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British comedy guide

William "Billy" Fisher - Billy is 19, and living with parents Alice and Geoffrey, and his grandmother, Florence Boothroyd. Billy lies compulsively to everyone he comes across, whether it's the claim that his father was a troubled writer who locked all his novels in the sideboard cupboard or telling his parents that Arthur's mother is pregnant. Billy works as a clerk for undertakers Shadrack & Duxbury. He is engaged to three girlfriends in the play, and is always talking about a job offer writing scripts in London for "Danny Boon", a comedian.

Alice Fisher - Billy's mother. She rarely sits down in the play, constantly working hard to keep the house tidy and look after her husband, her mother and Billy.

Geoffrey Fisher - Billy's father. Geoffrey uses the word "bloody" in his sentences so often it has lost all meaning. Geoffrey has been a successful garage owner and a man who works in the removal business so his family live middle class lives despite his working class background. Geoffrey has a short temper, but otherwise rarely shows emotion.

Florence Boothroyd - Billy's grandmother, Alice's mother. She is ignored by her family and never seen a loved character until the end. Florence talks to the sideboard more than her own family, and is always drinking tea out of a pint-pot. She keeps pots of condensed milk upstairs. Florence falls ill in Act 2 and is taken upstairs. By Act 3 she has died.

Barbara - One of Billy's fiancées He refers to her as "The Witch". Barbara is prudish, always eating oranges and harbours dreams of living with Billy in a cottage in Devon, with "little Billy and little Barbara". Finds out about other girlfriends later in the play.

Rita - Rita is 17, is short, but comes across as a "hard lass". She is engaged to Billy, and has a habit of mimicking Billy every time he offers an excuse for her missing engagement ring. Unbeknown to her, it is on Barbara's finger. She appears in Acts 2 and 3.

Liz - A scruffy girl in need of a new skirt, she is nevertheless the one who truly understands Billy, and the only one he really has a genuine interest in. Before her appearance, Billy pretends he doesn't have much interest in her, but it is clear when she appears that he is still smitten with her.

Social Context

•Billy Liar is set in 1960, in a Northern industrial town. •
•The play revolves around the Fisher family, in particular the 19 year old son Billy.
•This was a time of great social change in Britain (Sexual revolution), where a younger generation were disillusioned by the traditional conservative values of their parents generation.
•Billy is driven to lying all the time because he is so disillusioned with the life and behaviour society dictates he should have.