The Admirable Crichton is a comic stage play written in 1902 by J. M. Barrie and premiered in London in that year and in New York the next. It gently satirises English society by depicting the change in the balance of power between privileged aristocrats and a practical and resourceful butler when they are all shipwrecked on a desert island. The butler gradually becomes the benign ruler of the island and the aristocrats become his subjects until they are all rescued and conventional social relations are restored. The three main roles are the butler – Crichton, Lady Mary Lasenby, and her father, the Earl of Loam. Actors starring as Crichton have included H. B. Irving, Walter Hampden, Kenneth More, Hugh Quarshie, Edward Fox and George Cole.
Adaptations (7)
The Admirable Crichton has been adapted 7 times, across film and television film, from 1918 to 1968.
The Admirable Crichton1918 · film · dir. G.B. Samuelson · IMDb ↗IMDb6.4When a Lord and family are shipwrecked on an island their butler becomes a king.
Male and Female1919 · film · 116 min · dir. Cecil B. DeMille · IMDb ↗IMDb6.9When an aristocratic family and their servants are shipwrecked, the butler becomes their ruler.
Charlemagne1933 · film · 92 min · dir. Pierre Colombier · IMDb ↗After the sinking of their boat, seven passengers from a wealthy background find themselves on a desert island. The man who saves them from drowning then proposes to the sailor Charlemagne to become the king of the peninsula.
We're Not Dressing1934 · film · 74 min · dir. Norman Taurog · IMDb ↗IMDb6.0Beautiful high society type Doris Worthington is entertaining guests on her yacht in the Pacific when it hits a reef and sinks. She makes her way to an island with the help of singing sailor Stephen Jones. Her friend Edith, Uncle Hubert, and Princes Michael and Alexander make it to the same island but all prove to be useless in the art of survival. The sailor is the only one with the practical knowhow to survive but Doris and the others snub his leadership offer. That is until he starts a clam bake and wafts the fumes in their starving faces. The group gradually gives into his leadership, the only question now is if Doris will give into his charms.
The Admirable Crichton1957 · film · 94 min · dir. Lewis Gilbert · IMDb ↗IMDb7.1Lord Loam has modern ideas about his household, he believes in treating his servants as his equals - at least sometimes. His butler, Crichton, still believes that members of the serving class should know their place and be happy there. But when the Loam family are shipwrecked on a desert island with the self-reliant Crichton and lady's maid Tweeny, the class system is put to the test.
The Admirable Crichton1968 · film · 89 min · dir. George Schaefer · IMDb ↗IMDb8.0A group of people are shipwrecked when their yacht runs aground on a South Pacific island. The usual hierarchy in an upper-class British family breaks down quickly when it becomes apparent that only the servant, Crichton, is capable of surviving on his own and he becomes the community's leader.
- The Admirable Crichton? · television film · 145 min · IMDb ↗
The adaptation is based on the 1902 play of the same name by J. M. Barrie.
