Theatre Censorship: From Walpole to Wilson

297 Pages·2008·1.53 MB·English

by  David Thomas

THEATRE CENSORSHIP:
FROM WALPOLE TO WILSON
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Theatre Censorship:
From Walpole to Wilson
DAVID THOMAS, DAVID CARLTON,
ANNE ETIENNE
1
1
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Acknowledgements
This volume is the outcome of an extended research project undertaken
by the three authors. Generous funding for the project was provided by
the Leverhulme Trust, which awarded an interdisciplinary research grant to
ProfessorDavidThomasandDrDavidCarltonin2001.ThisenabledDrAnne
EtiennetobeappointedtoaresearchfellowshipattheUniversityofWarwick
lastingalmosttwoyears.DuringthisperiodDrEtienneundertookextensive
archival and empirical research and made a substantial contribution to the
writing up of the project. It also enabled the material costs of the project
to be covered, including the costs of a large questionnaire survey of theatre
companiesandvenues.Forallthissupporttheauthorsareextremelygrateful.
Theauthorswouldliketoacknowledgethehelpandadvicegiventhrough-
out the project by staff in the following libraries and archives: The British
Library Department of Manuscripts (in particular Kathryn Johnson, the
archivistinchargeoftheLordChamberlain’spapers),theNationalArchives,
theUniversityofWarwickLibraryandModernRecordsCentre,theUniver-
sityofBristolArtsandSocialSciencesLibraryandLawLibrary,theHouseof
LordsLibrary,theUniversityofSussexSpecialCollections,andtheBodleian
Library Oxford. The authors gratefully acknowledge permission to quote
from manuscripts held in the British Library’s Department of Manuscripts
(http://www.bl.uk/collections/manuscripts.html).Ineachcase,afullacknowl-
edgementismadeinfootnotereferencesunderthefollowingterms:©British
Library Board: all rights reserved. They also gratefully acknowledge per-
mission to quote from Crown copyright material in the National Archives
(http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/), which is fully acknowledged in each
case in footnote references. Other Crown copyright material is reproduced
undertheClassLicenceNumberprintedonthetitle-pageverso.Theauthors
are grateful to Dr Jonathan Levy for permission to quote from his father’s
papersheldattheUniversityofSussex.
The authors would like to thank the many politicians and civil servants
fromthe1960sandearlierwhorepliedbrieflyandhelpfullytotheirenquiries.
Theauthorsareparticularlygratefultothefollowingfortheirmoreextensive
repliesandcomments:Rt.Hon.MichaelFoot,thelateLordJenkinsofHillhead
(RoyJenkins),BobMorris(HomeOfficeofficial),WilliamWilson,andLord
andLadyKennet.WilliamWilsonandLordandLadyKennetalsokindlymade
availabletheirpersonalarchives.Inaddition,theauthorsverymuchappreci-
ated wide-ranging interviews given to them by Sir John Mortimer (barrister
vi Acknowledgements
and playwright) and the late Lt.-Col. Sir John Johnston (former Assistant
ComptrollerandthenComptrollerintheLordChamberlain’sOffice).
The authors wish to acknowledge help and advice from a number of
playwrights, notably John Arden, Edward Bond, and Sir Arnold Wesker,
who gave extended interviews. Sir Arnold Wesker kindly made available his
personal archive. The authors would also like to thank Edward Bond, Sir
ArnoldWesker,andStevenBerkoffforgivingpermissiontoquotefromletters
senttoDrAnneEtienne.
Manytheatremanagers,theatredirectors,andcompanymanagersreplied
indetailtotheauthorswhenapproachedfortheirviewsontheatrecensorship
afterthe1968TheatresAct.Theauthorswouldlikegratefullytoacknowledge
the significant amount of help and advice they were given. They would
like particularly to thank the following for giving permission to quote from
interviews they gave or written material they sent: Ashley Barnes (Dead
EarnestTheatre),JohnBlackmore(OctagonTheatre,Bolton),VivyanEllacott
(Kenneth More Theatre, Ilford), Sir Peter Hall, Christopher Honer (Library
Theatre, Manchester), Fern Smith (Volcano Theatre), Max Stafford-Clark
(OutofJointTheatre,London),RobSwain(HarrogateTheatre),andGraham
Whybrow(RoyalCourtTheatre,London).Theauthorswouldalsoliketothank
MikeBradwell(BushTheatre,London),FionaCallaghan(CriterionTheatre,
London), Paul Harman (Cleveland Theatre Company), Roger Hopwood
(Northampton Theatres), Julia Pascal (Pascal Theatre Company), Laurence
Sach (Harlow Playhouse), and James Yarker (Stan’s Cafe´) for providing
valuable insights into theatre and censorship after 1968. In addition, the
authorsaregratefulforvariouscommentsfrommanyothertheatremanagers
andpractitionersofferedonthebasisofanonymity.
A number of colleagues in academic life made helpful comments and
