is Professor Emerita, Royal Holloway, University of London. She is a cultural historian specialising in the long nineteenth century, writing about everything the Georgians and Victorians did from street poetry to children’s books to circuses. Her books on these topics include The Victorian Popular Ballad, 1975; Wilton’s Music Hall 1980; Astley’s Amphitheatre  1980; The Impact of Victorian Children’s Fiction  1981; Music Hall: Performance and Style, 1986; Acts of Supremacy: the British Empire and the Stage, 1991; New Readings in Theatre History, 2003; The Making of the West End Stage, 2011.