Did you know that 2003 is…
The centenary of the foundation of Mrs Pankhurst’s Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU)...
The 90th anniversary of the death of Emily Wilding Davison at the 1913 Derby in the suffragette cause...
The 75th anniversary of the death of Mrs Pankhurst...
and the 75th anniversary of the passing of the Equal Franchise Act which finally gave all women the vote...

To celebrate and commemorate these anniversaries, we return to the Finborough Arms of 1913 for a visit by the Actresses Franchise League, the well-known political pressure group performing specially-written plays to win support for the Cause… The bill will comprise –

How the Vote Was Won by Cicely Hamilton and Christopher St John - Horace Cole had always argued that women did not need the vote because they are “looked after” by men. But when he is confronted with a household of female relatives demanding to be “supported”, the anti-suffrage hero realises the error of his ways and rushes to march on parliament to demand votes for women - now !

A Chat with Mrs Chicky by Evelyn Glover - Charwoman Mrs Chicky finds herself confronted by Mrs Holbrook who is collecting signatures for her anti-suffrage petition. This deeply humorous sketch dramatises the arguments of working class women in favour of the vote.

Press Cuttings by Bernard Shaw - “Compiled from the editorial columns of the daily papers during the women's war in 1909”
Appalled by the forcible feeding of suffragette prisoners on hunger strike, Bernard Shaw wrote this satirical look at how General Mitchener and Prime Minister Balsquith treat those who are both for and against the vote. Press Cuttings was originally banned by the Lord Chamberlain for “attempted blasphemy”, and has not been seen in London for 21 years.

March of the Women – Music by Dame Ethel Smyth. Lyric by Cecily Hamilton. The anthem of the suffragette movement.

Tribute to Emily Wilding Davison - A tribute – compiled from eyewitness reports – to Emily Wilding Davison who died after throwing herself under the King’s horse at the 1913 Derby.

The Women’s War has been specially commissioned for the Finborough Theatre by Artistic Director Neil McPherson.

The play is co-produced by Concordance whose other co-productions at the Finborough Theatre have included Larry Kramer’s The Destiny of Me and Louise Page’s Falkland Sound,and directed by exciting new director Laura Dunton Clarke. This production is presented with the support of the Friends of Brompton Cemetery. Brompton Cemetery, adjacent to the Finborough Theatre, is the last resting-place of many leading suffragists including Dame Ethel Smyth and Mrs Pankhurst herself.

The Press on The Women's War - A Centenary Celebration
"An utterly delightful evening, peppered with polite jokes and sporting some excellent performances, can be found at the Finborough Theatre with its latest in-house production, The Womens War - A Centenary Celebration. . .How The Vote Was Won is a very funny one-act play. . . A Chat With Mrs Chicky is another gem. . .There follows an unsentimental tribute to Emily Davison, who famously threw herself in front of the Kings horse in the 1913 Derby, which, in spite of its factuality, I found quite moving. . . The GBS play is Press Cuttings . . . It has plenty of amusing touches . . .some splendid acting and Edmund Dehn as General Mitchener along with John Edmunds as Balsquith rise to its challenge and present a good deal of enjoyment. . . The evening ends with Dame Ethel Smyth's vibrant March of the Women . . . an evening of pure pleasure." Paul Nelson, indielondon.co.uk

"Marking the anniversaries of several significant events in the struggle for female emancipation, including 100 years since Emmeline Pankhurst founded the Womens Social and Political Union, and 90 years since the death of Emily Wilding Davison, who threw herself under the Kings horse in 1913 Derby The Finborough has resurrected three early 20th century playlets that spell out the politics of the time better than any school lesson. . .How The Vote Was Won . .is a non too subtle but enjoyable tableaux exposing the chauvinistic law as an ass. Horace (James Price) is a typical reactionary male who is panicked into changing his opinion when his every female relative takes advantage of the rule that says every woman has the right to be supported by their "nearest male relative". Its followed by the sketch A Chat With Mrs Chicky by Evelyn Glover, which satisfyingly sees a below-stairs charlady (Jackie Everett) out-argue her anti-suffragette boss (Anna Ledwich). Shaws startlingly relevant political parody, Press Cuttings rounds off a very enjoyable evening which under Laura Dunton Clarke's slick direction, resurrects a distinctly British revolutionary mood." John Nathan, Jewish Chronicle

