The Steam Whistle Theatre Company

by Vivian French

The wonderful adventures of a family theatre-troupe, touring Victorian England by train – a high-octane, high-drama romp, with a colourful company of characters.

Dark and deadly deeds, piratical plots, lost heiresses and poor little orphans – Vivian French conjures up the very spirit of Victorian theatre in a fabulous new novel for middle-grade readers. To avoid financial ruin, the Pringle family’s theatre-troupe has left London behind, travelling to the north of England by train. With new audiences to play to, and less competition, they hope to make enough money to pay off their debts back home. But will their plans be foiled by the odious Olio Sleevery? It’s time for young actors Rosie and Charlie to save the day, and, with the help of their new friend Edie Boiler, ensure the thunderous success of the company's first performance.

A wonderful gallery of eccentric characters and an exuberant plot with a twist at the end ... this is storytelling at its theatrical best!

Genres: Middle Grade, Fiction, Historical Fiction

304 pages, Paperback

First published February 7, 2019

About the author

Vivian June Isoult French MBE was born in 1945 and educated at Exeter University.
Vivian French was best known in school for being extremely skinny and for talking a lot. At school she developed an attachment to words and later became an actor, then a storyteller, and finally a writer of children's books. She is the author of more than two hundred books. Ms. French lives in Edinburgh, Scotland, and has four grown daughters.

Reviews

[Stace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Reviewed by Stacey on www.whisperingstories.com

Victorian England – The Pringle family live and put on theatre shows in London. They have fallen on hard times and are struggling to make ends meet. One afternoon whilst discussing their situation the family decides it would be a good idea to travel north and put on a show like the northern’s have never seen before.

The family including Pa, Uncle Vinnie, Aunt Mags and children Rosie and Charlie take a relatively new invention and mode of transport they haven’t been on before, the train. They set off for new adventures and with a new name – ‘The Steam Whistle Theatre Company’. Unfortunately, they have to leave Ma Pringle and the little ones at home as they can’t afford their train tickets.

The family arrives in a place called Uncaster and head to the establishment that they are to play. Unfortunately, they discover that they don’t have any lodgings at the tavern. Luckily, widower, Ms. Poskett is looking for boarders for her home, Uncaster Hall. Her husband recently died leaving her with no money. The servants and staff have all upped and left taking the pots and pans with them and even her ungrateful children have run away to live with relatives. Only one staff member is left, Edie, a young workhouse girl who is every so helpful.

The Pringle family are not the only people in show business to venture into Uncaster – Baby Bubbles the child magician and escapologist has arrived to play at the supper rooms. Not quite so much as a baby anymore and with an attitude that is selfish and ungrateful the star has lots of demands. His mother though doesn’t welcome the competition of a travelling theatre group and sets out to destroy The Steam Whistle Theatre Companies reputation.

I love books set in Victorian England. It’s a period in history I love to learn and read about and this book just oozes that time period. The Pringle family are a large family but with times hard for actors they are struggling to make enough money to live on. They have never been ‘up north’ and are not sure what the place is like. They are pleasantly surprised when they arrive in Uncaster that it wasn’t as bad as they were expecting.

Each family member had their own personality and they all worked well together. My favourite character though had to be workhouse girl Edie. She reminded me of Eliza Doolittle with her accent even though she definitely wasn’t from London, she was born and bred in the North. She might have been a young girl, a teenager, but she’s been through a lot, seen a lot and knew how to handle herself and make a meal out of next to nothing.

The book is intriguing and moved at a fast pace. It was ever so enjoyable and I have to mention the cover too which is just delightful. This story is all about determination and families pulling together. It will also show you that even in dark times there can be a light at the end of the tunnel if you look and try hard enough.

[Bookread2day · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all I must say I love this cover, what a cheerful wonderful cover that's has been designed by Hanah Peck. The cover reminded me somehow of Harry Potter. A splendid read for all ages including adults and the young teenagers generation. A very exciting fresh outlook fictional story by author Vivian French . The children Charlie and Rosie Pringle are child actors, their pa, Fred is a lead actor and director of The Steam Whistle Company, while their MA, Betty Pringle resides in London, Aunt Mags Fred's sister has a better job she's an actor and financial supervisor of the company. They all live in Camden Town. They decided to move from London by train in hope that their family theatre company will become famous. It's amazing news that Vivian French has written more than 300 books for children. I recommend all aboard to read The Steam Whistle Theatre Company by Vivian French Thank you Walker books for sending me this book, I had so much pleasure reading.

