The

Lord Chamberlain The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom while also acting as the main cha ...

's requirements were a set of four prerequisites for a licence for a production in British theatres. These were printed in theatre programmes so the audience could be aware of them. The

Lord Chamberlain's Office The Lord Chamberlain's Office is a department within the British Royal Household. It is concerned with matters such as protocol, state visits, investitures, garden parties, royal weddings and funerals. For example, in April 2005 it organised the ...

had control of theatres until 1968, including

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

of the production content as well as for logistical matters. In the 1980s, they were replaced by similar requirements applied by a local licensing authority. The original regulations were officially known as the Lord Chamberlain's Regulations, but as they were printed in every programme as "The Lord Chamberlain's Requirements", this became their accepted name. The requirements cover: # Leaving the theatre at the end of the performance. # Freedom of gangways and passages from obstruction. # Limitations on standees. # Operation of the

safety curtain A safety curtain (or fire curtain in America) is a fire safety precaution used in large proscenium Theater (structure), theatres. It is usually a heavy fibreglass or iron curtain located immediately behind the proscenium arch. Asbestos-based m ...

during each performance. Three of the requirements (leaving the theatre, freedom of the gangways and the operation of the safety curtain) were set to music by

Donald Swann Donald Ibrahim Swann (30 September 1923 – 23 March 1994) was a British composer, musician, singer and entertainer. He was one half of Flanders and Swann, writing and performing comic songs with Michael Flanders. Life Donald Swann was born in ...

for the revue Fresh Airs and were later used as encores for the

Flanders and Swann Flanders and Swann were a British comedy duo. Lyricist, actor and singer Michael Flanders (1922–1975) and composer and pianist Donald Swann (1923–1994) collaborated in writing and performing comic songs. They first worked together in a scho ...

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 ...

At the Drop of a Hat ''At the Drop of a Hat'' is a musical revue by Flanders and Swann, described by them as "an after-dinner farrago". In the show, they both sang on a nearly bare stage, accompanied by Swann on the piano. The songs were linked by contemporary socia ...

''.

References

* London Theatre programmes of the period 1948 to 2008 Theatre in the United Kingdom {{theat-stub