A Regency ghost and more tales of haunted theaters

 

Joseph Grimaldi as Clown Joey, by George Cruikshank, 1820

What is it about ghosts and theaters? There seems to be something about the excitement and intense emotions exhibited during a performance that encourages spirits to hang around, like afterlife groupies hoping to get invited backstage.

In my last post I talked about the ghosts who haunt the Theatre Royal Bath. However, ghostly apparitions haunt theatres throughout Britain. In the spirit of Halloween, I’ll describe a few more of Britain’s scariest theater ghosts, including the ghost of an English actor who was one of the most popular entertainers of the Regency era.

 Four ghosts who haunt the Theatre Royal Brighton 

Sarah Bernhardt

This theater reportedly boasts not one but four ghosts, according to one newspaper account. There’s a Grey Lady, naturally, which seems to be a must-have apparition for old theaters in Britain.

This particular Grey Lady is assumed to be the ghost of Mrs. Elizabeth Nye Chart, who successfully ran the theater from 1876 to 1892, following the death of her husband. Actors, stage technicians and crew claim to have seen her.

The ghosts of a man and two children are also apparently roaming the halls.

But the most famous ghost associated with the Theatre Royal Brighton is that of Sarah Bernhardt.

The legendary French actress damaged her knee during a performance at the theater in 1894, an injury which may have led to the amputation of her leg in 1915.

That sounds like a good reason for her to haunt the place.

A ghostly nun at the Theatre Royal York

The Theatre Royal York has the distinction of being built on the site of a medieval hospital that was run by an order of nuns, so naturally one would expect nuns to haunt the theater as well.

And apparently that’s the case. Actors and others have seen a ghostly apparition in a soft grey habit with a white veil in the auditorium.

This Lady in Grey has a reputation as a benevolent spirit, however. Seeing her appear in the dress circle on the night of a performance is a good sign; it means the show will be a success.

The specter of a gifted clown at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane 

Now we come to a couple of London’s most haunted theaters, including one that has been described as the most haunted theater on planet Earth — the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.

At over 350 years old, this theater has witnessed thousands of performances, which translates to lots of opportunities for ghost legends to develop. Since 1663, the theater has been rebuilt four times on the same site, with the “modern” building standing today erected in 1812.

Grimaldi onstage at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in his final years, by George Cruikshank

One ghost, known as the Man in Grey, wears the 18th century garb of a cloak (grey of course), a wig, and a tricorne hat. Witnesses say they’ve seen him walking around the theater’s upper circle before vanishing into a wall.

No one knows for sure who the Man in Grey might have been, but some think he’s associated with the skeleton that was found in a secret room at the theater that was discovered by builders in the 1870s.

The ghost of Joseph Grimaldi, beloved actor, dancer, and pantomime clown during the Regency period, also haunts the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, while over at the Theater Royal Haymarket the 19th century actor, theater manager and playwright John Baldwin Buckstone appears.

The performers and crew who have worked at London’s two Theatre Royals have many stories about witnessing ghost sightings and other paranormal events. For example, actors Patrick Stewart and Judi Dench, along with a long list of others, claim to have seen Buckstone’s ghost at the Haymarket.

Other London theater ghosts 

Of course, these two Theatre Royals aren’t the only haunted theaters in London.

There is the terrifying severed head that appears at the Lyceum Theatre. A story goes that in the 1880s some theater patrons watching a performance from the balcony looked down over the auditorium below and saw the ghostly head laying on a woman’s lap.

Terriss’s murder, as shown in The Illustrated Police News, 1897

Over at the Adelphi Theatre, 19th century actor William Terriss is blamed for all sorts of poltergeist activity. Terriss was stabbed to death by an extra at the theater’s stage door in 1897, which would be enough to make anyone carry a grudge into the afterlife.

Besides haunting the Adelphi, Terriss has also been seen at the London Underground’s Covent Garden station, which was built after his death. Perhaps he just wants a bigger audience for his ghostly appearances.

Finally, there’s Arthur Bourchier, an actor who died in 1927 and has reportedly stuck around ever since as a ghost. A popular actor especially noted for his Shakespeare roles, for many years Bourchier also managed the Garrick Theater. Now, apparently, he haunts it.