[Belles Middle Grade Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! What a great read! This had all the dramatic characters I looooovvee! We have a rag tag bunch of characters lol. I never got confused remembering who was who, but if that did happen, this author is awesome & put a list of the names & who they are at the beginning of the book. More authors should do that when they have more than a couple main characters! Kids especially, I’m sure would appreciate that. I love how we got each set of characters story in the beginning, & how they all ended up in the same town & how they interacted. Some bad, some good. The Steam Whistle Theatre Company is a family that performs theatre. They took a train north hoping for better audiences. They have competition from a baby magician show that just got to town. They end up staying at a home owned by another of our other characters-Arabella...Who also has a young girl who basically is her guiding light of what to do since becoming widowed-that girl is named Edie-she was my favorite!! She reminded me of Debbie Reynolds character in the movie Tammy(the original, the 1st one), & that’s 1 of my all time favorite movies-so that’s how I kept reading her parts in my mind. I had to change the accent though lol Edie was a spitfire! Not given enough credit, & judged way too soon-wrongly judged. Charlie & Rose were the siblings that worked in the theatre w/their family. I loved that whole family. But their dad!! He is the vision of exactly what I imagine when I think of over dramatic “theatre people”!😆😆He was amazing!! The “baby” magician, his mom, the owner of the supper club employing them, & her boy employee-all AWFUL!! Also the man trying to buy the house right from Arabella, who owes many debts, is just slime!! Ugh!!Perfectly written awful people lol I loved to hate them! Such great writing! This being basically “Victorian Theatre” in my mind b/c of the time/setting(Victorian England I believe) made it even more atmospheric & perfect. Such colorful characters, a grand adventure to save the day of both the theatre & the home owned by the woman lodging them, & just a grand wonderful time. Beautiful cover of course!! 😍😍I highly recommend this y’all, I had such a blast. 💜💜

[CLM · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining story about an irrepressible theatre family in Victorian England:

https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/20...

[Katy Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charming and atmospheric period piece about theatre that flows easily.

I've always enjoyed a Vivian French story, very easy to read, with relatable characters and vivid settings. And here, we have an almost educational setting and situation, the world of the Victorian theatre.

The Pringles are struggling to make ends meet in their London-based family theatre group. Rosie and Charlie travel with their father, leaving their mother and siblings behind to the North (with plenty of warm-weather gear) to take their chances and potentially make their fortunes performing for the villages in the sticks and keep the family together somewhere where they can perform to les jaded audiences.

Coincidentally, their new residence has its own dramas playing out, with a once-wealthy widow finding her husband has left her huge debts that are leaving the ancestral home in peril, and dogsbody Edie the only servant left to help her keep the house running.. though it needs some lodgers to help things along...

With a repugnant child magician and his mother, and a debt collector on the case, our heroes will have to come together to save both their family theatre and their new home, with resourcefulness, optimism and hard work all required.

I thoroughly enjoyed what is clearly meant for a KS2-KS3 readership. The period detail is wonderful, lots of talk of playbills, steam trains, proper behaviour, workhouses, lots of scope for readers to become curious and seek out further detail. As a theatre lover I also loved the Shakespeare references - the family pout on the Bard's plays but with a twist of their own (including songs!). Seeing the travelling theatre is a good lesson in how these plays are put on.

Edie was my favourite character, a workhouse child full of pluck and shrewdness, but the young cast as a whole are great, not just tropes but all with character. Horace 'Baby' is a perfect foil, the greedy child you love to hate. We get to see a good cross-section of Victorian society through these few groups and life in the small town.

A very easy read, capable readers of ages 9-14 who enjoy historical stories with humour and adventure will take to this quickly.

With thanks to Walker Books for the sample reading copy.

[Hatari | Fien · Rating 4 out of 5]

A charming and heartwarming story read by one of my favourite narrators, Peter Kenny.

[Priya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book about a family of theatre performers who travel by train in Victorian times.

In order to earn more from their performance, they decide to move from London by train and stage a play. They end up in a manor house whose mistress is desperately trying to hold onto it despite being bankrupt, with only a very resourceful ten year old helper by her side. They also have to counter competition in the form of a 'baby' magician and his scheming mother and a villain who keeps trying to sabotage them.

The characters were over the top and quite dramatic in a hilarious way. The dad of the family in particular was prone to over exaggeration. The kids were all cute and earnest and very resourceful in the way they attempted to get over their problems. I loved the found family aspect of the story very much.

