The Scarlet Pimpernel (musical)
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a musical with music by Frank Wildhorn and lyrics and book by Nan Knighton, based on the 1905 novel of the same name by Baroness Orczy. The show is set in England and France during the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution. The story is a precursor to the spy fiction and the superhero genres, where a hero hides under a mild-mannered alias.
Original Cast Recording
The Scarlet Pimpernel is the first novel in a series of historical fiction by Baroness Orczy, published in 1905. It was written after her stage play of the same title enjoyed a long run in London, having opened in Nottingham in 1903.
1908 edition
Fred Terry as Sir Percy Blakeney/The Scarlet Pimpernel in the 1905 West End theatre production.
A scarlet pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis) which the eponymous hero leaves behind after his interventions.
Leslie Howard as Sir Percy Blakeney with Merle Oberon as Lady Blakeney in The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934)