Censorship in Theatre and Cinema

The first comparative study of censorship in theatre and cinema during the last century, this book examines notable twentieth-century cases involving the Lord Chamberlain's theatre censorship and the British Board of Film Censors (BBFC). Anthony Aldgate and James C. Robertson have written extensively on the subject of stage and screen censorship, and here they utilize previously unpublished sources as well as hitherto unexplored BBFC files. They show how the two censorship agencies operated, with some interaction between them, in such controversial matters as sex, foreign affairs, juvenile crime, single-sex relationships, the "swinging" 1960s, horror, and religion. The authors also discuss how censors treated American films and plays. This wide-ranging study concludes by explaining why theatre censorship was abolished in 1968 whereas the BBFC has survived until the present day.