3rd British Music Hall Society Conference
The Cinema Museum, London, SE11 4TH
Saturday 21st November 2026 10:00AM
Following the success of our second conference at Hoxton Hall in 2024, the third British Music Hall Society Conference will take place on Saturday 21 November 2026. This year's theme is CATERING FOR PEOPLE’S DESIRES AND NEEDS IN THE MUSIC HALL and we are delighted to be holding the event at London's Cinema Museum.
The one-day conference runs from 10.00am to 7.00pm, with the first presentation beginning at 10.45am.
Tickets are just £30 for members and £40 for non-members. The ticket price includes tea, coffee and biscuits throughout the day, as well as a complimentary 1860s-style cocktail to enjoy at the close of the conference. Early booking is strongly recommended.
We have had a tremendous response to our call for speakers, with presentations from a diverse range of academic and independent researchers. The day concludes at 6.00pm with a Magic Lantern Show presented by Claire Cooke of Mirror Mirror Education and the opportunity to relax and enjoy your complimentary cocktail.
With a fascinating programme that promises to inform, entertain and inspire, don't delay—book today! The full line-up is below:
20 minute talks:
Professor John Mullen - Catering for the Music Hall Artistes in the Early Twentieth Century
Dr Peter Maber -' A Little of What You Fancy': Catering to Desire in the Music Hall and the Parlour
Dr John Baxter - A hundred-year history of Music Hall and Variety, illustrated by songs about beer
Dr Deborah Jeffries - To drink or not to drink? An important question for entertainment seekers in the wake of the 1843 Theatres Act.
Anthony Binns - Free & Easies, Penny Gaffs & The Music Hall; “the working man’s sitting room”: the Mass Entertainment that Drew Half of London Out to a Performance on Any Given Day.
Megan Owens - Next Stop: Music Hall!: How the Railways Fuelled the Growth of Victorian Entertainment
Rosanne Brooks - “Prostitution and the politics of propriety”
Kaya Purchase - How the bodies of music hall ballerinas were constructed, circulated and critiqued in order to stoke the flames of male fantasy, with the express intention of selling tickets.
Charlie Holland - Catering in the 1860s & 70s; eating, drinking and smoking with a side serving of photography and prostitution
6 minute talks:
Peter Charlton - A Music Hall Menu, represented through music hall song sheet covers
Balaka Fell-Holden - "Champagne Charlie" to "My Old Man Said Follow the Van": Drink, Respectability and Alcohol Consumption in the Music Hall
Paul Goddard - In One End and Out The Other: Consuming and expelling alcoholic liquids in the Music Hall
Matt Fletcher & Kevin Butler - "Supper at the Kenterberry 'All"
Alison Young - Something for the Ladies? Advertising and the Feminisation of the Music Hall
Tracey Gregory - Striking a Pose: Photo Reproduction, Publicity, Image Rights and the Music Hall
Mina Dodd - Performing on Paper: Textual Posters and the Music Hall Culture of
Billy Rough - Dundee project: 'Mapping Dundee's Music Halls' website
BMHS Stall with books, vintage sheet music and music hall ephemera.
The one-day conference runs from 10.00am to 7.00pm, with the first presentation beginning at 10.45am.
Tickets are just £30 for members and £40 for non-members. The ticket price includes tea, coffee and biscuits throughout the day, as well as a complimentary 1860s-style cocktail to enjoy at the close of the conference. Early booking is strongly recommended.
We have had a tremendous response to our call for speakers, with presentations from a diverse range of academic and independent researchers. The day concludes at 6.00pm with a Magic Lantern Show presented by Claire Cooke of Mirror Mirror Education and the opportunity to relax and enjoy your complimentary cocktail.
With a fascinating programme that promises to inform, entertain and inspire, don't delay—book today! The full line-up is below:
20 minute talks:
Professor John Mullen - Catering for the Music Hall Artistes in the Early Twentieth Century
Dr Peter Maber -' A Little of What You Fancy': Catering to Desire in the Music Hall and the Parlour
Dr John Baxter - A hundred-year history of Music Hall and Variety, illustrated by songs about beer
Dr Deborah Jeffries - To drink or not to drink? An important question for entertainment seekers in the wake of the 1843 Theatres Act.
Anthony Binns - Free & Easies, Penny Gaffs & The Music Hall; “the working man’s sitting room”: the Mass Entertainment that Drew Half of London Out to a Performance on Any Given Day.
Megan Owens - Next Stop: Music Hall!: How the Railways Fuelled the Growth of Victorian Entertainment
Rosanne Brooks - “Prostitution and the politics of propriety”
Kaya Purchase - How the bodies of music hall ballerinas were constructed, circulated and critiqued in order to stoke the flames of male fantasy, with the express intention of selling tickets.
Charlie Holland - Catering in the 1860s & 70s; eating, drinking and smoking with a side serving of photography and prostitution
6 minute talks:
Peter Charlton - A Music Hall Menu, represented through music hall song sheet covers
Balaka Fell-Holden - "Champagne Charlie" to "My Old Man Said Follow the Van": Drink, Respectability and Alcohol Consumption in the Music Hall
Paul Goddard - In One End and Out The Other: Consuming and expelling alcoholic liquids in the Music Hall
Matt Fletcher & Kevin Butler - "Supper at the Kenterberry 'All"
Alison Young - Something for the Ladies? Advertising and the Feminisation of the Music Hall
Tracey Gregory - Striking a Pose: Photo Reproduction, Publicity, Image Rights and the Music Hall
Mina Dodd - Performing on Paper: Textual Posters and the Music Hall Culture of
Billy Rough - Dundee project: 'Mapping Dundee's Music Halls' website
BMHS Stall with books, vintage sheet music and music hall ephemera.
Event Details
Doors Open at 10:00AM
From 10:00AM to 7:00PM
