Me and My Girl is a musical with book and lyrics by
Douglas FurberDouglas Furber was a British lyricist and playwright.Furber is best known for the lyrics to the 1937 song The Lambeth Walk and the libretto to the musical Me and My Girl, composed by Noel Gay, from which it came. This show made broadcasting history when in 1939 it became the first full length...
and L. Arthur Rose and music by
Noel GayNoel Gay Willis born Reginald Moxon Armitage was one of the most successful British composers of popular music of the 1930s and 1940s....
. It takes place in the late 1930s in
HampshireHampshire , sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, , or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England. The county borders , Dorset, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
,
MayfairMayfair is an area of central London, England, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...
, and
LambethLambeth is a place in the London Borough of Lambeth, although the area is now more commonly known as Waterloo, after the railway station whose viaduct separates the former centre of the village from the River Thames...
.
The musical had a successful original run on the
West EndWest End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's "Theatreland". Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking world...
in 1937 and very successful revivals in both London and New York in the 1980s. The show stopper, “
The Lambeth Walk"The Lambeth Walk" is a song from the 1937 musical Me and My Girl . The song takes its name from a local street once notable for its street market and working class culture in Lambeth, an area of London, England.The tune gave its name to a Cockney dance first made popular in 1937 by Lupino Lane...
”, was the subject of a news story in
The TimesThe Times is a daily national newspaper published in the United Kingdom since 1785 when it was known as The Daily Universal Register....
of October 1938: “While dictators rage and statesmen talk, all Europe dances — to The Lambeth Walk.”
It originally opened at the
West EndWest End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's "Theatreland". Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking world...
Victoria Palace TheatreThe Victoria Palace Theatre is a West End theatre in Victoria Street, in the City of Westminster, opposite Victoria Station.-Origins:The theatre began life as a small concert room above the stables of the Royal Standard Hotel, a small hotel and tavern built in 1832 at what was then 522 Stockbridge...
on December 16, 1937, and starred
Lupino LaneHenry William George Lupino or Lupino Lane was a British-born actor and theatre manager from the famous Lupino family...
.
Me and My Girl is a musical with book and lyrics by
Douglas FurberDouglas Furber was a British lyricist and playwright.Furber is best known for the lyrics to the 1937 song The Lambeth Walk and the libretto to the musical Me and My Girl, composed by Noel Gay, from which it came. This show made broadcasting history when in 1939 it became the first full length...
and L. Arthur Rose and music by
Noel GayNoel Gay Willis born Reginald Moxon Armitage was one of the most successful British composers of popular music of the 1930s and 1940s....
. It takes place in the late 1930s in
HampshireHampshire , sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, , or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England. The county borders , Dorset, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
,
MayfairMayfair is an area of central London, England, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...
, and
LambethLambeth is a place in the London Borough of Lambeth, although the area is now more commonly known as Waterloo, after the railway station whose viaduct separates the former centre of the village from the River Thames...
.
The musical had a successful original run on the
West EndWest End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's "Theatreland". Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking world...
in 1937 and very successful revivals in both London and New York in the 1980s. The show stopper, “
The Lambeth Walk"The Lambeth Walk" is a song from the 1937 musical Me and My Girl . The song takes its name from a local street once notable for its street market and working class culture in Lambeth, an area of London, England.The tune gave its name to a Cockney dance first made popular in 1937 by Lupino Lane...
”, was the subject of a news story in
The TimesThe Times is a daily national newspaper published in the United Kingdom since 1785 when it was known as The Daily Universal Register....
of October 1938: “While dictators rage and statesmen talk, all Europe dances — to The Lambeth Walk.”
Production history
It originally opened at the
West EndWest End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's "Theatreland". Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking world...
Victoria Palace TheatreThe Victoria Palace Theatre is a West End theatre in Victoria Street, in the City of Westminster, opposite Victoria Station.-Origins:The theatre began life as a small concert room above the stables of the Royal Standard Hotel, a small hotel and tavern built in 1832 at what was then 522 Stockbridge...
on December 16, 1937, and starred
Lupino LaneHenry William George Lupino or Lupino Lane was a British-born actor and theatre manager from the famous Lupino family...
. At first attracting little notice, the production gained immediate success after a matinee performance was broadcast live on
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation, usually referred to by its abbreviation as the "BBC", is the longest established and largest broadcaster in the world...
radio, following the cancellation of a sporting event. On May 1, 1939, a performance was televised from the theatre, one of the first times such was done. The original West End production ran for 1,646 performances.
A film version was produced in 1940, titled
The Lambeth Walk.
It was revived in 1952. In 1984, a revised production opened at the Leicester Haymarket Theatre with a revised script by
Stephen FryStephen John Fry is a British actor, writer, comedian, author, television presenter and film director. With Hugh Laurie, as the comedy double act Fry and Laurie, he co-wrote and co-starred in A Bit of Fry and Laurie, and the duo also played the title roles in Jeeves and Wooster...
and contributions by
Mike OckrentMike Ockrent was a British stage director, well-known both for his Broadway musicals and smaller niche plays. He was educated at Highgate School. From directing Educating Rita and Follies, he became an established figure on the London scene...
