Gilbert and Sullivan's London

by Andrew Goodman

Here is a guide book with a difference, for the Gilbert and Sullivan enthusiast as well as the general reader. By moving in and around London, backwards and forwards in time, Andrew Goodman unfolds the story of the most astonishing partnership in the history of British musical entertainment against the authentic background of the era in which it flourished. With much original research and many hitherto unpublished illustrations, Andrew Goodman makes an invaluable contribution to our knowledge, understanding and appreciation of Gilbert and Sullivan in this handsome volume, which is already a classic of its kind. The book summons up a bygone era in a predominantly celebratory tone, recalling the lost grandeur of the city's great entertainment palaces, its atmospheric streetlife and nightlife, its splendour and its squalor. Acclaimed film-maker Mike Leigh, director of Topsy Turvy the new film about Gilbert and Sullivan set during their collaboration on The Mikado, provides a new Foreword.

Genres: Music, London

224 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 1988

About the author

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Reviews

[M C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Less intriguing than the title infers, this is a district-by-district compilation of all the places associated with G&S and the Savoyards, with particular emphasis on buildings. Historical notes on the various places go broader than G&S, with particular attention to what went on during the Victorian era. As you can imagine, the notes on the theatre district are quite extensive. Plenty of B&W illustrations. I just wish the book had taken a lighter (more Gilbertian?) tone and hadn't been so hell-bent on faithful scholarship.