Cultural influence of Gilbert and Sullivan judge to something out of Gilbert and Sullivan. Aside from politics, the phrase "A short, sharp shock" has appeared in titles of books and songs (most notably in samples of Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side of the Moon"). Likewise "Let the punishment fit the crime" is an often-used phrase in popular media. For instance, in episode 80 of the television series "Magnum, P.I.", entitled "Let the Punishment Fit the Crime," Higgins prepares to direct a selection of pieces from "The Mikado" to be staged at the Estate. The phrase and the Mikado's song also are featured in the "Dad's Army"
Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan together to produce a Christmas entertainment, "Thespis", at his Gaiety Theatre, a large West End house. The piece was an extravaganza in which the classical Greek gods, grown elderly, are temporarily replaced by a troupe of 19th-century actors and actresses, one of whom is the eponymous Thespis, the Greek father of the drama. Its mixture of political satire and grand opera parody mimicked Offenbach's "Orpheus in the Underworld" and "La belle Hélène", which (in translation) then dominated the English musical stage. "Thespis" opened on Boxing Day and ran for 63 performances. It outran five of its nine