Sweeney Todd

:For other uses of the name Sweeney, see Sweeney

Early history

Todd first appeared in a penny dreadful called The People's Periodical, in issue 7, dated November 21, 1846. The story in which he appeared was called "The String of Pearls: A Romance" and was probably written by Thomas Prest who created a number of other gruesome villans. He tended to base his horror stories on grains of truth, sometimes gaining inspiration from real crime reports in The Times.

Related Topics:
Penny dreadful - The People's Periodical - November 21 - 1846 - Thomas Prest - The Times

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"The String of Pearls" was made into a play in 1847 by George Dibdin Pitt and opened at the Hoxton Theatre, taking on the subtitle "The Fiend of Fleet Street" and billed as being 'founded on fact'. It was something of a success, and the story spread by word of mouth and took on the quality of a legend, often told as if it were true.

Related Topics:
1847 - Hoxton Theatre - Fleet Street - Legend

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Various versions of the tale were staples of the British music hall for the rest of the century.

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"Sweeney Todd, The Barber" is a song which assumes its audience knows the stage version and claims that such a character in real life was even more remarkable. Stanley Holloway, who recorded it in 1956, attributed it to R. P. Weston, a song writer who was active (at least) from 1906 to 1934.

Related Topics:
Stanley Holloway - 1956 - R. P. Weston - 1906 - 1934

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In the British Army during World War II, soldiers named Sweeney were routinely nicknamed "Todd," and Todds known as "Sweeney", after the well-known story.

Related Topics:
British Army - World War II - Nickname

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British playwright Christopher Bond wrote a 1973 play titled Sweeney Todd.

Related Topics:
Christopher Bond - 1973

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Stephen Sondheim wrote and composed the musical theater play Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, with book by Hugh Wheeler, and based on the Bond play. He called it a "musical thriller" and (because of its sparse spoken dialogue) "virtually an opera".

Related Topics:
Stephen Sondheim - Musical theater - ''Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'' - Book - Hugh Wheeler - Opera

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Peter Haining, a horror and crime story writer, wrote a book in 1993 titled ', in which he argues that Sweeney Todd was a historical figure committing his crimes around 1800, citing a number of sources. However, his claims were not widely accepted, and other investigators were unable to locate some of the sources he cites.

Related Topics:
1993 - 1800

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