Unlikely as it may sound, you could make a neat Venn diagram of theatrical affinities linking Gilbert and Sullivan, Samuel Beckett and Mike Leigh. The last two fit together quite comfortably, but G&S? Yes: in their different ways, both Beckett and Leigh sustained a lifelong affection for their Victorian wit and whimsy, to say nothing of sharing their acerbic view of humanity.
Leigh went so far as to make a G&S biopic, Topsy Turvy, celebrating what he called their “very accessible, sexy music”. At the time of the film’s release in 1999, he wrote that “I really have no interest in directing [their operas] at all”, but he later went back on his word and staged The Pirates of Penzance for English National Opera.
