OVERVIEW

• Playwright

  George Bernard (GB) Shaw 

• Setting

  Act I: An office in London Act II: A hillside in Roscullen, Ireland Act III: A garden in Rosscullen Act IV: A parlour in Roscullen

• Synopsis

  Two London-based business partners, an Englishman and an Irishman, set out for the latter's hometown of Roscullen with the intention of developing some land. A satirical exposure of both Irish and English so-called national characteristics. "John Bull's Other Island was written in 1904 at the request of Mr William Butler Yeats as a patriotic contribution to the Repertory of the Irish Literary Theatre. Like most people who have asked me to write plays, Mr Yeats got rather more than he bargained for ... the play was at that time beyond the resources of the New Abbey Theatre ... There was another reason for changing the destination of John Bull's Other Island. It was uncongenial to the whole spirit of the neo-Gaelic movement, which is bent on creating a new Ireland after its own ideal, whereas my play is a very uncompromising presentment of the real old Ireland." (Preface, 1904)

• Play Type

  Plays General
  

  Number Of Acts

  Full-Length

Cast size

• Male

  10

• Female

  2

• Total

  12

Original Production

• Date of First Production

  01 November 1904

• Production Notes

  Produced under the Vedrenne-Barker management at the Royal Court.

• Venue Notes

  First performed at the Royal Court Theatre, London.

• Irish Premiere Notes

  Despite having been written at the request of W.B. Yeats, 'John Bull's Other Island' was rejected by the Abbey due to lack of resources. The Royal Court production listed here toured Ireland in 1907, with the first Irish performance of the play taking place in the Theatre Royal, Dublin. The Abbey eventually staged their own performance in 1916.

Source Of Information

Additional information for this entry was taken from Ben Levitas' article 'These Islands' Others: John Bull,the Abbey and the Royal Court' (2007)