The Secret Service Girl

Examiner of Plays' Summary:

An extremely crude and childish melodrama. The heroine, Pearl, is in the secret service and in that capacity has to wheedle the villain, Miller, a spy, thus breaking the heart of the hero, Jack, a naval officer. She does all sorts of clever disguising business and finally elopes with miller into a German submarine, so that she may prevent it from sinking Jack's ship. This scene is of course, the 'close' of the play and might be exciting. She is supposed to be dead and Jack is persuaded by a trick to marry the female villain, but she turns up and her official chief forbids the banns - the church scene is managed 'off' - and all is explained and the villainess arrested. There is a rather unpleasant scene (IV) in which Pearl has to pretend to be tipsy, but it does not call for interference. In the vulgar comic relief a female policeman is made a butt of, but I suppose they must take their share with their male colleagues. It is a pity that the public should be given a lot of idiotic rubbish about the secret service, but it would be a great innovation to forbid it. I should doubt any audience being ignorant enough really to believe it, and no harm is intended. There are the usual vague reference to the 'hidden hand' controlling things. Recommended for Licence. G. S. Street.

Researcher's Summary:

Advertisements for venues can be from from as early as August 1918. Later reviews noted that the production was a success in London. It was toured nationally for most of 1919.