Alan Sommerstein joined the staff of the University of Nottingham in 1974 and remains there to this day. During this period he has produced a stream of distinguished books, editions and articles on many aspects of Greek drama and society. Among all these, one work stands out: the complete edition of the plays of Aristophanes in twelve volumes (one for each play, followed by an index volume), of which the first appeared in 1980 and the last early in 2003. This edition has been universally admired for the vividness and accuracy of the translation, the lucidity and accessibility of the exposition, and the high quality of the scholarship. This book comes out of a colloquium held to celebrate this remarkable achievement.