Theatre of the United Kingdom works are often characterised by menace or claustrophobia. Beckett also influenced Tom Stoppard (1937-) ("Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead",1966). Stoppard's works are however also notable for their high-spirited wit and the great range of intellectual issues which he tackles in different plays. Both Pinter and Stoppard continued to have new plays produced into the 1990s. "Beyond the Fringe" was a comedy stage revue written and performed by Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Alan Bennett, and Jonathan Miller. It played in London's West End and then on New York's Broadway in the early 1960s, and is widely regarded as seminal to the
Beyond the Fringe show "Not Only... But Also", and the 1967 film "Bedazzled". Cook also launched his club, The Establishment, around this time. Many of the members of Monty Python recall being inspired by "Beyond the Fringe". The retrospective show "Before the Fringe", broadcast during the early years of BBC 2, took its title from this production. It consisted of performances of material that was popular in theatrical revue before the advent of "Beyond the Fringe". The show's success was not limited to the UK. In 1962, it also opened in South Africa. Next it arrived in the US. First the Broadway Company