Herbert (Bertie) Farjeon (5 March 1887 – 3 May 1945) was a major figure in the British theatre from 1910 until his death. He was a presenter of

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...

s in London's West End, a theatre critic, lyricist, librettist, playwright, theatre manager and researcher.Profile of Farjeon
/ref>

Early life

His father was the novelist

Benjamin Leopold Farjeon Benjamin Leopold Farjeon (12 May 1838 – 23 July 1903) was an English novelist, playwright, printer and journalist. As an author, he was known for his huge output. Life Farjeon was born in London to Dinah Levy and Jacob Farjeon, Orthodox Jews. ...

. His mother, Margaret Jefferson, was the daughter of the American actor,

Joseph Jefferson Joseph Jefferson III, commonly known as Joe Jefferson (February 20, 1829 – April 23, 1905), was an American actor. He was the third actor of this name in a family of actors and managers, and one of the most famous 19th century American comedia ...

. His sister was

Eleanor Farjeon Eleanor Farjeon (13 February 1881 – 5 June 1965) was an English author of children's stories and plays, poetry, biography, history and satire. Several of her works had illustrations by Edward Ardizzone. Some of her correspondence has also been ...

, the writer of children's verse and stories. His brothers were Harry Farjeon, the composer, and J. Jefferson Farjeon, who wrote novels. He was a

conscientious objector A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...

in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Career

His first play to be performed, ''Friends'', was put on at the

Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre ( ga, Amharclann na Mainistreach), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland ( ga, Amharclann Náisiúnta na hÉireann), in Dublin, Ireland, is one of the country's leading cultural institutions. First opening to the p ...

, Dublin in 1917. Subsequently, he had several plays performed in London. He was better known for his

s than for his "straight" plays, however. These included: ''Spread It Abroad'', ''The Two Bouquets'', ''Nine Sharp'', ''Little Revue'', ''Diversion'' and ''Light and Shade''. He is credited with discovering

Joyce Grenfell Joyce Irene Grenfell OBE (''née'' Phipps; 10 February 1910 – 30 November 1979) was an English diseuse, singer, actress and writer. She was known for the songs and monologues she wrote and performed, at first in revues and later in her solo s ...

, whose first stage appearance was in ''Light and Shade''. In 1938, he joined the management of the Little Theatre in London, and his revues were performed there. His songs included "

I've danced with a man, who's danced with a girl, who's danced with the Prince of Wales "I've danced with a man, who's danced with a girl, who's danced with the Prince of Wales" is a 1927 song by Herbert Farjeon and Harold Scott written at the height of the popularity of Edward VIII, Edward, Prince of Wales, later Edward VIII of the ...

". He wrote reviews of plays and articles about the theatre for a number of British newspapers and magazines, including the ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...

'', ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

'', '' The Listener'' and the ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

''. He was interested in the history of the theatre, and wrote about the Elizabethan theatre,

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

and his plays, and edited a seven volume publication of the text of the

First Folio ''Mr. William Shakespeare's Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies'' is a collection of plays by William Shakespeare, commonly referred to by modern scholars as the First Folio, published in 1623, about seven years after Shakespeare's death. It is cons ...

. In the 1940s he helped to save the

Theatre Royal, Bristol Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

when it was put up for sale and might have ceased to be a theatre. He collaborated with his sister on a number of books, including ''Kings and Queens'' (1932), ''The Two Bouquets'' (1938, also staged with music by

Ernest Irving Kelville Ernest Irving (6 November 1878 – 24 October 1953) was an English music director, conductor and composer, primarily remembered as a theatre musician in London between the wars, and for his key contributions to British film music as ...

), ''An Elephant in Arcady'' (1939), and ''The Glass Slipper'' (1944).

Personal life

In October 1914 he married Joan Thornycroft (September 1888 – April 1989), daughter of Sir Hamo Thornycroft RA, sculptor. Joan was, via her aunt Theresa Sassoon née Thornycroft, first cousin to

Siegfried Sassoon Siegfried Loraine Sassoon (8 September 1886 – 1 September 1967) was an English war poet, writer, and soldier. Decorated for bravery on the Western Front, he became one of the leading poets of the First World War. His poetry both describ ...

, war poet (and also a keen cricketer). Their daughter, Eve Annabel Farjeon, was a ballerina and author. He was a

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

enthusiast, and had a collection of pieces about the game published.

Bibliography

His books included:List of his books
/ref> *''Advertising April, Or the Girl Who Made the Sunshine Jealous: a Comedy in Three Acts'', with Horace Horsnell, Kessinger Publishing, 2007 (first published 1922). *''Dramatic Sequels'', with John Hankin, Secker, 1926. *''Works of Shakespeare: the Text of the First Folio With Quarto Variants and a Selection of Modern Readings'', 7 vols, editor, Nonesuch Library, 1929. *''Kings and Queens'', with Eleanor Farjeon, EP Dutton, 1932. *''Heroes and Heroines'', with Eleanor Farjeon, J M Dent & Sons, 1933. *''The Comedies, Histories & Tragedies of William Shakespeare'', editor, Limited Editions Club, 1939. *''Herbert Farjeon's Cricket Bag'', Macdonald, 1946.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farjeon, Herbert 1887 births 1945 deaths British conscientious objectors British theatre managers and producers British theatre critics English Jews English musical theatre librettists Cricket historians and writers Jewish dramatists and playwrights

Herbert Herbert may refer to: People Individuals * Herbert (musician), a pseudonym of Matthew Herbert Name * Herbert (given name) * Herbert (surname) Places Antarctica * Herbert Mountains, Coats Land * Herbert Sound, Graham Land Australia * Herbert ...

Writers from London 20th-century English dramatists and playwrights