This is the first new book-length study of British cinema of the 1910s to be published for over fifty years, and it focuses on the close relationship between the British film industry and the Edwardian theatre. Why were so many West End legends such as Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree and Ellen Terry repeatedly tempted to dabble in silent film work? Why were film producers so keen to employ them? Jon Burrows studies their screen performances and considers how successfully they made the transition from one medium to the other, and offers some controversial conclusions about the surprisingly broad social range of filmgoers to whom their films appealed.

Jon Burrows is a lecturer in the Department of Film and Television Studies, University of Warwick. He is the author of numerous articles about silent British cinema, including contributions to British Stars and Stardom (Manchester, 2001), The British Cinema Book, 2nd edition (London, 2001), and Young And Innocent? (UEP 2002).

List of Illustrations, vii; Acknowledgements, ix; Introduction, 1; 1. 'Only in England is Such Characterisation Possible': Class, Taste, National Values and the Edwardian Stage Actor, 27; 2. British 'Films d'Art': Theatre Stars in Transitional Cinema, 1908-1911, 43; 3. Patterns of 'Convergence' in Pre-war Entertainment: Legitimate Actors in Music Halls, 90; 4. Lost in the Translation: The Troubled Reception of Forbes-Robertson's Hamlet (1913), 112; 5. Transferable Skills: The Edwardian Character Actor on the Screen, 141; 6. 'The Whole English Stage To Be Seen For Sixpence': Ideal's 'High-Class' Wartime Films, 180; Conclusion, 225; Notes, 232; Bibliography, 263; Index, 273.