A SAMUEL FRENCH, LTD. TITLE

Less Than Kind

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  6w, 4m

Terence Rattigan

Less Than Kind
by Terence Rattigan

Michael, eighteen, returns to wartime London from schooling in Canada,
brimming with youthful left-wing convictions. Reunited with his mother
Olivia, he is alarmed as he begins to realise that she is the mistress
of Sir John Fletcher, a leading member of the war cabinet. Sparks fly
between the idealistic young man and the pragmatic politician, while
Olivia is torn between them. Less Than Kind is Rattigan's first version
of this comedy, but was never staged and never published until 2011, the
centenary of his birth. Instead it was substantially rewritten at the
behest of the Lunts, who were to star in the premiere production, and it
opened in the West End in 1944 as Love In Idleness. This volume
presents both plays in full so that readers may judge for themselves
which is the better.

Less Than Kind

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    6w, 4m

Details

Summary
Michael, eighteen, returns to wartime London from schooling in Canada, brimming with youthful left-wing convictions. Reunited with his mother Olivia, he is alarmed as he begins to realise that she is the mistress of Sir John Fletcher, a leading member of the war cabinet. Sparks fly between the idealistic young man and the pragmatic politician, while Olivia is torn between them. Less Than Kind is Rattigan's first version of this comedy, but was never staged and never published until 2011, the centenary of his birth. Instead it was substantially rewritten at the behest of the Lunts, who were to star in the premiere production, and it opened in the West End in 1944 as Love In Idleness. This volume presents both plays in full so that readers may judge for themselves which is the better.
Olivia Brown, late 30s/early 40s.
Polton, middle-aged parlourmaid.
Miss Dell.
Sir John Fletcher, about 45.
Michael, 18.
Diana Fletcher, Sir John's estranged wife, about 25 and very decorative.
Celia Wentworth.
Mr
  • Time Period 1940s/WWII
  • Setting A house; a flat
  • Features Period Costumes

Licensing & Materials

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    This title may have restrictions in place for London based productions. Please submit a licence request to confirm specific availability.

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Authors

Terence Rattigan

Terence Rattigan

Born in London on the 10th June 1911, Terence Rattigan (1911–1977) was educated at Harrow (Scholar) from 1925 to 1930 and Trinity College, Oxford (History Scholarship) BA to 1933. He served as a flight Lieutenant in the Central Command, RAF from 1940 to 1945. In 1934 he had b ...

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