. It transferred to the West End
Adelphi TheatreThe Adelphi Theatre is a 1500-seat West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, today it is a receiving house for a variety of productions, including many musicals...
on February 12, 1985 and closed on January 16, 1993 after an eight year run and 3,303 performances. It starred
Robert LindsayRobert Lindsay is an English actor who is best known for his television work, especially his roles in Citizen Smith, My Family, and Hornblower.-Early life:...
as Bill Snibson, Emma Thompson, and
Frank ThorntonFrank Thornton is an English actor who is best known for playing Captain Peacock in Are You Being Served? and its sequel Grace & Favour and as Truly in Last of the Summer Wine.-Early life:...
. The production won two Olivier Awards--Robert Lindsay for Outstanding Performance of the Year by an Actor in a Musical and Musical of the Year. The production subsequently toured throughout Britain.
The revised London production opened on
BroadwayBroadway Theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, is the theatre associated with the 40 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located in the Theatre District, New York in Manhattan, New York City...
at the
Marquis TheatreThe Marquis Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 1535 Broadway in midtown-Manhattan.Situated on the third floor of the Marriott Marquis Hotel, the 1611-seat venue was designed by developer/architect John C. Portman, Jr...
on August 10, 1986, and closed on December 31, 1989, after 1,420 performances. Directed by Mike Ockrent with choregraphy by Gillian Gregory, the cast starred Robert Lindsay and
Maryann PlunkettMaryann Plunkett is an American actress who in 1987 won the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her performance as "Sally Smith" in Me and My Girl...
, with
George S. IrvingGeorge S. Irving is a American actor, known primarily for his character roles on Broadway.Born George Irving Shelasky in Springfield, Massachusetts, he made his debut in the original 1943 production of Oklahoma!, only to find himself drafted days later to serve in World War II...
and Jane Connell. The production was nominated for 13 Tony Awards.
Jim DaleJim Dale MBE is an English actor, voice artist, singer and songwriter. He is best known in the United Kingdom for his many appearances in the Carry On series of films and is known in the US for narrating the Harry Potter audiobook series, for which he received two Grammy Awards, and the ABC series...
succeeded Lindsay in the lead role of Bill.
A 70th anniversary production of
Me and My Girl had an eight-month British tour during 2006-07. It was directed and choreographed by Warren Carlyle with a cast including Richard Frame (Bill Snibson),
Faye TozerFaye Louise Tozer is a theatre actress and singer who first gained fame as a member of the pop group Steps.-Music:Steps were a pop group that achieved a series of charted singles between 1997 and 2001...
(Sally Smith),
Sylvester McCoySylvester McCoy is a Scottish actor. He is best known for playing the seventh incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who from 1987 to 1989 and a brief return in a television movie in 1996.-Early life:McCoy was born in Dunoon, on the Cowal peninsula,...
,
Trevor BannisterTrevor Bannister is an English actor best known for playing Mr. Lucas the sitcom Are You Being Served? from 1972 to 1979.-Career:...
and
Dillie KeaneDillie Keane is an Olivier Award-nominated Irish actress, singer and comedienne. She is perhaps best known as one third of the comedy cabaret trio Fascinating Aida ever since its inception in 1983, but she has had an equally prominent solo career....
.
Plot synopsis
Act I
In the 1930s, the Harefords, a family of haughty aristocrats, are seeking the legitimate heir to the title of Earl of Hareford. Bill Snibson, a
CockneyThe term Cockney has both geographical and linguistic associations. Geographically and culturally, it often refers to working class Londoners, particularly those in the East End...
from Lambeth is found and named as the long-lost “Earl of Hareford”. It seems that the 13th Earl had secretly and briefly wed a girl from a bad neighborhood. But Bill's rough Cockney ways do not satisfy the Will of the last Earl: In order to gain his inheritance of the title and estate, Bill must satisfy the very proper executors (Maria, Duchess of Dene, and Sir John Tremayne) by learning gentlemanly manners. The Duchess thinks that she can make Bill “fit and proper”, but not his Cockney girlfriend, Sally Smith. The Duchess plans a party in Bill's honour, but Sally is not to be invited. Sir John tells Sally that she and Bill ought to return to Lambeth, but he is moved by Sally's heartfelt declaration of love for Bill.
At the party, Bill puts on airs and tries to please his new-found upper-class lawyers, family and servants, but his everyman roots quickly begin to show. Sally shows up in inappropriate garb, with her Lambeth friends, saying that she is going back to where she belongs. Bill seconds this at first but then teaches the nobility the
The Lambeth Walk"The Lambeth Walk" is a song from the 1937 musical Me and My Girl . The song takes its name from a local street once notable for its street market and working class culture in Lambeth, an area of London, England.The tune gave its name to a Cockney dance first made popular in 1937 by Lupino Lane...
