for women in power; Margaret Thatcher became the first female British Prime Minister and Verity Hudson was the first female… Read More

1968-1977

Published: 23 April 2008

The end of the 60s and the start of the 70s was an era of change for the world, the country and the theatre industry. Boundaries were being pushed and… Read More

1958-1967

Published: 23 April 2008

This may have been the decade in which the Theatrical Management Association launched the imaginatively titled ‘Go To The Theatre’ campaign to try counteract a perceived decline in audiences, but… Read More

1948-1957

Published: 23 April 2008

After years blighted by war, London theatre had its best business for 10 years in 1948, partly due to the effect of the London Olympics. The decade was one of… Read More

1938-1947

Published: 23 April 2008

Unsurprisingly, the period between 1938 and 1947 was a testing time for London’s Theatreland, dominated, as was everything, by World War II. The start of the war saw blackout restrictions… Read More

1928-1937

Published: 23 April 2008

When the Thames broke its banks in January 1928, flooding the Playhouse and forcing the cancellation of performances across Theatreland, so began a decade of mixed fortunes for London’s West… Read More

1918-1927

Published: 23 April 2008

The second decade of London’s Theatreland was an uncertain time. It began with World War One seeming to sound a death knell for the industry before Spanish flu, which claimed… Read More

1908-1917

Published: 23 April 2008

On 20 February 1908, Britain's first actor knight, Sir Charles Wyndham, presided over a lunch meeting at the Hyde Park Hotel to form an association with 20 of his actor-manager… Read More

Baylis, Lilian: Theatre Manager. Born 1874, Died 1937.

Published: 23 April 2008

Lilian Baylis was arguably London’s most important theatre manager during the first half of the 20th Century and the companies she created still thrive today. Born in London in 1874,… Read More

Beerbohm Tree, Sir Herbert: Actor/Theatre Manager. Born 1852, Died 1917.

Published: 23 April 2008

Rambunctious, witty, gifted and decent, Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree was a dominant figure in London theatre from the late 1870s until his death in 1917. After initially making his name… Read More

Coward, Noël: Playwright/Actor. Born 1899, Died 1973.

Published: 23 April 2008

In his 1920s heyday, Noël Coward was the West End’s most popular playwright. Like his predecessor Oscar Wilde, Coward’s plays succeeded through a blend of witty dialogue, precise plotting and… Read More

Dench, Dame Judi : Actress. Born 1934.

Published: 23 April 2008

No performer since Laurence Olivier has inspired the universal affection and respect afforded to Dame Judi Dench. Like Olivier, Dench has achieved consistent box office success at the cinema while… Read More

Gielgud, Sir John: Actor/Director. Born 1904, Died 2000.

Published: 23 April 2008

John Gielgud’s astonishing career began in 1921 under the direction of Granville Barker and ended, just weeks before his death, in an appearance alongside Harold Pinter in a film adaptation… Read More

Hall, Sir Peter: Director. Born 1930.

Published: 23 April 2008

In the opinion of Andrew Seth, Chairman of the Board of Governors of Kingston University, where Sir Peter Hall was appointed Chancellor in 2000: “No living person has had as… Read More

Lloyd Webber, Lord Andrew: Composer/Producer/Theatre Owner. Born 1948.

Published: 23 April 2008

Andrew Lloyd Webber is the composer of several of the longest running musicals in West End history. His most successful West End shows include The Phantom Of The Opera, which… Read More

Mackintosh, Sir Cameron: Theatre Owner/Producer. Born 1946.

Published: 23 April 2008

Described by the New York Times as “the most successful, influential and powerful producer of our time”, Cameron Mackintosh is considered by many to be the man who transformed musical… Read More

Olivier, Sir Laurence: Actor/Director. Born 1907, Died 1989.

Published: 23 April 2008

Considered by many to be the greatest actor of modern times, Laurence Olivier enjoyed a 60-year career in which he touched greatness, as both actor and director, in a dizzying… Read More

Scofield, Paul: Actor. Born 1922. Died 2008.

Published: 23 April 2008

One of the West End’s most applauded and acclaimed performers, Paul Scofield, is considered one of the finest classical performers of his, or any, generation.Scofield was best known for his… Read More

Wyndham, Sir Charles: Actor/Theatre Manager. Born 1837, Died 1919.

