William Somerset Maugham was an English playwright, novelist, and short-story writer. He was among the most popular writers of his era and reputedly the highest-paid author during the 1930s.
Dame Gladys Constance Cooper, was an English actress, theatrical manager and producer, whose career spanned seven decades on stage, in films and on television.
The Chalk Garden is a play by Enid Bagnold that premiered in the US in 1955 and was produced in Britain the following year. It tells the story of the imperious Mrs St Maugham and her granddaughter Laurel, a disturbed child under the care of Miss Madrigal, a governess, whose past life is a mystery that is solved during the action of the play. The work has been revived numerous times internationally, and was adapted for the cinema in 1964.
The Constant Wife, a play written in 1926 by W. Somerset Maugham, is a comedy whose modern and amusing take on marriage and infidelity gives a quick-witted, alternative view on how to deal with an extramarital affair.
For Services Rendered is a play by Somerset Maugham. First performed in London in 1932, the play is about the effects of World War I on an English family.
Lydia Bilbrook was an English actress whose career spanned four decades, first as a stage performer in the West End, and later in films.
David Hawthorne was a British stage and film actor. He played the leading man in a number of films during the silent era, but later switched to character roles. One of his more notable roles was that of Rob Roy MacGregor in the 1922 film Rob Roy.
Caesar's Wife is a 1919 play by the British writer Somerset Maugham. Its West End run at the Royalty Theatre in London lasted for 241 performances from 27 March to 25 October 1919. Amongst the original cast were C. Aubrey Smith, Fay Compton, George Relph and Helen Haye.
Jane is a play by the American writer S. N. Behrman, based on a 1923 story by Somerset Maugham. It was first staged in Britain December 1946 at the Grand Theatre in Blackpool. Its West End run at the Aldwych Theatre lasted for 274 performances from 29 January to 27 September 1947. The original cast included Yvonne Arnaud in the title role, as well as Irene Browne, Ursula Howells, Ronald Squire, Charles Victor. Arnaud was praised for her comic acting.
The Old Man is a 1931 mystery play by the British writer Edgar Wallace. Its original production was staged at Wyndham's Theatre in London's West End for a ninety performance run. It is set entirely in the "Coat of Arms" tavern where a mysterious old man lurks in the background, reputedly an escapee from a lunatic asylum. The original cast included Alfred Drayton, Jack Melford, Harold Warrender and Finlay Currie.
The Outsider is a play by the British writer Dorothy Brandon. It portrays the struggle of an unorthodox medical practitioner to gain acceptance by the medical establishment. It was subsequently revised to show the unconventional triumphing over the conventional, whereas the play had originally had the opposite ending.
Diversion is a 1927 play by the British writer John Van Druten. It was first staged in the United States at the Lyceum Theatre in Rochester before beginning a 68 run performance at the 49th Street Theatre in 1928. In London it ran for a combined 101 performances at the Arts Theatre and Little Theatre between 26 September and 22 December 1928. The cast included Maurice Evans, C.V. France, Cathleen Nesbitt and Mignon O'Doherty.
Evensong is a 1932 British play by the writers Beverley Nichols and Edward Knoblock. It is based on the novel of the same name by Nichols, based on the life of opera singer Nellie Melba.
They Came to a City is a 1943 play by the British writer J.B. Priestley.
The Light of Heart is a 1940 play by the British writer Emlyn Williams.
Otho Stuart was a British actor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries who specialised in performing in the plays of Shakespeare. Stuart played the range of Shakespearean leading men, both with the Company of F. R. Benson and with his own Company during his management of the Adelphi Theatre in London. Of independent means, he used his own money to help finance Benson's productions and his own. The theatre critic J. C. Trewin described him as 'one of the handsomest Oberons of all time.'
The Holly and the Ivy is a 1950 play by the British writer Wynyard Browne. A vicar attempts to deal with the various problems of his family as they gather for the Christmas period.
The Shop at Sly Corner is a 1945 thriller play by the British writer Edward Percy Smith.
Grand National Night is a 1945 thriller play by the British writers Campbell Christie and Dorothy Christie. A racehorse owner quarrels and accidentally kills his wife on the evening of the Grand National.
Young Wives' Tale is a 1949 comedy play by the British writer Ronald Jeans. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Brighton before transferring to the Savoy Theatre in London's West End where it ran for 373 performances between 7 July 1949 and 27 May 1950. The original London cast included Naunton Wayne, Joan Greenwood, Derek Farr, Joan Haythorne and Margaret Scudamore.
