What Did British Theatre Do During – And For – The First World War?

It started with recruiting: “Music hall stars of the day such as Marie Lloyd, Phyllis Dare and Vesta Tilley believed they were doing their bit for the war effort by exhorting – and sometimes shaming – the men in the audience into joining up. ‘We don’t want to lose you / But we think you ought to go,’ went one not very subtle refrain.”