[1] The White Liars revolves around Sophie Lemberg, an eccentric and disillusioned fortune teller (who imagines herself to be a baroness of the Holy Roman Empire) living in a decaying seaside resort, and the two young men—Tom, the lead singer in a rock band, and Frank, his business manager—who consult her.

Shaffer wrote White Lies to precede the 1967 Broadway production of his farce Black Comedy, presented by Alexander H. Cohen at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.

"[3] When the double bill was subsequently produced in London at the Lyric Theatre directed by Peter Wood, Shaffer rewrote the play extensively and retitled it The White Liars.

[4] Shaffer was happier with this version, but as he put it, "it was marred by an offstage tape representing the voice of Sophie's Greek lover."

[5] Sophie's Greek lover was written out of the story entirely, and Tom and Frank underwent extreme changes from their original characters.