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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Doctor Faustus
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(The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus, c.1590) Tragedy by *Marlowe, not published until 1604 but written and produced in about 1590. It is based on a bestselling book of 1587, the Faustbuch, which brought together many tales about a German magician and charlatan who had died in 1540. Faustus sells his soul to the devil, in the form of Mephistopheles, in return for 24 years of indulging every whim. His most famous fancy is to have Helen of Troy as his paramour, greeting her apparition with 'Was this the face that launched a thousand ships?', a line soon followed by 'Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss'. The part of Faustus was first performed by Edward *Alleyn.
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