[3] The company's name referred ironically to the title of John Knox's sixteenth-century pamphlet, The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstruous Regiment of Women.
Amongst the founding members were three who were to remain actively involved throughout its history: Chris Bowler (until her death in May 2014), Gillian Hanna, and Mary McCusker.
[7] With a commitment to promoting new writing, and to close collaboration with the writers it commissioned, Monstrous Regiment explored a variety of theatrical forms in its work, including epic theatre, cabaret, and performance art, and its productions ranged from large-scale ensemble pieces to one-woman shows.
[13] Together with the texts of four plays, an account of the company's development is presented in the editorial introduction to Monstrous Regiment: A Collective Celebration,[14] to which many of its members contributed.
An official Monstrous Regiment website was launched early in 2019, using this archive material to document and illustrate the history and achievements of the company.