[Annie Dalton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A warm-hearted, richly satisfying tale following the adventures of a down-on-its-luck company of travelling players with their own rather idiosyncratic take on King Lear. There is a cast of gorgeously Dickensian characters including a plucky orphan, a cruelly wronged widow, an extremely accomplished villainess and her revolting son, a child magician and escapologist, (still optimistically referred to as Baby, despite the fact that he is showing distinct traces of a moustache). The story moves at a rollicking pace, topped off with a beautifully choreographed denouement, but despite the warmth, wit and charm, Vivian French makes sure to let us glimpse the shadow side of life in Victorian times; the constant grinding fear of poverty, symbolised by the dreaded workhouse.

[Naomi Forrest · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been incredibly privileged to benefit from author visits in my placement school as part of my PGCE and the visit from Vivian French a week and a half ago was a delight. There were no bells and whistles to her visit; she was, quite simply, a captivating storyteller, incredibly funny and engaging with the children and had me hooked on every word.

The Steam Whistle Theatre Company boasts a stunning cover by Hannah Peck with a gorgeously dramatic colour scheme - very theatre-esque! The drama starts from the very first page, with the Pringle family in dire straights. Insolvent and unable to generate income through their theatre company in London any longer, they choose to travel north to Uncaster to try their luck there. Left behind are Ma Pringle and the little ones as the family set off to make their fortune. The bigger children, Charlie and Rosie, go with their father, Pa Pringle, their aunt and two family friends and re-brand themselves as The Steam Whistle Theatre Company, determined to make some money.

From the train journey onwards, we meet a worthy cast, from 'Baby' Bubbles, the escapologist to Lady Poskett, the recently widowed Lady of Uncaster Hall, cast into terrible debt by her good for nothing late husband. I love the Victorian period anyway and the locations and references were so authentic and engaging. Some of the scenes were so simplistic, such as Arabella Poskett struggling to fetch and peel vegetables but were filled with such warmth and character interaction, I was swept away.

I found the whole book to be fast paced, perfect for keeping young readers hooked, to the point where I thought 'there aren't enough pages to end this properly'. It was ended perfectly, I needn't have worried. Throughout I was entertained by the humour, particularly the friendly digs at southerners perceptions of the north (we really do not live in perpetual darkness, surrounded by functioning coal mines and smog! We have sun and beautiful countryside!!). The characters were well developed and fun with the underdogs ruling the roost. It firmly subverted the idea that the rich are the most wealthy and this is enhanced by the wonderful Edie Boiler, who was just the most wonderful character. I loved that she expected nothing and gave all and in my head, for you grown ups who have watched it, I couldn't help but think of Daisy the kitchen maid from Downton Abbey (though Edie is much more shrewd). There are many references to Shakespeare through the novel, Pa Pringle's hero, which would link well with introducing some of his more well known works in class as well (there are some lovely KS2 introductory texts available that simplify his works). You just can't help but cheer Pa on, blinded by his optimism even in the groups darkest times.

The Steam Whistle Theatre Company has a character for everybody and is a whirlwind of drama and fun that will intrigue even reluctant readers. It was if a pantomime was taking place in my head, so skilled is Vivian French, and I almost cheered out loud in several places and booed in others. A true delight!

[Cat Strawberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this! When the Pringle Players, a family from London who perform their own shows on stage, realise how many debts they have, Pa decides that the only solution is to head North to perform and hopefully make a lot of money. But as they travel north to Uncaster, there are other performers travelling there too, and they are about to run into a lot of problems.

I can’t believe how much I’ve enjoyed reading this book. I’ve always loved historical fiction, and stories set in Victorian times are a special favourite for me, but this book has really captured me. From the beginning we meet the Pringle family and their theatre company. Pa Pringle is a fun character and the whole family, like many of the others in the book, speak in a particular cockney (or poor class) way. The actual speech is written in this way, and is easy to read, which gives a great authentic feel to the story. At the train station, we begin to meet some of the other characters who make up this story. Different chapters show the story from different characters and their point of view, although always in the third person. I like this style, it make the story feel really engaging and a bit like a movie.

In Uncaster things aren’t just going badly for the Pringle family. Arabella Poskett, Lady of Uncaster Hall, is in financial trouble but her only servant Edie Boiler is a clever girl and is the key link to all the characters in this story. I don’t want to reveal what happens but I loved Edie’s character more than any other. I love the way she speaks, I could hear her voice in my head and she’s smart and strong and despite all the troubles everyone has, she’s determined to fix them.

