Sir William Schwenck Gilbert, popularly known as W. S. Gilbert, was born November 18th, 1836 in London, England. He pursued a career in law in 1861, the same year he started to contribute to the newly launched Fun magazine with his “Bab” ballads, along with the comic illustrations he did himself. Because Gilbert’s poems and illustrations, both nonsensical and satirical, were received so well when Fun began he continued to contribute and add to the kind of feel Fun became known for. Though the pay was poor, £1 per column, each measured by the cashier whether they were verse or prose, Gilbert continued to send in his poems and woodcuts, always signed “Bab.” Most often Gilbert said he felt pressured by deadlines and churned out what he could, which was always well received regardless.

       Gilbert furthered his artistic career when playwright Thomas William Robertson recommended him to produce a Christmas piece in under two weeks. He succeeded, and in 1870 he met Sir Arthur Sullivan and they began working together the following year. Their most famous pieces include the operettas The Pirates of Penzance, Patience, and Mikado. The pair eventually split due to financial strains and personality differences. Gilbert wrote a few burlesques, or risque parodies, including one called Rosencrantz and Guildenstern in later years.

       While Gilbert was teaching two young women how to swim in a lake,