Gilbert of Gilbert & Sullivan: His Life and Character
'[W.S. Gilbert] had a keen eye for the foibles and eccentricities of his countrymen and their institutions. Andrew Crowther movingly describes the effects of Gilbert's unhappy childhood on his character and the way that he found escape and release in the fairy tale world of pantomime. He is particularly informative on the genesis of Iolanthe, perhaps the most biting and successful piece of social and political satire in the Savoy canon. Loudly let the trumpet bray!'   - Ian Bradley, the author of The Complete Annotated Gilbert and Sullivan  'A sympathetic and illuminating portrait of a quintessential Englishman' - Ian Bradley