The Long the Short and the Tall.

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The Long the Short and the Tall

The Long the Short and the Tall was written by Willis Hall in 1958. The story is set in a dingy hut in the Malayan jungle during the Second World War. In 1941 Japan attacked the United States naval base pearl harbour and the story is based around a group of British soldiers who were sent off to fight in the conflict that ensued after the attack.

        In the play we see the stereotypical types of British characters, a Scotsman, Welshman, Tynesider and a Cockney. The characters are:

Bamforth- A very domineering character who is cruel and teasing of the other soldiers and rude to those with a higher rank. He comes from a background in the slums of London.

Mitchem- Mitchem is the highest ranking soldier and stops the constant quarrels between Johnstonne and Bamforth.

Johnstonne- A violent and sadistic man who is very threatening towards Bamforth and lets his dislike of characters affect his treatment of them.

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Macleish- Feels it’s his duty to back up fellow NCOs whatever the situation. He is very sensitive of jokes about his Scottish origins.

Evans- Bamforths closest friend in the unit. He is a home loving character and comes from a very close knit community in Wales.  

        As the play unravels you learn more about the characters personalities and their backgrounds.

In this essay I am going to research and show how Willis changes the audience’s opinion of Bamforth.

        Bamforth hates authority figures. In particular he has a huge disliking for Johnstonne as he is a very bossy ...

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