The ending of the story is really satisfying and I love how it finished. It was a good and happy ending, and although this was predictable, I really enjoyed how the ending played out. I especially loved the added bit about what happened some years later. The whole story just feels so fun and interesting. Not only is it set in the past, but the resilience of the characters and their charm and wit just made this all the more enjoyable to read. I’d recommend this book to anyone of any age, although it’s aimed at kids, it’s a feel good story that I could see being made into a film or animation!
-Thanks to Walker Books for a free copy for review.

[Mary Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Victorian London, it is hard for the Pringle family to make ends meet and their mounting debts are putting their theatre troupe at risk of financial ruin. But Fred Pringle (father, lead-actor and director of the company) seizes an opportunity to take his show on the rails, bringing his version of Shakespeare to the north of England by train! In the town of Uncaster, they find a warm welcome from Lady Arabella Poskett (who is herself at risk of losing the ancestral home.) But others are not so keen. It seems another performer, Little Baby Bubbles, child master of magic and escapology and his ne'er-do-well mother have arrived in Uncaster at the same time...and they do not want competition. With these two sabotaging the Steam Whistle Companys' every move and an evil landlord determined to do Lady Poskett out of her home, it seems all down to young Rosie and Charlie Pringle to save the day!
With a riveting plot and good old-fashioned story-telling, Vivian French brings to life the essence of a traveling Victorian theatre company. There is a real sense of time and place, with fabulous description and detail that gives a true picture of every scene without overburdening the story. The characters are wonderfully written. The comic depiction of the adults in the tale create the perfect background for each young character to shine with tenacity, cleverness and strong voices independent of their adult counterparts. There is a sense of empathy for the hard-working and the underprivileged, while maintaining a stalwart sense of self, regardless of their circumstances. But mostly there is a great sense of adventure and working together! Mystery, comedy, plenty of twists and turns and an extremely satisfying ending make this an outstanding read. Thoroughly enjoyable.

[Anthony Burt · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a jaunty, hilarious and pantomime-esque adventure of a story Vivian’s new book is! Full of charm, bubbly characters, theatrical melodrama (as per it’s title), evildoers, and a plot that centres around putting on a good show despite the odds. The Steam Whistle Theatre Company is a brilliant summer read for your kids!

Charlie and Rosie join their father and take their theatre company up north from London, to find fame and fortune. But, as expected, nothing goes to plan. The places they are meant to do their Shakespearean plays have been booked by a precocious child magician – called Baby Bubbles, who is so well-written as frustratingly awful – and they’re kicked out of their digs.

But fate leads them to stay at Uncaster Hall, a place heaving with debts and problems under the ownership of Lady Arabella. But a place that welcomes them with open arms. And they all work together – with the wondrous Edie Boiler, who is my most fave upbeat character in a children’s book for ages – to battle the creepy (and genuinely sinister) property-grabbing Olio Sleevery and put on an unforgettable show of King Lear the town will never forget.

Full of thespian madness, Shakespearean nods, nasty bully-boys, and a group of wonderful characters, this book is a genuinely enjoyable read. Highly recommend it!

[Kris Dersch · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me awhile to get into this, I think because I wanted it to be historical fiction. It's really historical fiction in name only. It's set in Victorian England but in reality it's set in a ridiculous small town with an upper class lady down on her luck in a ridiculous old hall.
It's kinda a fairy tale without the magic. Whimsical. That's the word for it. It's cute and whimsical and a delightful little book if you don't expect too much of it.

[Janelle]

Dnf. Unfortunately the narrator of the audiobook I was listening to read a little too fast for me.

[Habiba · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

fun chill time

[Rachel F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book - read to Henry

4.5/5

[Thoginesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet little read indeed.

[Alexis · Rating 4 out of 5]

La versione in audiobook è davvero ben fatta, molto divertente da ascoltare. Un middle grade simpatico e gradevole.

[Victoria Sigsworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw one of my friends was reading this and on looking it up, decided I would like it. Have to say, so far this year, this has been my best read. I always say that any book can be read by anyone and this proves the point. One of my best reads of last year was also categorised as a children's book, A Dream of Sadler's Wells. Having read many Noel Streatfeild novels when I was a child and since, this book reminds me very much of her writing. Any child would love this story but if they have a passion for acting they will love it. As an adult, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is well written and has excellent pace and not much of it is predictable. There is plenty to engross the reader from pathos to humour to crime and all the characters really come alive. Thoroughly recommended. Excellent.