Brigadoon is a musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, and music by Frederick Loewe. The song "Almost Like Being in Love", from the musical, has become a standard. It features two American tourists who stumble upon Brigadoon, a mysterious Scottish village that appears for only one day every 100 years. Tommy, one of the tourists, falls in love with Fiona, a young woman from Brigadoon.
Mamma Mia! is a jukebox musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson based on songs recorded by Swedish group ABBA and composed by members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. The musical's title is taken from the group's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia". Ulvaeus and Andersson were involved in the development of the show from the beginning, while singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad was involved financially in the production and also appeared at many of the premieres around the world.
Dilys Laye was an English actress and singer, best known for her comedy roles, in which she was seen in the West End and on Broadway for more than fifty years, beginning in 1951. Although primarily a stage performer, she broadcast frequently on radio and television, and appeared in films.
The Chalk Garden is a play by Enid Bagnold that premiered in the USA 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 Garrick Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster, named after the stage actor David Garrick. It opened in 1889 with The Profligate, a play by Arthur Wing Pinero, and another Pinero play, The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith, was an early success at the theatre. In its early years, the Garrick appears to have specialised in the performance of melodrama. The theatre later became associated with comedies, including No Sex Please, We're British, which played for four years from 1982 to 1986.
The Arts Theatre is a theatre in Great Newport Street, in Westminster, Central London.
Dulcie Winifred Catherine Savage Denison,, known professionally as Dulcie Gray, was a British actress, mystery writer and lepidopterist.
John Michael Terence Wellesley Denison was an English actor. He often appeared with his wife, Dulcie Gray, with whom he featured in several films and more than 100 West End theatre productions.
The Piccadilly Theatre is a West End theatre located at the junction of Denman Street and Sherwood Street, near Piccadilly Circus, in the City of Westminster, London. It opened in 1928.
Gwendoline Watford, professionally known after the mid-1950s as Gwen Watford, was an English actress.
A Dead Secret is a 1957 crime play by Rodney Ackland. It is a murder drama set in 1911 London and is based on the Seddon murder trial. It premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool then transferred to the Piccadilly Theatre in London's West End where it ran for 212 performances. The West End cast included Paul Scofield, Madge Brindley, Dinsdale Landen, Megs Jenkins, Harold Scott, Gretchen Franklin, Arthur Lowe, Maureen Delany and Laidman Browne.
The Calendar is a 1929 play by the British writer Edgar Wallace. It is a crime thriller set in the world of horse racing world, the sport being among Wallace's interests. The protagonist is a financially struggling racehorse owner with a shady reputation. It premiered at the Palace Theatre in Manchester before transferring to Wyndham's Theatre in the West End.
Off the Record is a 1947 British comedy play by Ian Hay and Stephen King-Hall. It is a farce about the Royal Navy.
The White Countess is a 1954 play by J.B. Priestley and his wife Jacquetta Hawkes.
The Glass Cage is a 1957 play by J.B. Priestley.
Maidie Andrews was an English actress and singer who, with a career that spanned six decades, was a child actress and later a stage beauty who appeared in musical comedy including the original London productions of No, No, Nanette (1925) and Cavalcade (1931). The latter years of her career saw her taking roles in television and film.
Under the Counter is a musical comedy composed by Manning Sherwin from a book by Arthur Macrae with lyrics by Harold Purcell. The plot is centred around shortages and black market activity during wartime rationing.
The Iron Duchess is a 1957 comedy play by the British writer William Douglas Home.
Ela Queenie May was a child actress of the Edwardian era. She is probably best remembered as Liza, the Darling family servant, in the original production of Peter Pan and later played Wendy Darling in the touring companies of Peter Pan (1906–08). Before that, she played roles at several West End theatres from 1900, including the title role in Ib and Little Christina in 1901 and again in 1904.
Michael Clayton Hutton was a British author and playwright notable for several plays that appeared in the West End during the post-Second World War era. He died in 1953 at the age of thirty three. He was reportedly suffering from depression when he committed suicide. Several of his plays were adapted for film and television including The Happy Family that was turned into a 1952 film of the same title. He had a posthumous success in the West End with his comedy Silver Wedding in 1957.
