Cast

Synopsis

A double bill of stylish and acutely observed plays which lightly touches through the common bond of spying. Guy Burgess, “An Englishman Abroad”, flees to Moscow hoping to reap his reward for years spent undercover in England and there, a few years later, has a brief encounter with Coral Browne as she tours in a production of Hamlet during cultural exchanges following Stalin’ death. Meanwhile, Anthony Blunt has remained in England until the later 60s, the epitome of the sophisticated and cultured upper-class gentleman, respected and with access to the highest in the land. Nevertheless, as he feels the threat of exposure creeping nearer, he distracts himself (and others?) with the solving of a riddle posed by an enigmatic painting. Does “The Question of Attribution” refer to his own precarious position or to the Old Master which is being rigorously investigated also?

Directors Notes

Espionage is the second oldest and arguably the least honorable profession. Guy Burgess, whom we meet in the first play this evening, was one of three young men of the English upper class and products of public school and Cambridge University. During the 1930s he and his colleagues joined the Communist Party and subsequently entered into the service of the Soviet Union, and over a period of years consistently betrayed their Country. These young men later in life became “pillars” ” of the establishment in politics, the arts and the profession. “An Englishman Abroad” is based on an incident in the life of actress Coral Browne who tells her witty and touching story of her encounter with the notorious spy Guy Burgess, the play is set in Moscow in 1958. In this play it is suggested that Guy Burgess was a spy because he wanted a place where he was alone and that having a secret supplied this.

In the second of this evening’s double bill, “A Question of Attribution” is an inquiry in which the circumstances are imaginary but the pictures are real. Anthony Blunt was known as “The Fourth Man”. Blunt retired from active spying in 1945 to become Surveyor of the Queen’s pictures and later Director of the Courtauld Institute of Art. Also in this play we see Anthony Blunt in some of his regular meetings with Chubb assigned to be his minder – the character Chubb is in reality Peter Wright the author of the novel “Spy Catcher”. Blunt also has an interesting and questioning meeting with H.M.Q.

Both Anthony Blunt and Guy Burgess fully acted out their convictions as spies and risked their necks in doing so. However, they both had the advantage on us in that they still had illusions – somewhere to turn.

Burgess died in Moscow in 1963 and in 1964 Sir Anthony Blunt confessed everything in exchange for immunity from prosecution and subsequently in 1979 Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher named Blunt as a spy and his Knighthood was annulled.

Alan Bennett is probably one of our finest and funniest contemporary playwrights and in this double bill I think you will all agree that we see him at his best.