Sudden door slamming, electrical faults, knocking, unexplained television channel changes, floral scents associated with long-dead performers wafting through the air – these are examples of the paranormal events reported at the theaters.

Not Stephen King-level scary, but perhaps enough to make most people think twice about being alone in an old London theater at night.

 

 

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Sources for this post include:

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Images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Ghosts of Bath’s Theatre Royal

With Halloween approaching, I thought it would be fun to talk about ghosts.  And not just any ghosts, but the ghosts that haunt Britain’s historic theaters.

These old theaters are rife with ghosts and psychic phenomena. Curiously, a lot of those ghosts are known individually as the Grey Lady, though they each have a different origin story.

There are reports of Grey Lady ghosts in the Theatre Royal York, the Theatre Royal Brighton, and the Theatre Royal Bath, to name just a few.

For this post, I’ll concentrate on the Theatre Royal Bath, which is arguably the most haunted theater in Britain. That distinction may be well deserved. From what I can tell, the whole place is crawling with ghosts and poltergeists.

A Sweet-Smelling Spook

The Theatre Royal Bath’s Grey Lady smells of jasmine and appears in 18th century gowns, her hair adorned with feathers. The story goes that she committed suicide, though there are three different accounts as to why.

In one account she killed herself after her lover died in a duel. Another story has it that she was in love with an actor, and she would sit in one of the top boxes to watch him perform. When he didn’t return her love, she killed herself.

The third version also involves unrequited love between an actor and a theatergoer, except the lady was the actor and it was the theatergoer who spurned her.

Consistent in all three accounts is the Grey Lady’s suicide. In most versions the lady hanged herself behind a door. However, at least one variation has the lady jumping to her death from a high window.

The Grey Lady manifests itself as a smoky apparition, either solid or wispy, and is sometimes seen in the corridor of the theater’s dress circle. However, the ghost’s usual haunt is the top left box, facing the stage. It doesn’t seem to bother anybody, but people who have seen the Grey Lady say the apparition has a melancholy air, making its viewers feel depressed and miserable, as if she transferred her despair to them.

A Pub Poltergeist

That’s not all the spooky stuff going on in the Theatre Royal. There’s the Phantom Doorman lurking by the entrance, believed to be the ghost of a man who once worked at the theater. Only cast members have seen him.

The Garrick’s Head pub

And the Garrick’s Head public house, adjacent to the theater, has its share of strange phenomena, too.

The Garrick’s Head bears the name of famed 18th century actor David Garrick. The pub is in the building that was once the grand home of Richard “Beau” Nash, a famous dandy in Georgian England.

Nash is best known for his role as the Master of Ceremonies and undisputed social leader of Bath when the spa town was a fashionable destination in the 18th century.

Like the Theatre Royal, the pub is also apparently haunted by the Grey Lady. There are reports of other paranormal activity in the pub as well.

Every year a blood stain mysteriously appears in the exact same spot on the pub’s floor. And once, in the 1990s, a cash register was reportedly hurled several feet across the bar by an unseen force.

An Airborne Apparition

Before we leave the topic of theater ghosts, a unique specter relatively new to the Theatre Royal deserves to be mentioned.

In 1948, a dead tortoiseshell butterfly was found on stage while the company was preparing to mount a children’s pantomime. Shortly after the deceased insect was discovered, the show’s manager and producer, Reg Maddox, dropped dead of a heart attack on stage while lighting a scene.

You might think there would be a scary ghost story to follow. However, people believe Maddox haunts the theater in the form of a benevolent butterfly, which is not very terrifying.

Seeing the winged insect fluttering in the rafters before a pantomime means the performance will be a hit. In addition, tortoiseshell butterflies seem to show up out of nowhere, to greet visiting stars or encourage performers.

In fact, every time Reg the butterfly ghost makes an appearance, he is greeted with affection.

After all, how scary can a butterfly be?

 

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For additional information and anecdotes see:

Images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and Pixabay

A Romantic Tale and a Screwball Comedy by Lillian Marek

This post originally appeared on Lillian Marek’s blog Tales of Romance and Adventure on March 24, 2015. Reposted with permission from the author.


