The Golden Generation: New Light on Post-war British Theatre

“So what was it about Look Back in Anger that caused such a shock?” asks Dominic Shellard at the start of this thought-provoking and engrossing review of postwar British theatre. In order to shed new light on an old debate, Shellard and his fellow contributors unearth authentic testimony and fresh archival evidence drawn from the collections of the British Library. Spanning the pivotal years from 1945 to 1968, The Golden Generation explores the explosive new shifts in perspective, drama, genre, style, and performance—ranging from New Wave to “illegitimate” Variety theatre, the cutting-edge Theatre Workshop to made-for-TV plays, avant-garde acting to the West End glitterati. Dipping in and out of the vibrant interviews and personal views of this period’s theatrical stars, this volume also includes an extraordinary variety of vivid recollections from fans, local repertory actors, budding young talents, and some of drama’s rising literary stars. Illustrated with more than thirty evocative sketches, letters, and photographs—many previously unpublished—The Golden Generation offers an absorbing and engaging portrait of what it might have been like to be Sir Lawrence Olivier or Sir John Gielgud in their primes, a most vibrant time in British theatrical history.
 

Dominic Shellard is head of the Department and School of English Literature at the University of Sheffield. His many publications include Kenneth Tynan: Theatre Writings, British Theatre Since the War, and William Shakespeare. Ewan Jeffrey teaches postwar and twentieth-century British theatre at the University of Winchester. Kate Dorney, curator of contemporary drama at the Victoria and Albert Museum’s Theatre Museum, researches and teaches within the field of contemporary drama.