Flanders and Swann and the Music-Hall Tradition

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

Christopher Price (Canterbury Christ Church University)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.09: English Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary Britain , 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Gina Lyle (University of York), Graham MacPhee (University of Manchester), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Jenni Ramone (The Nottingham Trent University)

Dates

Date of occurrence c.1939- c.1975

Places

United Kingdom (Location)

Genres and Modes

Literary/Musical

Resources

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My name is Michael Flanders, this is Donald Swann. We write songs: I write the words, he writes the music. And that two grown men can make a modest living by such means you may feel is an apt reflection on the decadence of the times in which we live.

The Partnership

The Partnership

Ask any Briton whether they know the songs of Flanders and Swann and most will look blank. Start singing the chorus to The Hippopotamus Song and they will, in all probability, join in. A song which is only a few decades old seems to have acquired folk status.

Ask any Briton whether they know the songs of Flanders and Swann and most will look blank. Start singing the chorus to

The Hippopotamus Song

and they will, in all probability, join in. A song which is only a few decades old seems to have acquired folk status.

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5751 words

Citation: Price, Christopher. "Flanders and Swann and the Music-Hall Tradition". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 19 October 2018 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=19521, accessed 26 November 2024.]