A Romantic Tale and a Screwball Comedy

In the early 19th century there were four Tree sisters, all of whom went on the stage. (If there were three of them, one could probably create a nice tongue twister, but there were four.) Ellen Tree, who married the noted actor Charles Kean, was the only one who remained in the theater, performing with her husband as Mrs. Charles Kean until his death.

The other three all retired from the stage when they married, and it is only Maria Tree who seems to have left much of an impression. In Our Actresses: or Glances at Stage Favourites Past and Present (1844), Mrs. C. Baron-Wilson comments on Maria’s “simplicity and blameless life … in contrast with many of her sisters in the profession.”

Mrs. Baron-Wilson notes that there was a romantic story attached to Maria’s courtship, but declines to give it. I don’t know why. It’s a charming story as recounted by Captain Gronow in his Reminiscences. Charming, and also very much in the Screwball Comedy tradition. Continue reading “A Romantic Tale and a Screwball Comedy by Lillian Marek”

Assembly Rooms – April 2015

Here’s the monthly assemblage of links of interest to lovers of the Regency era — everything from prisoners’ mementos to dishonest valets. Continue reading “Assembly Rooms – April 2015”

The Theaters of Regency London by Regan Walker

Theatre Royal Covent Garden
Theatre Royal Covent Garden

While researching the Theatres-Royal during the Regency period (1811-1820) for my new Valentine’s short story, The Shamrock & The Rose, I found a wealth of information on the choices available to theatergoers in London at that time. More than one theatre had Letters Patent, and could, therefore, claim the name “Theatre-Royal,” and in addition to those, there were more specialized theatres and smaller playhouses as well.

From the variety of choices, it would seem that Londoners often enjoyed an evening at the theatre with as many as 20,000 attending the theatre on any given evening. One could see a drama, perhaps one of Shakespeare’s plays, a light comedy, or an opera, as well as ballet, pantomimes and skits—even a clown! And some of these might be combined into the entertainment for a single evening.

Drury Lane Theatre interior - 1808
Drury Lane Theatre – 1808

The theatres were lit mostly by candlelight reflected from many chandeliers. Of course, these were not dimmed as the entertainment began, so you could well see everyone in the audience as well as the actors on stage. And they could see you! So what activities you engaged in while in your box had to be discreet. The use of candlelight (until replaced with gaslights) also posed a fire hazard, as evidenced by several of the theatres burning down.

The Theatre-Royal, Covent Garden (now the Royal Opera House) was rebuilt in 1809 after a fire destroyed it the year before. Holding crowds exceeding 3,000, it became, perhaps, the leading theatre of the time. The principal performers at Covent Garden between 1809 and 1822 demonstrate the talent assembled there: In tragedy, Messrs. Kemble, Cooke, Macready, Young, Mrs. Siddons and Miss O’Neill. In comedy, Messrs. Liston, Munden, Charles Mathews, W. Farren, Mesdames Jordan, Brunton, Foote, C. Kemble. In opera, Messrs. Incledon, Braham, Pyne, and Mesdames Catalani, Bolton, Stephens, and Tree. “Kitty” Stephens made her first appearance here in 1812; Miss O’Neill, in 1814; Macready, in 1816; and Farren, in 1818. Several of these actresses and singers moved from the stage to the peerage when they married men in the nobility.

The Theatre-Royal, Drury Lane (mentioned in my Christmas short story, The Holly & The Thistle as providing seasonal entertainment), was redesigned in 1812 after a fire destroyed it in 1809. That was the fourth theatre to be on the site, the first having been constructed in 1663, pursuant to Letters Patent from Charles II. The Drury Lane Theatre was the first theatre to be entirely lit by gaslight in 1817.

Haymarket Theater
Haymarket Theatre

The Theatre-Royal, Hay-Market (also known as Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is in the West End and dates to 1720. (My Valentine’s Day short story, The Shamrock & The Rose opens with a scene set in this theatre.) It was originally constructed in the late 18th century and relocated and redesigned by John Nash in 1820. The new theatre was in many ways the same as the one that preceded it with flat sidewalls, tiers of boxes, a back gallery and the pit. However, the new theatre was much more opulent with colors of pink, crimson and gold and a circular vestibule “almost lined” with mirrors. It was the last theatre to be lit by gaslight (in 1843).

The Sadler’s Wells Theatre in the London Borough of Islington during the Regency featured famous actors, including Edmund Kean and Joseph Grimaldi. Grimaldi, though a dramatic actor, is best remembered for his character “Joey the Clown” with white face and rouge half-moons on each cheek. Because the period was characterized by public drunkenness, the rural location led the management to provide escorts for patrons so they could safely return to central London.

Sadlers Wells Theatre
Sadlers Wells Theatre

Sadler’s Wells (also known as “The Aquatic Theatre“) was used to stage sensational naval melodramas, including a recreation of Nelson’s victory at the Nile called Naval Pillars, and a recreation of the Franco-Spanish siege of Gibraltar, which included replicas of the fleet of ships, using a one inch to one foot scale, and working miniature cannon.

The Theatres-Royal in Drury Lane and Covent Garden confined their season to the autumn and winter. Sadler’s Wells filled the gap with their shows during the spring and summer. From the playbills I reviewed, the Theatre-Royal at Haymarket seems to have operated nearly year round.

In addition to the major theatres holding thousands, there were many other options for the theatergoer in the Regency:

The Haymarket (King’s Theatre) Opera House was originally built by the architect and playwright Sir John Vanbrugh in 1705. It was destroyed by fire in 1789, and re-built and used extensively for opera.

The Lyceum Theatre first became a “licensed” house in 1809 and was rebuilt in 1816, and renamed The English Opera House. It was famous for being the first theatre in London to feature some gas lighting (1817), and for hosting the London première of Mozart’s Italian opera Così fan tutte.

The Pantheon, constructed on Oxford Street in 1772, was originally designed for balls and masquerades before becoming an opera house in 1791. It was converted to a theatre 1811-12, but its role in the theatres of London was short lived. Damaged by fire and troubled financially owing to irregularities in its license, it was replaced in 1814 by the Pantheon Bazaar.

The Adelphi Theatre was constructed in 1806 by merchant John Scott to showcase his daughter’s theatrical talents, and was given a new facade and redecorated in 1814. It reopened in 1819 as the Adelphi, named after the area of West London built by the brothers Adam from 1768. (The name “Adelphoi” in Greek means “the brothers.”) Among the actors who appeared on its stage was the comedian Charles Matthews, whose work was so admired by young Charles Dickens. Most of its patrons were the salaried clerks of barristers and solicitors.

The Olympic Theatre was a playhouse built from the timbers of the French warship “Ville de Paris” (the former deck serving as the stage). It opened as the “Olympic Pavilion” in 1806. After financial losses, in 1813, it was sold to Robert William Elliston, who refurbished the interior and renamed it the “Little Drury Lane” by virtue of its proximity to the more established patent theatre. It was rebuilt in 1818.

The Royalty Theatre was opened in 1787 by the actor John Palmer in defiance of the 1737 patent monopoly act and featured as its first production As You Like It. Without a proper license it was forced to close–and Palmer was arrested. Under the management of William Macready, the Royalty struggled with pantomimes and burlettas (comic opera). In 1816, it was renamed the “East End Theatre,” and continued to offer entertainment until it was burned down ten years later.

Article by Regan Walker. Visit Regan at www.ReganWalkerAuthor.com

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The "Expunger of Naughtiness" — Thomas Bowdler

A cross-post from The Regency Redingote:

I must admit, I purloined that delicious phrase from the title of a brief article in The Republican, written by Richard Carlile, about Thomas Bowlder. In fact, it is a very apt description of what he did to some well-known books. His expunged editions of various books remained popular through the nineteenth century and into the twentieth. Bowdler’s name eventually came to be the source of a verb indicating expurgation.

But was Thomas Bowdler the lone "expunger of naughtiness" in the family?

Continue reading “The "Expunger of Naughtiness" — Thomas Bowdler”

The Glittering Regency Theatre

A cross-post from The Regency Redingote:

The theatres of the Regency did not only glitter with the talents of the great actors who trod their boards. They also glittered with the presence of the many members of the beau monde who flocked to the nightly performances during the season. But more germane to the subject of this article, they glittered with light, all the time. The house lights were never dimmed during a performance in any theatre auditorium in Regency England.

Despite the many instances in scores of Regency romance novels I have read over the years in which the theatre house lights dim and some form of seduction ensues in the darkness, it could not have happened. It was physically and technically impossible to dim the house lights of any theatre auditorium during the years of the Regency. And theatre-goers would have been appalled at the very notion. They came to the theatre to see and be seen. The play itself was secondary to the performances going on in the stalls and private boxes.

Continue reading “The Glittering Regency Theatre”

Behind the Scenes Tour – Drury Lane Theatre

Oooh, anyone who loves Regency history will want to go to Drury Lane Theatre and go

English: Theatre Royal Drury Lane London's old...
Image via Wikipediaon this tour. What about you? Are you going?

Behind the Scenes Tour – Drury Lane Theatre

by Kristine Hughes and Victoria Hinshaw

at Number One London

Through the Stage Door is the UK’s first Interactive Theatre Tour at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. Directed by Andrea Brooks with three professional actors, the history of The Theatre Royal Drury Lane is brought to vivid life as key characters, writers and actors from the theatre’s 300 year old past take you back through time as you look around this famous theatre. Since its construction in 1663 the theatre has triumphed over tragedy, fire, bankruptcy and even murder.

The Theatre Royal in Drury Lane opened in 1663, soon after the Restoration when Charles II returned to the throne. This ended Parliament’s puritanical rule which had seen all theatres in England closed, and the destruction of Shakespeare’s Globe. Now in a new and more fun loving age, Thomas Killigrew formed the Kings Company and built the first Theatre Royal Drury Lane, an important symbol of Britain’s theatrical reinvigoration following the barren years of puritan rule.

 

Since that first theatre there have been three more theatres built on the site of the original, in 1674, 1794 and 1812. The 1794 theatre was built by dramatist and radical MP Richard Sheridan. This was the biggest of all the Drury Lane theatres. It was in this theatre that an assassination attempt was made against George III . James Hadfield fired two shots at King George who was sitting in the royal box. Both missed their target. The would-be assassin was arrested, and George ordered the performance to continue. The 1794 theatre burned down in February 1809, a disaster which ruined Sheridan. There is a well known and oft told anecdote regarding Sheridan and the night of the fire, the following account is from The Lives of Wits and Humourists by John Timbs:

“On the night of the 24th of February, 1809, while the House of Commons was occupied with Mr. Ponsonby’s motion on the conduct of the War in Spain, and Mr. Sheridan was in attendance, with the intention, no doubt, of speaking, the House was suddenly illuminated by a blaze of light; and the debate being interrupted, it was ascertained that Drurylane Theatre was on fire. A motion was made to adjourn; but Mr. Sheridan said, with much calmness, that “whatever might be the extent of the private calamity, he hoped it would not interfere with the public business of the country.” He then left the House, and proceeding to Drury-lane, witnessed, with a fortitude which strongly interested all who observed him, the entire destruction of his property. . . It is said that as he sat at the Piazza coffee-house, during the fire, taking some refreshment, a friend of his having remarked on the philosophical calmness with which he bore his misfortune, Sheridan answered, `A man may surely be allowed to take a glass of wine by his own fireside.’

“Among his losses on the occasion there was one which, from being associated with feelings of other times, may have affected him, perhaps, more deeply than any that were far more serious. A harpsichord that had belonged to his first wife, and had long survived her sweet voice in silent widowhood, was, with other articles of furniture that had been removed from Somerset House, (Sheridan’s official apartments,) to the theatre, lost in the flames. The cost of building of this vast theatre had exceeded 150,000 pounds; and the entire loss by the fire, including that of the performers, musicians, etc., was estimated at 300.000 pounds.”

Theatre Royal Drury Lane is now owned by Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Company, and is used to stage musical theatre. The tour lasts approximately one hour, during which participants will meet characters such as the playwright Richard Sheridan, the great clown Grimaldi, the celebrated actress/mistress Nell Gwynne and many others who played an important role in the theatre’s history.

Nell Gwynne

Tour Times: 10.15am and 11.45am – Wednesday and Saturday

2.15pm and 4.15pm – Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday

via onelondonone: Behind the Scenes Tour – Drury Lane Theatre.