Book Review: Good Nights Out: A History Of Popular British Theatre 1940-2015

GOOD NIGHTS OUT: A HISTORY OF POPULAR BRITISH THEATRE 1940-2015 – Alekz Sierz (Methuen Drama – ISBN: 9781350200913)

Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Being someone who is mega interested in the history of the theatre, this book was an absolute pleasure to read. In fact, I found I couldn’t put it down and just wanted to ‘read one more chapter before going to sleep’.

What’s it about? Well, in Aleks Sierz’s own words: “The book spans a range of work from almost forgotten plays, such as RF Delderfield’s Worm’s Eye View and Hugh Hastings’ Seagulls Over Sorrento, to well-known mega-hits, such as The Mousetrap and The Phantom of the Opera. Such popular work has tended to be undervalued by some critics and commentators mainly because it has not been thought to be a suitable subject for inclusion in the canon of English literature. By contrast, I argue that genres such as the British musical, light comedy, sex farce or murder mystery are worth appreciating not only for their intrinsic theatrical qualities (they are such fun!), but also as examples of the dream life of the British people. The book challenges the idea that mega-hits are merely escapist entertainments and instead shows how they contribute to the creation of powerful myths about our national life. It also points towards the possibility of creating an alternative narrative of post-war British theatre.”

The only way a show has made it into this book is by playing 1,000 or more performances in the West End – that is how Aleks has decided to define a mega-hit. And the list is fascinating, especially to someone of my age. However, don’t think this is simply a book of lists. Aleks delves into the history of the show, writes about the plot and also reasons why it appealed to the audience of the day. Britain just coming out of the war needed to be entertained and that didn’t simply mean comedies, audiences were also hungry for anything to do with the war, such as Terence Rattigan’s Flare Path or While the Sun Shines.

The book is broken up into chapters covering War, Crime, Sex, Family, Class, History and Fantasy. It is absolutely fascinating to read through the chapters and suddenly realise that plays which ran for years in the West End in the 60s and 70s would now be looked on as an anathema. However, it is all part of our very rich theatrical history and should not be forgotten.

I cannot recommend this book enough. I would urge everyone who has the slightest interest in Britain’s theatrical history to purchase this book and luxuriate in the wealth of talent, some of which has been long forgotten, that has graced the stages of the West End from the 1940s up to 2015.

Nick Wakeham