Tastes of Honey: The Making of Shelagh Delaney and a Cultural Revolution

(Paperback)

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The ultimate insight into the ground-breaking, firebrand playwright who changed Britain's cultural and social landscape and put working-class lives centre stage. 'A sympathetic and perceptive account of a fine writer at a critical moment in our cultural life' KEN LOACH On 27 May 1958, A Taste of Honey opened in a small fringe theatre in London. Written by a nineteen-year-old bus driver's daughter from Salford, the play exposed a deeply polarised society in Britain, sparked press and political outrage and transformed its young author into an unexpected star. Shelagh Delaney's assertive female characters struck an immediate chord with working-class women who dreamed of more than just suburban housewifery, and her work and legacy would go on to inspire future generations of writers, musicians and artists. This is the remarkable story of how a working-class teenager stormed theatreland, exploded old certainties about class, race, sex and taste, and blazed an incendiary new path in British culture. 'A riveting book' DAVID HARE

Reviews

Makes an unassailable case for [Delaney's] importance in British theatre history while showing how her posthumous reputation has been subtly slighted... splendid and illuminating -- Kate Kellaway * Observer *
Selina Todds biography of Shelagh Delaney, Tastes of Honey, is great -- Tracey Thorn * New Statesman *
In this subtle, thoughtful book, Selina Todd sets out to do more than simply retell Delaneys rags-to-riches story Instead Todd argues that Delaney offers a route to rethinking the ways in which womens lives in the mid-20th century are routinely written up, especially by feminists -- Kathryn Hughes * Guardian *
Shelagh Delaney keeps her mystery even from beyond the grave, but anyone who values what is best in British theatre and film will want to join Selina Todd as she digs deep into the brilliance of Delaneys work and her character. Its a riveting book -- David Hare
This is a sympathetic and perceptive account of a fine writer at a critical moment in our cultural life. Selina Todds enthusiasm for her subject is infectious and she captures precisely the spirit of the times. A lovely and enjoyable book -- Ken Loach

Author Bio

Selina Todd is Professor of Modern History at Oxford University. She grew up in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and was educated at Heaton Manor Comprehensive School and the Universities of Warwick and Sussex. She writes about class, inequality, working-class history, feminism and women's lives in modern Britain. Her book The People- The Rise and Fall of the Working Class 1910-2010 was a Sunday Times bestseller and was described by the Observer as 'A book we badly need'. Based on the voices of working-class people themselves, it charted the history of ordinary workers, housewives, children and pensioners over the turbulent twentieth century.