Published: 23 April 2008

Sir Charles Wyndham was an actor, impresario and the founding president of the Society of West End Theatre (now the Society of London Theatre).Born in Liverpool in 1837 to Major… Read More

Shows go Live in Leicester Square

Published: 22 April 2008

Some 15 major London shows are already confirmed on the line up of this year’s free outdoor theatre festival, West End Live. The annual event, now in its fourth year,… Read More

Escoffery leads Lion King’s ninth year

Published: 22 April 2008

Shaun Escoffery, who was nominated for the 2008 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance In A Supporting Role In A Musical, joins the cast of Disney’s The Lion King tonight… Read More

Arts theatre Haunted by Jessie Wallace

Published: 22 April 2008

Actress Jessie Wallace leads a cast packed with television faces for the world premiere of new thriller Haunted, which opens at the Arts theatre in May. Wallace is joined in… Read More

Bradley’s Quiz opens Trafalgar Studios summer season

Published: 21 April 2008

An exciting summer season of shows has been announced to follow Hello And Goodbye and Lifecoach in the Trafalgar Studio 2. David Bradley leads the season in black comedy The… Read More

Study ballet with ENB

Published: 21 April 2008

English National Ballet is offering an intensive dance course for young students of ballet on 28-30 May, linked to the company’s new production Strictly Gershwin at the Royal Albert Hall.The… Read More

Waters’s Fast Labour premieres at Hampstead

Published: 21 April 2008

The new drama from playwright Steve Waters, Fast Labour, receives its London premiere at the Hampstead theatre on 3 June (previews from 30 May). The topical piece, which has its… Read More

Roger takes on Piaf at Donmar

Published: 18 April 2008

Elena Roger is to make her debut at the Donmar Warehouse playing French icon Edith Piaf in Pam Gems’s play about the tragic performer, Piaf. The production, which opens in… Read More

Fram

Published: 18 April 2008

The great actress Sybil Thorndike is resurrected from the dead, two explorers trek to the Arctic, a group of humanitarians consider the value of poetry and the ice-breaker ship Fram… Read More

Harman, Dreyfus and Shearsmith share Common Pursuit

Published: 18 April 2008

Nigel Harman, James Dreyfus and Reece Shearsmith are to star in a revival of Simon Gray’s comedy about friendship, The Common Pursuit, at the Menier Chocolate Factory from 9 May… Read More

David Pugh

Published: 18 April 2008

In my experience, there are few interviewees who would happily let you continue recording them while they had a phone conversation. There are even fewer who would actively encourage you… Read More

Long makes short work of Dickens

Published: 18 April 2008

Adam Long, co-founder of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, has turned his condensing talents to Charles Dickens with a new comedy musical called Dickens Unplugged, which opens at the West End’s… Read More

Access London Theatre Summer 2008 out now

Published: 18 April 2008

The latest edition of Access London Theatre, the brochure which lists all audio described, captioned and sign language interpreted performances in London’s Theatreland, has just been published. The brochure contains… Read More

Small Change

Published: 18 April 2008

With a simple red lit stage, containing just the four solitary characters and a chair for each, Peter Gill’s kitchen sink drama Small Change is a vivid portrayal of the… Read More

Dean goes back to High School

Published: 18 April 2008

Letitia Dean, best known as Sharon Watts in the BBC soap EastEnders, is to play the role of eccentric drama teacher Ms Darbus in the stage production of High School… Read More

Stiles and Drewe gala celebration announced

Published: 18 April 2008

Laurence Olivier Award-winning song-writing team George Stiles and Anthony Drewe celebrate 25 years of collaboration on 6 July, in a gala concert at Her Majesty’s in support of Mercury Musical… Read More

Cast confirmed for Open Air season

Published: 18 April 2008

Janie Dee, Clive Rowe and Lisa O’Hare will be hoping for a warm, dry summer this year as they join the season at the Open Air theatre, Regent’s Park, which… Read More

Peter Pan brings Spanish magic to Garrick

Published: 17 April 2008

A distinctly English story was sprinkled with some Spanish fairy dust at the Garrick today, when Peter Pan – El Musical was launched to the press. The production, which has… Read More

A Couple Of Poor, Polish-Speaking Romanians

Published: 17 April 2008

From the moment you step into the Soho theatre you know this play isn’t going to be your average production, with Polish Rock and Rap blaring from the speakers and… Read More

The Man Who Had All The Luck

Published: 17 April 2008

Is a person just a metaphorical jellyfish, who cannot swim and is pushed around by the tides of fate, or can he make things happen in his life? That is… Read More

Major Barbara

Published: 17 April 2008

The award-winning success of 2007’s Saint Joan was taken by National Theatre Artistic Director Nicholas Hytner as a sign that London theatre was ready for a bit more Bernard Shaw.… Read More

Murray is new Face at Duke of York’s

Published: 17 April 2008

Hannah Murray makes her professional stage debut as she joins the cast of That Face when it transfers to the Duke of York’s in May. Murray is best known for… Read More

New season launched in refurbished King’s Head

Published: 17 April 2008

The King’s Head in Islington showed off the refurbishment of its pub theatre to guests and members of the press today, who were treated to a sneak preview of two… Read More

Summer shines in The Sound Of Music

Published: 17 April 2008

After the reality blurring Hollyoaks storyline that saw an ambitious Chester student tenaciously stalk Andrew Lloyd Webber until he offered her the part of Maria in The Sound Of Music,… Read More

RSC Stands Up For Shakespeare

Published: 17 April 2008

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is encouraging teachers and students to take a more practical approach to Shakespeare in schools with a new manifesto called Stand Up For Shakespeare.Over the… Read More
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