Play about late Queen Mother given trigger warning

A play about Queen Elizabeth, the late Queen Mother has been given a trigger warning because it is set in the 1970s.

Penelope Wilton stars in Backstairs Billy, a show about the Queen Mother and her friendship with her right-hand man, aide William Tallon, which is playing at the Duke of York’s Theatre in London.

In the theatre’s bars signs have been put up warning audience members: “This play is set in 1979 and consequently reflects some of the attitudes, language, and conventions of the time.”

It is unusual to see physical trigger warning signs, with the trend toward such notes most often seen online.

The play stars Wilton as the Queen Mother after she has stepped back from the day-to-day duties of royal life.

In her service is William “Billy” Tallon, played by Luke Evans, whose antics are said to be based on rumours the Clarence House aide invited a male prostitute to the residence.

The play by Marcelo Dos Santos includes references to Tallon’s same-sex relationships.

Known as a consummate host who knew how to keep guests’ glasses full, Tallon’s personal life became the focus of tabloid attention, but he was beloved by the Queen Mother and enjoyed a long career in her service until her death in 2002.

The play is one of a number of London productions deemed worthy of trigger warnings to alert audiences to their potentially upsetting content.

For a Young Vic production of a play called Further than the Furthest Thing, audiences were warned that the show “involves the handling of cooked egg”, reportedly over concerns about allergies among audience members.

And this week it was revealed that Shakespeare’s Globe had given Antony and Cleopatra a trigger warning for “misogynoir” after updating the play with a diverse cast.

The term “misogynoir” is a portmanteau of “misogyny” and “noir” (the French word for black), and was coined by a feminist American professor to refer to misogyny specifically directed against black women.

Trigger warnings have in recent years also become a feature of the publishing industry, with reprints of classic works including novels by Ian Fleming, Agatha Christie, PG Wodehouse and Virginia Woolf issued with a disclaimer in the opening pages.

These typically warn that the literary works contain views which may be offensive to modern readers.