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Post by dem on Nov 10, 2021 10:21:19 GMT
L. H. Maynard - Beyond the Curtain: Uncanny Tales of the Theatre (LMP, 2021) The Business of Barbarians
At the End of the Pier
Another Bite of the Cherry
An Office in the Grays Inn Road
Double ActBlurb: All the world's a stage, or so they say. But what happens when the footlights dim and the curtain falls? Do evil spirits or demons take
the place of the actors treading the boards?
Or maybe the spirits and demons are already there, hiding in plain sight. In these five stories we lift the curtain and discover the truth. I recently reviewed a collection of stories by L. H. Maynard which are all about the theatre and the supernatural: Beyond the Curtain: Uncanny Tales of the Theatre. My review was first published in the last issue of Phantasmagoria magazine and, as it happens, will be read out tomorrow on Trevor Kennedy's weekly show on Big Hits Radio UK, which takes place every Sunday between 12 noon and 2 pm. Here, in any case, is a copy of my review: BEYOND THE CURTAIN: UNCANNY TALES OF THE THEATRE by L. H. Maynard £6.99 paperback; £1.99 Kindle Published by LMP, 234 pages This is the first collection of stories by L. H. Maynard I have ever read. I am unfamiliar with his name, though his stories are so well-written I am surprised I haven’t come across him before. In his introduction he says that he has been writing for over fifty years. Beyond the Curtain contains five stories: “The Business of Barbarians”, “At the End of the Pier”, “Another Bite of the Cherry”, “An Office in the Grays Inn Road”, and “Double Act”, the last of which is possibly my favourite, bringing the collection to a satisfying if sad conclusion. Set in an extremely well realised 1950s or early 1960s, these tales of the supernatural are centred around theatres and theatrical life, from struggling young actors, down-at-heel theatre managers, unscrupulous “big names”, theatrical agents to comedy duos, many of which used to tread the boards in those far off days, grittily depicting poor digs run by eccentric landladies and rundown piers in even more rundown seaside resorts. Maynard gives me the impression he has had a more than passing acquaintance with that world – and has researched it well, filling his tales with numerous references to stars of that bygone time: Arthur Askey, Max Wall, Max Bygraves, Bob Monkhouse, Galton and Simpson, and Eric Sykes. And no shortage of other details that set the timeframe to perfection without being pedantic. Maynard has a leisurely style which I found easy to read and which helped to develop not only the characters of his protagonists but also the world in which they lived, giving the stories a bleak kitchen sink air of reality. Several times I was reminded of that Olivier movie The Entertainer with his opportunistic womanising comedian Archie Rice. Rice would have fitted so well into many of these tales! I became so engrossed in these stories, especially their build up, that I almost regretted it when the supernatural element began to emerge. Not that these are not splendidly conceived – nor for the faint-hearted! These are, in the main, dark tales, vividly detailed and flowingly written. And I enjoyed every one of them. Beyond the Curtain: Uncanny Tales of the Theatre is available from amazon. And at only £6.99 is a definite bargain. As I had nothing better to do, I bought and read it. You are 100% right, David. This is very smoothly written, the pages just flow. It is a joy to read. But as far as the content is concerned, I see it rather different. Mostly I was disappointed. To be clear, I had no high expectations to begin with, no new invention of the wheel here, but decent stories which make most of its theme. But at the end I thought most of the stories just didn't work. Which is a shame, because it mostly was nothing which a good editor couldn’t or shouldn't have fixed. The Business of Barbarians, the first story, just didn't work. Some of the narrative didn't made sense in the context of the story or was just unbelievable in said context. This was a pity because it could have been a nice story. {Spoiler}There was too much of it to list all of it, but for instance it doesn't makes sense if your villain grooms a victim for months to be the vessel for the ghost – and you build suspense with this because the action of said victim is the plot-point on which the whole story depends -, and the next girl kidnapped from the street an hour before the ceremony is just as good a vessel. And this is just one of the problems of this tale. Another Bite of the Cherry is basically a Mummy story. This was even more of a disappointment. I had no problem that it was only going through the motions and the plot was a rehash of countless other Mummy stories and movies, but it was a shame that the one interesting, wholly original idea here – the Tableau vivant on the stage, indeed a piece of British variety history (I read it up because unfortunately the writer thought it unnecessary to give it a bit background in the text) - was wasted. It had nothing to do whatsoever with the plot. The background could just as easily have been a department store or a restaurant, it wouldn't have changed anything in the narrative. Which IMHO made this a failure. Also in my opinion a period piece needs a bit more than a bit of name-dropping to achieve a solid historical atmosphere. Unlike you I thought that there was a shortage of period details. I know it is a matter of taste how much is enough, but this could have been handled better, and I am not talking of pages of exposition or clumsy insertion of things like headlines or the politics of the day. The best story of this collection is indeed Double Act, no question asked. While again the period i.e. the variety background was too vague for my taste, it was a genuine mystery with some well-realized scenes, a for once very well-realized ending and some heartfelt and relatable characterisation. A very well written story. It gripped me from the start and I wanted to know how it ends. Above reviews got me curious. Made a start last night. An Office in the Grays Inn Road: Joanna Phillips is stalked by the malevolent ghost of her late husband's bit on the side. Rebecca Tanner, a star at twenty-five, took a fatal overdose when Hugh walked out of their Clerkenwell love nest for the last time. Rebecca still blames Joanna for her misery. Story briefly features spectral lovers going at it hammer and tongs beneath the sheets, albeit nothing for Graham Masterton's Bridal Suite to lose sleep over. TBC
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Post by dem on Nov 11, 2021 7:52:08 GMT
Another Bite of the Cherry: After the war, Lizzie Stirling returns to the stage to find her small fame a distant memory and work hard to come by. Faced with the prospect of starvation, Lizzie swallows her pride to take employment as a living statue in various risqué tableaux vivants at the Apollo Theatre. Lizzie is thrilled when the vocal accompaniment, Sam Barrett asks her to dinner. Sam, a powerful tenor, is not only handsome and charming but fabulously wealthy to boot. Lizzie believes herself the luckiest young woman in the world — until Sam invites her back to his mansion to meet the real love of his life. Tiaa, an ancient Egyptian Princess, was mummified alive by a power-crazed priest. Sam, her loyal servant down the centuries is sworn to revive her. Can Lizzie's room-mate prevent Barrett performing the blood ritual that will see the Princess and Lizzie exchange bodies?
Much preferred this to An Office in the Grays Inn Road. It shapes up something akin to a supernatural shudder pulp during final third before taking a turn fans of same may not have anticipated.
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Post by dem on Nov 13, 2021 10:27:02 GMT
At the End of the Pier: Eastmouth at the end of the summer season makes Henry Turner depressed, and it's worse than ever this year. Along with the desertion of three Variety Theatre stalwarts, the producer has been handed an unsolicited MS by D'Arcy Blake, an indecently pushy, preternaturally self-deluded aspiring playwright. Turner, 60, eventually caves in, reads the pile of crap that is Nocturne, and, in sheer exasperation, shares his honest verdict with its author. Blake, crestfallen throws himself off the pier. Thereafter, Turner is haunted by the suicide's vengeful spook.
Set during the summer of 1967, though not sure if this is of particular significance as encroachment of outside world negligible. I liked when the spectre briefly commandeered old Ronnie Martin's Punch & Judy show.
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Post by dem on Dec 5, 2021 10:18:12 GMT
The Business of Barbarians: Finlay Crawford, legend of musical theatre, owes his phenomenal success to a secret Black Magic Brotherhood comprised of the most powerful people in the country. Much to his chagrin, the time has now come for Crawford to "die" and his soul pass to a new vessel to begin over. Complicating matters is his determination to revive his late daughter, Marie Elise, but the intended sacrifice, incomparably beautiful Narina Dressler, willingly groomed for purpose, has ditched Crawford for her lover! A substitute must be found and sacrificed. A young chorus girl, Meg Robson, and actor Gareth Barker find themselves playing a Showstoppers of '58 season at the Palace theatre at the very worst time.
70+ page opener has it's macabre moments - most notably a supernatural murder in the bedroom - but didn't quite sparkle for me. Too much pulp logic has so deteriorated my brain that I failed to pick up on the glaring lapse Andreas identifies in initial post (see spoiler).
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Post by dem on Dec 16, 2021 16:04:21 GMT
The best story of this collection is indeed Double Act, no question asked. While again the period i.e. the variety background was too vague for my taste, it was a genuine mystery with some well-realized scenes, a for once very well-realized ending and some heartfelt and relatable characterisation. A very well written story. It gripped me from the start and I wanted to know how it ends. : I've created a monster!!!! He's always there in that ridiculous baggy suit and wearing that idiot grin. Dogging me throughout the days, haunting my nights. He'll be the death of me! How will I ever be rid of him? I hate him!!!!! 1950's London. Sudden death of veteran straight man Charlie Hass brings abrupt end to popular variety act, Coker and Hass ("a laugh a minute"). Wally Coker wonders if he has any future in show business. Despite Wally's popularity, it was Charlie wrote their material, gag after golden gag at his own expense. Until now, Coker was oblivious to the fact that his partner and closest friend despised him, not least for sleeping with Mrs. Hass, although Charlie was hardly the paragon of fidelity. Now, it seems, the comedian's hatred — and insanity — have survived the grave to pursue a campaign of supernatural revenge on his adversaries. |
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