Formby was injured in June 1916 during rehearsals for the revue "Razzle-Dazzle", after a stage collapsed onto him at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. He suffered lung damage and was treated for a pulmonary haemorrhage at Guy's Hospital before recovering. Although he was the lead in the show, the premiere took place without him; it was criticised by reviewers, and "The Observer" thought that "some of it seemed to have strayed in by mistake out of a second-rate provincial pantomime". Formby returned within a week and the reviews were more positive, with "The Observer" stating that it was "one of the successes of the season ... "Razzle-Dazzle" is now one of the liveliest revues in London, and the most spectacular". By August the production had transferred to the Empire Theatre, Leicester Square.