"Hats off to the companies behind The Women's War (Wild Pendulum and Concordance) for spotting that this year marks a clutch of anniversaries to do with womens struggle to get the vote. Its 100 years since Mrs Pankhurst launched the Womens Social and Political Union, 90 since Emily Davison died after throwing herself before the kings horse at Epsom, and 75 since women over 21 were enfranchised. And lurking behind this jaunty little evening is a faint sense of reproach: first, that these dates have probably passed most of us by, and second, that the suffrage so painfully won is now so lightly worn. But these ironies remain unspoken: this is a good-humoured show composed of a clutch of provocative period playlets. The production transports us back to August 1913. As a wind-up gramophone crackles away, women in high-necked blouses and heavy skirts bustle about, preparing the stage for dramatic propaganda. Stifling clothes dont seem to have muffled the suffragettes sense of humour. How the Vote Was Won (by Cicely Hamilton and Christopher St John) neatly illustrates the role played by women, by proposing that all working women abandon their posts, move in with their nearest male relative and demand that he support them. So Horace Cole finds his home invaded by female relatives who swig his port and pinch his favourite chair. Bernard Shaws Press Cuttings is also archly satirical, imagining an encounter between the prime minister and an army general as they discuss tactics to stave off democracy. But the strongest sketch is Evelyn Glover's A Chat with Mrs Chicky. Here a well-to-do anti-suffragist attempts to coerce her brothers charlady into signing her petition, but finds the shrewd Mrs Chicky (a lovely, dry performance from Jackie Everett) more than a match for her. The cast turns in light-hearted performances in Laura Dunton Clarke's sprightly production. . . an amiable and illuminating one [evening]."
Sarah Hemming, The Financial Times

"This series of playlets, written and set at the time of militant suffragette action, serve as a galvanising poke in the ribs for our vaguely anti-feminist times. . . But its not the dour, worthy affair that such a description might imply. . .How The Vote Was Won, a satirical sketch from 1909, imagines the consequences had all the women of London simultaneously quit their jobs and taken up residence with their nearest male relative (who the law stated, were contractually obliged to support them). Beautifully acted . . . A Chat With Mrs Chicky is a droll. . .two-hander by Evelyn Glover, in which an educated young woman the perfectly condescending Anna Ledwich) tries to persuade an elderly charwoman (Jackie Everetts salt-of-the-earth cockney) to sign her anti-suffragette petition - and is very eloquently told where to stick it. . . Theres more satire in the second half with George Bernard Shaws scathing Press Cuttings . . .Rob Hughes is a comic gem as the insubordinate Orderly, and Shaw has much Swiftian fun with General Mitcheners considered strategic plan to shoot them (suffragettes) all down. A memorable [evening]" Madeleine North, Time Out

"Check out the sepia charms of this evening of political playlets from 1913. Written by Edwardian actresses and journalists who supported the cause, the propaganda hold up surprisingly well. . . An eye witness account of the death of Emily Wilding Davison beneath the kings horse in the 1913 Derby is a useful reminder of the fearsome hostility and violence surrounding these women during a bitter ten year war with authority. . .This is an entertaining and revealing evening of time travel for anyone who still cares about quaint retro notions like democracy"
Helen Chappell, What's On in London

"The Finborough Theatre is celebrating various anniversaries related to the victory, with an exhilarating evening of three short plays, a tribute, and a rousing anthem March of the Women to send you off triumphantly into the night. All were written by playwrights and other artists contemporary to the suffragette movement. How the Vote was Won is . . . hilarious . . . Bernard Shaw's Press Cuttings is a sly peek at the government of the day . . . Ever the subversive, Shaw casually permeates this play with a host of wonderful lines and ideas. It is a great pleasure to witness. . . The plays presented here deal with these weighty issues using great compassion and humour, and are vividly illuminated by this super company of actors. You will end the evening feeling well entertained, better informed, and even a little shocked."
Julia Hickman, Theatreworld Internet Magazine

"How The Vote Was Won describes how a house holder in Brixton is converted to the cause once a general womens strike results in his home becoming a refuge to the majority of his living female relatives. Caroline Head as Maudie brings a touch of cheeky music hall glamour into the sober domesticity of the Edwardian home which the fervent James Price is anxious to defend. A Chat With Mrs Chicky is a lively piece aimed at class differences as much as the suffragette movement. Anna Ledwich, the lady of the house seems to revel in her role as the clueless inquisitor while Jackie Everett as the titular char-lady runs circles around her politics revealing a talent for dead pan comedy with impeccable timing. A tribute to Emily Wilding Davison touches on the much graver side of the cause as Dominique Gerrard gives a heart rending eyewitness account of the day in 1913 when Davison threw herself before the King's horse. Finally we are treated to a topical sketch by George Bernard Shaw. Edmund Dehn as the bombastic General Mitchener and John Edmunds as the Prime Minister Balsquith cannot decide between them how to deal with the encroachment of the petticoat. Naturally it is up to the women to decide as Cally Lawrence's hysterical Mrs Banger and Josephine Peer's delicious turn as the conniving Lady Corinthia take steps to lead from behind." Paul Vale, The Stage