Edward German (1862–1936), Basil Hood (1864–1917) and Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900) were famous British composers and lyricists. Both German and Sullivan wrote and played music at an early age. Hood’s career began in the British Army, where he wrote plays as a hobby. They created the bulk of their work during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Hood wrote The French Maid (1896) and Little Hans Andersen (1903), while German made a name for himself with The Rival Poets (1901) and Tom Jones (1907). Sullivan is best known for his productions H.M.S. Pinafore (1878) and The Pirates of Penzance (1879).