Blog Posts

There were many newspaper reports about Bernard Shaw going to see Love on the Dole in 1935, yet they all stressed how impressed he had been by Wendy Hiller's performance as Sally Hardcastle, while saying nothing about what he thought of Greenwood and Gow's play. This article tracks down Bernard Shaw's only known written response… Continue reading New Article: George Bernard Shaw, Wendy Hiller, and Walter Greenwood

This is a unique record of a response by two 'ordinary' (if perhaps fictional) Yorkshire folk to Greenwood and Gow's play in its pre-London regional tour in 1934. The play moved them a great deal, as the columnist 'W.L.A.' reported in the Leeds Mercury on 19th May 1934. https://waltergreenwoodnotjustloveonthedole.com/mr-and-mrs-buslingthorpe-go-and-see-love-on-the-dole-grand-theatre-leeds-may-1934/ By mid-November I'll add a further… Continue reading New Article: ‘Mr and Mrs Buslingthorpe Go and See Love on the Dole (Grand Theatre, Leeds, May, 1934)’

I've added this newly located photo to the ' Film of Love on the Dole' article: https://waltergreenwoodnotjustloveonthedole.com/the-film-of-love-on-the-dole-1941/ . It shows Deborah Kerr as Sally Hardcastle, together with her mother and female neighbours. Best, Chris.

The sustained success of Greenwood and Gow's stage adaptation from 1934 until 1937 (with a revival in 1939) was a theatrical phenomenon. Some of the cast had well-established careers already, but for many, appearing in the play made their names and launched life-long careers. The biggest star to emerge was Wendy Hiller as Sally Hardcastle,… Continue reading New Article: Love on the Dole: the Actors (1934-1937)

In one of my earliest articles on the site I traced as many as possible of the dust-wrappers or cover designs in which Greenwood's books have been published. See https://waltergreenwoodnotjustloveonthedole.com/longer-articles-2/ However, despite looking for over a decade, I could not find a copy of his only thriller, Only Mugs Work (Hutchinson, 1938) complete with its… Continue reading Walter Greenwood: The Missing Dust-Wrapper – NOW FOUND!