.
Act II
Bill must make a speech in the
House of LordsThe House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is also commonly referred to as "the Lords". Parliament comprises the Sovereign, the House of Commons , and the Lords...
in coronet and “vermin”-trimmed peer's robes. Sally leaves, telling him to marry someone with good blood. Bill and Sally have gained an ally in Sir John, who offers to help them by engaging a speech professor who will help Sally impress the Duchess.
Bill constantly bemoans his separation from Sally. Preparing another party for Bill, the Duchess realises how much Sally means to him. This puts her in a romantic mood, and she accepts an offer of marriage from Sir John. Bill, dressed in his old outrageous Cockney clothes, declares that he's going home and goes upstairs to pack. Just then, Sally astonishes everyone by arriving in and elegant gown and tiara and speaking with a perfect upper-crust accent. When Bill returns downstairs, Sally conceals her identity. When she reveals it, Bill is relieved and the couple gain the acceptance of the family.
Musical numbers
Based on the 1986 Broadway production
Act 1
- A Weekend at Hareford – Ensemble
- Thinking of No-One But Me – Lady Jaqueline Carstone and The Hon. Gerald Bolingbroke
- The Family Solicitor – Herbert Parchester and The Family
- Me and My Girl – Bill Snibson and Sally Smith
- An English Gentleman – Charles Heathersett and Staff
- You Would If You Could – Lady Jaqueline and Bill
- Hold My Hand – Bill, Sally and Dancers
- Once You Lose Your Heart – Sally
- Preparation Fugue – The Company
- The Lambeth Walk
"The Lambeth Walk" is a song from the 1937 musical Me and My Girl . The song takes its name from a local street once notable for its street market and working class culture in Lambeth, an area of London, England.The tune gave its name to a Cockney dance first made popular in 1937 by Lupino Lane...
– Bill , Sally and The Company
Act 2
- The Sun Has Got His Hat On
The Sun Has Got His Hat On is one of the main songs in the musical Me and My Girl. It was written by Noel Gay and Ralph Butler, and recorded in 1932 by Ambrose and his Orchestra, with vocals by Sam Browne....
– The Hon. Gerald Bolingbroke, Lady Jaqueline and Ensemble
- Take It on the Chin – Sally
- Once You Lose Your Heart (Reprise) – Sally
- Song of Hareford -Duchess Maria, Bill and Ensemble
- Love Makes the World Go Round – Bill and Sir John Tremayne
- Leaning on a Lamppost – Bill and Ensemble
- If Only You Had Cared for Me – Sir John and Duchess Maria
- Finale – The Company
Characters
- Bill Snibson - a cockney costermonger
Costermonger, or simply Coster, is a street seller of fruit and vegetables, in London and other British towns. They were ubiquitous in mid-Victorian England, and some are still found in markets. As usual with street-sellers, they would use a loud sing-song cry or chant to attract attention...
, in love with Sally, who inherits Lord Hareford's land and titles.
- Sally Smith - Bill's sweetheart.
- Sir John Tremayne - an older gentleman, who is kind to Sally and Bill. He is in love with the Duchess.
- The Duchess of Dene - an intimidating aristocrat.
- Gerald Bolingbroke - an attractive young man. He is in love with Jackie.
- Lady Jacqueline (Jackie) Carstone - breaks off her engagement to Gerald to pursue Bill.
- Herbert Parchester - the family solicitor.
- Lord Jasper Tring - an elderly and hard-of-hearing nobleman.
- Charles - a manservantoddities.
- Lord and Lady Battersby, Lady Brighton, The Honourable Margaret Aikington, Charles Boulting-Smythe - other members of the family who are mostly interchangeable.
- Mrs Brown - Sally's landlady.
- Bob Barking - a friend of Bill and Sally.
Awards and nominations
Olivier Awards (1985)
- Musical of the Year (winner)
- Outstanding Performance of the Year by an Actor in a Musical Robert Lindsay (winner)
Tony Awards
- Best Musical (nominee)
- Best Book of a Musical (nominee)
- Best Original Score (nominee)
- Best Scenic Design (nominee)
- Best Costume Design (nominee)
- Best Choreography (winner)
- Best Direction of a Musical (nominee)
- Best Actor in a Musical Robert Lindsay (winner)
- Best Actress in a Musical Maryann Plunkett (winner)
- Best Featured Actor in a Musical
- George S. Irving (nominee)
- Timothy Jerome (nominee)
- Best Featured Actress in a Musical
- Jane Connell (nominee)
- Jane Summerhays (nominee)
Theatre World AwardThe Theatre World Award, first awarded for the 1945-46 season, is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway.-History:...
Robert Lindsay (winner)
External links