Variety entertainment and popular songs have made a comeback in recent years with hit show Britain’s Got Talent.

But a lecture next week will explain how music hall entertainment was once a central part of pop culture.

Peter Scott, a lecturer at Tate Britain, will lecture on the Art of the Music Hall at the Riverhouse Arts Centre in Walton on Wednesday, January 14.

Mr Scott will also explore how Victorian and Edwardian audiences were exposed to social and political comment while they were entertained.

He will reveal how music hall audiences were made up of all classes, and were entertained by a variety of genres from opera and ballet, to comedy and popular songs.

Mr Scott is also a performer in his own right, reviving Victorian parlour ballads as part of his involvement with the Riverside Opera.

Councillor Mary Sheldon, portfolio holder for leisure and culture, said: "This promises to be a highly enjoyable evening. Peter Scott is a real expert in the Music Hall field and a performer in his own right."

For further details of the forthcoming Royston Pike Lectures, please see the programme at elmbridge.gov.uk/culture or call 01372 474568.