‘On the Stage — and Off: The Brief Career of a Would-be Actor’ was Jerome K. Jerome’s first published book. It is a lightly fictionalised memoir, rather in the style of ‘Three Men in a Boat’, with its hapless narrator detailing his inglorious adventures in the lower reaches of the late Victorian theatrical world, amongst its seedy theatres, drunken actors and dodgy managers. It is based on Jerome’s own early experiences as an aspiring thesp. The title and subtitle say it all. It’s an absolutely fascinating compendium of information on the day to day life of a jobbing actor, told in Jerome’s inimitably droll manner. (Goodreads)