William Douglas Home
William Douglas Home was a prominent Scottish playwright and actor, recognized as one of the most successful creators of light comedy in the twentieth century. Born in Edinburgh into an aristocratic family, he enjoyed a privileged upbringing, which influenced his work that often satirized the upper class. Home began writing plays at a young age and received formal education in history at New College, Oxford, followed by training in acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. His career was notably interrupted by World War II, during which he faced a moral dilemma that led to a court-martial and imprisonment after he refused to carry out a bombing order.
After his release, he produced significant works, including the serious play *Now Barabbas*, reflecting on the morality of capital punishment, and the comedic *The Chiltern Hundreds*, which mocked aristocratic life. Among his most celebrated works is *Lloyd George Knew My Father*, showcasing his knack for crafting roles that attracted esteemed actors like Rex Harrison and Ralph Richardson. Over his lifetime, Home wrote more than forty plays, leaving a lasting legacy in the realm of light comedy before his death in 1992. His contributions to theatre continue to be appreciated for their wit and keen observations of societal norms.
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Subject Terms
William Douglas Home
Writer
- Born: June 3, 1912
- Birthplace: Edinburgh, Scotland
- Died: September 28, 1992
- Place of death: Winchester, England
Biography
Among the most successful exponents of light comedy in the twentieth century, William Douglas Home provided dramatic vehicles for the leading actors of his day. It is telling that Kay Kendall, dying of cancer, joined her husband, Rex Harrison, to act in the film version of Home’s The Reluctant Debutante in 1958, the year before her death.
Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, the fifth of seven children of Lord Charles Douglas, thirteenth Earl of Home, William Douglas Home spent an idyllic childhood in castles that his ancestors had occupied since the eighteenth century. William received a gentleman’s education, first attending Eton, then New College, Oxford, to study history. His career as playwright began early. When he was fourteen, a student company at Eton produced Home’s Murder in Pupil Room. After Oxford, Home studied acting and stagecraft at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. In 1937, he had his first role as an actor in the London production of Bonnet Over the Windmill, a Dodie Smith comedy.
World War II changed Home’s tranquil and satisfying life. He was conscripted and given a commission. In 1944, having served his country, he declined on moral grounds to obey an order to bomb the French port city of Le Havre whose civilian population had not been evacuated. Subsequently, the bombing took place and five thousand French civilians died. Home, stripped of his commission, was disgraced and brought to trial, where he was sentenced to a year in prison for what was considered a treasonable act. When he was released from prison, he wrote one of his most serious plays, Now Barabbas, that deals with prison conditions and questions the morality of capital punishment.
In 1947, the same year that Now Barabbas was first performed, his comedy The Chiltern Hundreds was produced. This play is a spoof reminiscent of J. M. Barrie’s The Admirable Crichton (1902), in which an aristocratic family is shipwrecked and saved only because the butler quite autocratically takes command. At play’s end, they have all been rescued and are back in England with Crichton in his servant role. In Home’s play, a British aristocrat loses the general election to his valet. Home enjoyed poking fun at the aristocratic class, of which he was a member.
Among Home’s most successful plays is Lloyd George Knew My Father in which the eccentricities of the aristocracy provide the witty action that audiences appreciate. Home’s experience as an actor gave him a unique ability to write plays that would attract the most celebrated actors of his day. He created starring roles for such actors as Rex Harrison, Ralph Richardson, Sybil Thorndike, and Peggy Ashcroft, all of whom vied for the opportunity to play leading roles in his comedies. Home wrote more than forty plays before he died in 1992 at his home in Winchester, which he occupied with Lady Rachel Dacre, his wife of forty-one years.