suggestionstotheauthorsduringthecourseoftheproject.Inparticular,the
authorswouldliketoacknowledgethehelpandadvicegivenbythelateClive
BarkerandbyDrNadineHoldsworth(bothfromtheUniversityofWarwick),
andalsobyDrSteveNicholson(fromtheUniversityofSheffield).Theauthors
aregratefulforinvitationstopresentearlyversionsoftheirworkattheInstitute
ofContemporaryBritishHistoryin2001,attheUniversityofBristolin2002,
at Ohio State University in 2003, and at the Victoria and Albert Museum
in 2004. Finally, the authors would like to thank staff at Oxford University
Press (in particular Sophie Goldsworthy, Tom Perridge, and, most recently,
JacquelineBaker)forhelpingtobringthisprojecttofruitioninbookform.
D.T.
D.C.
A.E.
Contents
TimelineofStatutoryTheatreCensorship viii
Introduction 1
1. TheatreCensorshipundertheRoyalPrerogative 6
2. StatutoryTheatreCensorship,1737–1892 24
3. The1909ChallengetoStatutoryTheatreCensorship 69
4. TheInter-WarYears 108
5. The1949BidtoendStatutoryTheatreCensorship 123
6. FurtherAttemptstoendStatutoryTheatreCensorship 159
7. The1960sandthe1968TheatresAct 176
8. TheAftermath:BritishTheatrefollowingtheAbolitionofStatutory
Censorship 225
Conclusion 256
SelectBibliography 261
Index 267
Timeline of Statutory Theatre Censorship
1735 InApril,SirJohnBarnard’sPrivateMember’sBilltolimitthe
numberofplayhousesinLondonandelsewherefailsin
Parliament.
1737 10Geo.2,c.19.TheUniversitiesAct(19May)restorestheright
oftheUniversitiesofOxfordandCambridgetolicensetaverns
andtocontroltheactivitiesofplayersinthetwolocations.
InMay,SirRobertWalpoleusesadramatizedversionofThe
GoldenRumptopersuadeParliamenttosupporttheatre
censorship.
10Geo.2,c.28.TheLicensingAct(21June)givestheLord
Chamberlainstatutorypowersoftheatrecensorshipagainstwhich
thereisnoappeal:previouslyheandtheMasteroftheRevels
exercisedtheircensorshippowersundertheRoyalPrerogative.
Theonlyplayhousespermittedarethetwopatenttheatres,Drury
LaneandCoventGarden,andtheOperaHouseintheHaymarket.
1755 28Geo.2,c.19.TheActforRegulatingPlacesofPublic
EntertainmentgivesJusticesofthePeacepowerstolicenseplaces
ofpopularentertainmentinLondon,Westminster,andthe
HomeCounties.
1766 SamuelFooteisgivenapatentforasummertheatreinLondon.
1767 Theatresbuiltinprovincialcitieswithoutpermissionaregiven
patentsfromthisdateforwardbyrepealoftheLicensingActasit
appliestoeachcity.
1787 JohnPalmerbuildstheRoyaltyTheatreinWellcloseSquare,
London,butisdeniedpermissiontopresentspokendrama.
1788 28Geo.3,c.30.TheEnablingActgivesJusticesofthePeace
authoritytoissuelicencestotroupesoftouringplayersin
provincialplayhouses.
1832 EdwardBulwerMPasksforaSelectCommitteetoinvestigatethe
monopolyofthepatentplayhousesinLondon,protectionof
copyrightfordramatists,andtheatrecensorship.
Timeline ix
ThedeliberationsoftheSelectCommitteeonDramaticLiterature
areovershadowedbytheGreatReformBill.TheCommitteereports
inAugustanddoesnotrecommendanychangeincensorship
legislation.Itdoes,however,recommendprotectionforthelegal
rightsofplaywrightsandabolitionofthemonopolystatusof
London’spatentplayhouses.
1833 Bulwer’sDramaticPerformancesBill,designedtoimplementthe
SelectCommittee’srecommendations,failsatitsThirdReadingin
theHouseofLords.
1843 6&7Vict.,c.68.TheActforRegulatingTheatresispassedon22
Aug.1843.ThisActabolishesthetheatremonopolyhitherto
enjoyedbythepatenthousesinLondonbutconfirmstheLord
Chamberlain’sabsolutepowersofcensorship.TheActpermitsthe
LordChamberlaintoforbidanyplaywheneverhethinksitis
necessaryforthe‘preservationofgoodmanners,decorumorofthe
publicpeace’.
1866 TheSelectCommitteeonTheatricalLicencesandRegulations
recommendsinitsReport(28June)thattheLordChamberlain
shouldbegivenlicensingpowersinrespectofmusichalls.This
recommendationisnotadoptedbyParliament.Itrecommendsno
changetothesystemoftheatrecensorship.
1892 TheSelectCommitteeonTheatresandPlacesofEntertainment
recommendsinitsReport(2June)thatthecensorshipofplayshas
workedsatisfactorilyandshouldbeextended,wherepracticable,to
musichalls.Parliamentdoesnotadoptthisrecommendation.
1907 InOctober,HarleyGranvilleBarker’splayWasteisbannedbythe
censor.
Apetition,signedbyseventy-onedramatistsprotestingagainst
censorship,isprintedinTheTimes.
InNovember,G.B.Shawlaunchesapresscampaigntoprotest
againstcensorship.
1908 InFebruary,adeputationofdramatistsmeetsHerbertGladstone,
theHomeSecretary,toexpresstheirconcernsovercensorship.
InDecember,RobertHarcourtintroducesaPrivateMember’sBill
ontheatrecensorshipinthesamemonthasH.H.Asquithissueshis
challengetotheHouseofLords.
1909 InApril,HarcourtintroducesasecondPrivateMember’sBillon
theatrecensorshipjustbeforeDavidLloydGeorgeintroduceshis
People’sBudget.