Toad of Toad Hall

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Toad of Toad Hall at the Australian National University.

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Toad of Toad Hall is the first of several dramatisations of Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. It was written by A. A. Milne. He extracted the adventures of Mr. Toad (which form only about half of the original book) because they lent themselves most easily to being staged. A. A. Milne loved the book, which is one of the reasons he decided to do an adaptation of it. The play has four main characters: Rat, Badger, Mole, and Toad. Toad's caravan and car adventures are included, as well as his imprisonment, escape, and subsequent fight with the weasels and stoats to regain his home with the help of his friends. Although not a musical, the play contains six songs.

Its first production was at the Lyric Theatre (London) in London on 17 December 1929.

[edit] Actors

During the play's history many great actors have played the part of Toad in a number of plays, films, and TV dramatizations. These include:

Terry Jones - Director and actor in the hit film, The Wind in the Willows (film)
Thomas Dempster - familiar Toad in the KH BLS play, Toad of Toad Hall
Leo McKern - Popular as Toad on stage in London