H R Beard Collection
Poster
1952 (printed)
1952 (printed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
When this poster was printed in 1952 to advertising the murder mystery The Mousetrap by Agatha Christie, no-one would have guessed that it was destined to become the world's longest-running theatrical production. Set in the hall of Monkswell Manor, the play starred the popular husband and wife Sheila Sim and Richard Attenborough, and went on to become a British institution, famous for being famous. The critic Cecil Wilson wrote: 'The play has the expert merit of keeping us guessing to the very end', but even Agatha Christie was quite bemused by its popularity, saying: 'It's not really frightening. It's not really horrible. It's not really a farce. But it has a little of all these things and perhaps that satisfies a lot of people'.
Like other posters of its time, this is simply and clearly designed, featuring photographs of the stars, and crediting the full cast. The use of red and black lettering perhaps unwittingly echoes the earliest theatre posters of the 17th century which sometimes used red ink as well as black to attract the attention of playgoers.
Like other posters of its time, this is simply and clearly designed, featuring photographs of the stars, and crediting the full cast. The use of red and black lettering perhaps unwittingly echoes the earliest theatre posters of the 17th century which sometimes used red ink as well as black to attract the attention of playgoers.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | H R Beard Collection (named collection) |
| Materials and techniques | Printed paper |
| Brief description | Poster featuring the original cast of The Mousetrap by Agatha Christie starring Sheila Sim and Richard Attenborough. Ambassador's Theatre, 25 November 1952. Offset and letterpress. Harry Beard Collection. |
| Physical description | Poster printed in black and white, headed with the name of the theatre AMBASSADORS THEATRE and the address West Street, Cambridge Circus, WC2, followed by the name of the proprietors, Ambassadors Theatre Ltd., the lessee J.E. Pemberton & Co. Ltd., and the names of the Managing Directors W.G. Curtis and H.J. Malden, and 'Licenced by the Lord Chamberlain to J.F.H. Jay. Followed by the times of performances and the ticket prices. Lower down is the name of the producer 'Peter Saunders Presents' in red lettering, along with the name of the play and the author -THE MOUSETRAP by Agatha Christie'. With the names of the other performers in black lettering 'Jessica Spenser, Aubrey Dexter, Mignon O'Doherty, Allan McClelland, John Paul and Martin Miller'. To the right is a black and white photograph of Richard Attenborough and Sheila Sim. 'DIRECTED BY PETER COATES' is at the bottom in red, with 'Decor by Roger Furse' in black. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Harry R. Beard Collection, given by Isobel Beard |
| Object history | As at 2008, The Mousetrap is the world's longest running theatrical production. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Associations | |
| Literary reference | <i>The Mousetrap</i> |
| Summary | When this poster was printed in 1952 to advertising the murder mystery The Mousetrap by Agatha Christie, no-one would have guessed that it was destined to become the world's longest-running theatrical production. Set in the hall of Monkswell Manor, the play starred the popular husband and wife Sheila Sim and Richard Attenborough, and went on to become a British institution, famous for being famous. The critic Cecil Wilson wrote: 'The play has the expert merit of keeping us guessing to the very end', but even Agatha Christie was quite bemused by its popularity, saying: 'It's not really frightening. It's not really horrible. It's not really a farce. But it has a little of all these things and perhaps that satisfies a lot of people'. Like other posters of its time, this is simply and clearly designed, featuring photographs of the stars, and crediting the full cast. The use of red and black lettering perhaps unwittingly echoes the earliest theatre posters of the 17th century which sometimes used red ink as well as black to attract the attention of playgoers. |
| Bibliographic reference | Images of Show Buisiness edited by James Fowler. Methuen 1982. p,84. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.69-2008 |
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| Record created | March 4, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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