The West End Whingers
Encyclopedia
The West End Whingers is a London
-based theatre
blog
which publishes humorous and satirical reviews of mostly West End theatre
productions.
The blog was founded in June 2006 by a pair of London bloggers known only as "Phil" and "Andrew" who were inspired to begin the blog after seeing a production of Sam Shepard
's Fool for Love
starring Juliette Lewis
.
Their reviews exhibit many of the characteristics of gonzo journalism
, differing from conventional reviews in their excessive focus on subjective responses, openly held artistic prejudices and a willingness to discuss aspects of the theatre going experience beyond the merits of the show being evaluated. Capable of both savage criticism and fulsome praise their reviews are tempered by a self-deprecating humour. They often review shows which are still in preview and have not yet had their official press night.
A survey into preferred sources of critical opinion by the industry paper The Stage
on 6 May 2010 found the West End Whingers to be "the most popular online choice by some distance".
The blog received global attention in March 2010 when its review of the Andrew Lloyd Webber
musical Love Never Dies re-dubbed the show "Paint Never Dries".
In December 2010 the West End Whingers were listed at number 50 of The Times
newspaper's "luvvie power list 2010: theatre’s 50 most influential people" saying "We wouldn’t normally list bloggers, but this duo brought the blogosphere into repute with their “Paint Never Dries” tag for Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies."
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
-based theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
which publishes humorous and satirical reviews of mostly West End theatre
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
productions.
The blog was founded in June 2006 by a pair of London bloggers known only as "Phil" and "Andrew" who were inspired to begin the blog after seeing a production of Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard is an American playwright, actor, and television and film director. He is the author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play Buried Child...
's Fool for Love
Fool for Love (play)
Fool for Love is a play written by American playwright/actor Sam Shepard.-Plot:The "fools" in the play are battling lovers at a Mojave Desert motel. May is hiding out at said motel when an old childhood friend and old flame, Eddie. Eddie tries to convince May to come back home with him and live in...
starring Juliette Lewis
Juliette Lewis
Juliette Lewis is an American actress and musician. She gained international fame for her role in the 1991 thriller Cape Fear for which she was nominated for both an Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress...
.
Their reviews exhibit many of the characteristics of gonzo journalism
Gonzo journalism
Gonzo journalism is a style of journalism that is written without claims of objectivity, often including the reporter as part of the story via a first-person narrative. The word "gonzo" is believed to be first used in 1970 to describe an article by Hunter S. Thompson, who later popularized the style...
, differing from conventional reviews in their excessive focus on subjective responses, openly held artistic prejudices and a willingness to discuss aspects of the theatre going experience beyond the merits of the show being evaluated. Capable of both savage criticism and fulsome praise their reviews are tempered by a self-deprecating humour. They often review shows which are still in preview and have not yet had their official press night.
A survey into preferred sources of critical opinion by the industry paper The Stage
The Stage
The Stage is a weekly British newspaper founded in 1880, available nationally and published on Thursdays. Covering all areas of the entertainment industry but focused primarily on theatre, it contains news, reviews, opinion, features and other items of interest, mainly to those who work within the...
on 6 May 2010 found the West End Whingers to be "the most popular online choice by some distance".
The blog received global attention in March 2010 when its review of the Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
musical Love Never Dies re-dubbed the show "Paint Never Dries".
In December 2010 the West End Whingers were listed at number 50 of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
newspaper's "luvvie power list 2010: theatre’s 50 most influential people" saying "We wouldn’t normally list bloggers, but this duo brought the blogosphere into repute with their “Paint Never Dries” tag for Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies."