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Article: Real truth behind demon barber of Fleet Street; books ANONYMOUS Sweeney Todd or The String Of Pearls (Wordsworth Editions, pounds 2.99).(Features)
- Article from:
- Sunday Mercury (Birmingham, England)
- Article date:
- January 20, 2008
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 Birmingham Post & Mail Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: by Lorne Jackson
SWEENEY Todd, the demon barber of Fleet Street, was known for his exuberant way with a razor.
A close shave with this fictional fiend usually turned into a close shave with death.
In other words, he was a notorious hack.
The same could be said about the man behind the legend.
Edward Lloyd published the String Of Pearls, the 1847 tale where Sweeney first appears as a protagonist.
This was the era of Charles Dickens, Wilkie Collins and the Brontes.