Privates on Parade. A Play with Songs in Two Acts.

Proof Copy. 8vo., 109, [3 (blank)] pp. Printed pink wraps.

Archive Copy, with "Sales Dept.," biroed to cover. Lightly faded to spine, else contents clean and fresh.

An acerbic farce, premiered at Stratford by the Royal Shakespeare Company, before its London transfer to the Aldwych Theatre on 17 Feb. 1977, where it ran for 208 performances. It went on to win the 1977 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy. The action revolves around the activities and exploits of a fictional British military Song and Dance Unit, stationed in Singapore and Malaysia in the late '40s during the Malayan Emergency. It draws upon Nichols's own experiences in the real-life Combined Services Entertainment Unit. Directed for the big screen in 1982 by Michael Blakemore, with John Cleese as Major Giles Flack, and Denis Quilley who also starred in the RSC premiere production.