A Bill of Divorcement

A Bill of Divorcement is a play by English author Clemence Dane. It was her first play, and her most popular, and was adapted to films of the same name three times, in 1922, 1932, and 1940. Synopsis Though it was premiered in 1921, the play is set in the early 1930s. Margaret Fairfield divorces her husband, who has been in a mental hospital for many years, in order to remarry. Their daughter cares for the father and faces the fact that his mental illness may be hereditary. Although not permitted at the time in Britain, the play imagines a future where divorce is permitted where a spouse is incurably insane. Due to evolving cultural views, divorce was a popular subject in novels and drama of the time. London production The play was first performed in London on March 14, 1921 at St Martin's Theatre, with Basil Dean as producer, and ran for 402 performances. The cast included Lilian Braithwaite, Malcolm Keen and Meggie Albanesi. London cast Lilian Braithwaite as Margaret Fairfield Agnes Thomas as Miss Hester Fairfield Meggie Albanesi as Sydney Fairfield Dorothy Martin as Bassett Charles Aubrey Smith as Grey Meredith (appears in 1940 film by Dr. Alliot) Ian Hunter as Kit Pumphrey Malcolm Keen as Hilary Fairfield Stanley Lathbury as Dr. Alliot Fewlass Llewellyn as The Rev. Christopher Pumphrey