Hugh Hastings (31 January 191726 November 2004) was an Australian writer best known for his play ''

Seagulls Over Sorrento ''Seagulls Over Sorrento'' is a 1954 British war drama film made by the Boulting brothers based on the play of the same name by Hugh Hastings. The film stars Gene Kelly and was one of three made by Kelly in Europe over an 18-month period to ...

''. He moved to England in 1936 determined to break into theatre as an actor or writer. He served in the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

for over five years during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Life

Born Hugh Williamson, Hastings left Australia in 1936 to work in the British film industry. Hastings's play ''

'' made theatre history by running for 1,551 performances at London's

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a listed building, Grade II listed West End theatre in Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

. Only two other plays had then run longer in theatre history:

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

's ''

Blithe Spirit Blithe Spirit may refer to: * ''Blithe Spirit'' (play), a 1941 comic play written by Noël Coward * ''Blithe Spirit'' (1945 film), a British comedy film based on the play * Blithe Spirit (''Ford Star Jubilee''), a 1956 television play version of ...

''; and R. F. Delderfield's ''Worm's Eye View''. Part of the play's appeal was that it was radical for the time. The play was set inside a Royal Navy research station near

Scapa Flow Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and Hoy. Its sheltered waters have played an impor ...

. The play was not popular with everyone, and not everyone saw the humor in it. It elicited subdued laughs as well as frowns, depending on whether the audience was liberal or conservative. He estimated he made £50,000 from ''Sorrento''. The fortune grew to £100,000 when in 1954 a film version made by the

Boulting brothers John Edward Boulting (21 December 1913 – 17 June 1985) and Roy Alfred Clarence Boulting (21 December 1913 – 5 November 2001), known collectively as the Boulting brothers, were English filmmakers and identical twins who became known for thei ...

was released. Hastings has an uncredited movie role in the 1952 film '' Gift Horse'', on which he worked on the script. Hastings also wrote the dialogues for a

Marghanita Laski Marghanita Laski (24 October 1915 – 6 February 1988) was an English journalist, radio panellist and novelist. She also wrote literary biography, plays and short stories, and contributed about 250,000 additions to the ''Oxford English Diction ...

melodrama, ''

It Started in Paradise ''It Started in Paradise'' is a 1952 British drama film directed by Compton Bennett and starring Jane Hylton, Martita Hunt and Muriel Pavlow. Set in the world of haute couture, the storyline concerns an established master of her craft being u ...

'' (1952). He also wrote another naval play, ''Red Dragon'', based on the 1949

Yangtze Incident The ''Amethyst'' incident, also known as the Yangtze incident, was a historic event that occurred on the Yangtze River for three months in the summer of 1949, during the late phase of the Chinese Civil War. The incident involved the Commu ...

, which involved . The play failed to make an impression. None of his other works reached the success levels of ''Sorrento''. Even different versions of his most famous work failed to succeed. The television version of ''Sorrento'' was broadcast in 1960 with no real impact. He also financed and wrote a musical version, entitled ''Scapa'', which ran for a few weeks at the

Adelphi Theatre The Adelphi Theatre is a West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster, central London. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiv ...

in 1962.

Select credits

*''The Quadrille'' (1936) – play *''

'' (1950) – play *''Red Dragon'' (1950) – based on the

Amethyst Incident The ''Amethyst'' incident, also known as the Yangtze incident, was a historic event that occurred on the Yangtze River for three months in the summer of 1949, during the late phase of the Chinese Civil War. The incident involved the Commu ...

*''Inner Circle'' (1952) – play *'' Glory at Sea'' (1952) – screenplay *''A Touch of the Sun'' (1952) – play *''Pink Elephants'' (1955) – play *''Blood Orange'' (1958) – play *''Scapa!'' (1962) – book for musical *''The Green Carnation'' (1973)

References

External links

*
Obituary at ''The Guardian''Obituary at ''The Stage''Hugh Hastings
at

AustLit AustLit: The Australian Literature Resource (also known as AustLit: Australian Literature Gateway; and AustLit: The Resource for Australian Literature) is a national bio-bibliographical database of Australian literature. It is an internet-based, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hastings, Hugh Australian writers 1917 births 2004 deaths Royal Navy personnel of World War II Australian emigrants to the United Kingdom 20th-century pseudonymous writers