Back to the Wife and Home [Home from the Trenches]

Examiner of Plays' Summary:

[The Examiner's notes for this script are missing from the file at the British Library]

Researcher's Summary:

On 27 September 1917 The Stage announced that ‘An entirely new, up-to-date play, by Arthur Jefferson, entitled “Home from the Trenches”’ was to be produced. This was first performed on 20 May 1918 at the Grand Theatre, Nottingham, but there is no record of the play being licensed under that name. Jefferson revised the play in November 1918 to reflect the armistice: The Stage, 28 November 1918, advertised a ‘Revised, Up-to-date Version’ of Home From The Trenches, ‘conforming with the Peace Conditions, and re-entitled Back to Wife and Home’; it was licensed under this name in December 1918. Later performances in January-March 1919 used the revised version of the play but kept the original title (see The Era, 5 March 1919 and The Stage, 6 March 1919 which advertised the play as Home From The Trenches, adding ‘Note, - if preferred, can be played under the title, Back to Wife and Home’). Advertisements stressed that it was not a ‘war play’, even before the post-armistice changes were made. The Stage stated on 17 October 1918 that it was ‘Not a War Play, but a purely domestic story which, by changing the title and the character of the one soldier will “appeal” long after Germany has been brought to her knees’. On 9 January 1919 The Stage requested, ‘Once again, will Managers kindly note that Trenches is not a War play. Only one “soldier”, who leaves for France after the armistice celebrations for “clearing-up work” at the end of Act 1, returning, finally discharged, [at] the end of Act 2. Beyond these incidents, the story is of a purely domestic nature’. The play was performed in the main by Will H. Glaze’s company but it was also licensed to other producers including Maggie Morton, Albert Sember and the Stock Company of the Grand Theatre, Plymouth. Not every performance run has been identified. An advertisement for Home From The Trenches in The Stage, 23 January 1919 announced, ‘Thirty-sixth week of tour, and going stronger than ever!’ And an advertisement for Home From The Trenches in The Stage, 6 February 1919 claimed, ‘The new “Armistice” version, which is “going strong”, has added a long lease of new life to the play … The introduction of the part of Gunner Charlie Goodall, H.M.S. Fearless, who took part in the Zeebrugge affair – the pal of Sergeant Frank Dennison, of the Engineers, has struck the note to which the hearts of the people are attuned. You cannot “give them anything they like better”, or more in keeping with the “spirit of the times”’. An advertisement for Back to Wife and Home in The Stage, 24 April 1919 announced both that the 'first tour' of the play had ended (and that it had begun at the Grand Theatre, Nottingham on 20 May 1918 and ended at the Theatre Royal, Wolverhampton on 29 March 1919) and that a new 'farewell tour' would begin at the Theatre Royal, York on 30 June 1919 and end at the Theatre Royal, Sheffield on 22 November 1920. However, The Stage, 26 June and 3 July 1919 lists “Soldier’s Divorce” as on tour at the Theatre Royal, York from 30 June. No evidence has been found of performances that were advertised at the Grand, Croydon (after 6 February 1919), Coatbridge (after 27 February 1919), Plymouth (after 20 March 1919), or the following (all after 24 April 1919): Grand Theatre, Halifax; Hippodrome, Huddersfield; Court, Warrington; Theatre Royal, St Helens; Metropole, Glasgow; Theatre Royal, Edinburgh; Theatre Royal, York; Theatre Royal, Sheffield.