Breaking Down Sweeney Todd

The legendary Sweeney Todd as you know him made his very first appearance in a Victorian penny dreadful series first published from 1846-1847 entitled The String of Pearls. Since that time, he has also appeared repeatedly in many other works of fiction. However, the most popular adaptation of Sweeney's story is Stephen Sondheim's 1979 theater musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. The recent musical film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp is, of course, based on Sondheim's stage production.

Although the details of Sweeney's story vary depending on which one you know, the gist of the tale remains the same. Sweeney Todd owns a barber shop located at 186 Fleet Street in London, right next to St. Dunstan's church. Todd disposes of wealthy or well-to-do clients in the following way. His barber chair is rigged to tip the customers backwards out of the chair and through an attached trap door. From there they fall into the basement, usually either breaking their necks or cracking their skulls in the process. Sometimes he slits their throats first with one of his frighteningly sharp razors. Sometimes he does so in the basement if the fall did not kill the victim outright. Todd also robs the victims of any worldly goods they may have upon their person.

When it came to disposing of the bodies, he turned to his friend, lover, or partner in crime (depending on the version of the tale) Mrs. Lovett. Mrs. Lovett owns a pie shop located in nearby Bell Yard. As times are hard and meat to make the pies is scarce, she begins using Todd's victims instead, subsequently serving them up to her unsuspecting London clientele. In most versions of the Sweeny Todd story, the barber shop and the pie shop are connected by way of an underground tunnel.

Not a whole lot, actually. Of course, no one really knows for sure. If whether or not the man existed at all is still in question, it would stand to reason there are not any photos of him to go by. However, we do have the original description from the early Sweeney Todd manuscripts to go by, although you must take the description with the proverbial grain of salt. Penny dreadfuls tended to be a bit stereotypical in their portrayals of the folks they were based on.

Sweeney was originally described as a very frightening-looking man with flaming red hair, pale skin and heavy eyebrows that seemed to meet over his nose. He was also said to possess beady, evil-looking eyes that glimmered with malice and to be so hideous to look upon overall that it was a wonder his customers didn't run screaming from him on sight. (Not too much like Johnny, although I must admit he seemed to have the evil eye thing down pat.) Sweeney was also portrayed as someone who was perpetually in a foul mood, often complaining about the high levels of crime and drunkenness outside his doors, and heaping abuse upon the young apprentices he hired to help out in the shop.

Meat pies, or humble pies as they were also known, are thought to be the beginnings of takeaway food as we know it today. You could buy these tasty little morsels for as little as a penny and had the choice of either eating them on the premises or taking them with you to eat on the go. Try making your own sometime. The recipe is for a big pie, but you could certainly buy short crust pie pastry and divvy up the filling to make smaller ones, or pocket-style ones, as well. Mmm, mmm... good!

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1 onion, diced
2 tbsp. butter
2 c. cooked meat, cubed in 1 inch
1 1/4 c. milk or gravy
1 1/2 tbsp. flour
1 c. cooked peas
1 c. cooked carrots, sliced
1 c. boiled potatoes, diced
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Salt
1/2 pie shell

Brown the onion in butter; add meat. Sear well. Remove meat and onion from frying pan and add the flour, milk or gravy and the Worcestershire sauce. Blend well. Grease a baking dish. Fill with the meat, vegetables and sauce. Cover with pie pastry. Make cuts with a knife in top of pie. Seal around the edges by pressing with a fork. Bake 450 degrees for half an hour.