A Book for a Rainy Day; or, Recollections of the Events of the Years 1766-1833. John Thomas Smith

A Book for a Rainy Day; or, Recollections of the Events of the Years 1766-1833

the “Old George,” Little Drury Lane; and the “Black Swan,” Brown’s Lane, Spitalfields.[126]

It appears by the various advertisements from the numerous owners of cockpits, that the cruel sport of cock-fighting afforded high amusement this year to the unfeeling part of London’s inhabitants. Of the number of cockpits half a dozen will be quite enough to be recorded on this page.

1. The “Royal Cockpit,” in the Birdcage Walk, St. James’s Park. This Royal Cockpit afforded Hogarth characters for one of his worst of subjects, though best of plates.

2. In Bainbridge Street, St. Giles’s.

3. Near Gray’s Inn Lane.

4. In Pickled-Egg Walk.

5. At the New Vauxhall Gardens, in St. George’s in the East.

6. That at the “White Horse,” Old Gravel Lane, near Hughes’s late riding-school, at the foot of Blackfriars Bridge.[127]

Disputes having frequently occurred as to the characters in which Garrick last appeared, by persons not sufficiently in possession of documents at hand to enable them to decide their controversies, I am induced to conclude that such disputants will be pleased to see a statement of the nights of his acting, the titles of the plays in which he performed, and the names of the characters which he represented, as well as those of the principal actresses who performed with him during the last year of his appearance on the stage. The original play-bills of the time, collected by the late Dr. Burney, now in the British Museum, have enabled me to give this information in the following chronological order:—

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Nights of Acting.		Title of Play.	Names of Characters.
Jan.	18.	The Alchemist.	Abel Drugger, Mr. Garrick. (Doll Common, by Mrs. Hopkins.)
	20.	The Discovery	Sir Anthony Branville. (Lady Flutter, by Mrs. Abington.)
	22.	Ditto.	Ditto.
	24.	Ditto.	Ditto.
	26.	Ditto.	Ditto.
	29.	Ditto.	Ditto.
	30.	The Provoked Wife	Sir John Brute. (Lady Brute, by Miss Younge.)
	31.	Ditto.	Ditto.
Feb.	3.	Zara	Lusignan. (Zara, by Miss Younge.)
	5.	The Provoked Wife	Sir John Brute. (Lady Brute, by Miss Younge.)
	7.	The Discovery	Sir Anthony Branville. (Lady Flutter, by Mrs. Abington.)
	9.	Every Man in his Humour.	Kitely. (Mrs. Kitely, Mrs. Greville.)
	12.	Much Ado about Nothing.	Benedict. (Beatrice, by Mrs. Abington.)
	14.	Rule a Wife and have a Wife.	Leon. (Estifania, by Mrs. Abington.)
March	6.	Zara	Lusignan. (Zara, by Miss Younge.)
	7.	Zara	Lusignan. (Zara, by Miss Younge.)
April	11.	The Alchemist.	Abel Drugger. (Doll Common, by Mrs. Hopkins.)
	16.	Much Ado about Nothing.	Benedict. (Beatrice, by Mrs. Abington.)
	25.	Every Man in his Humour.	Kitely. (Mrs. Kitely, by Mrs. Greville.)
	27.	Hamlet	Hamlet. (Ophelia, by Mrs. Smith.)
	30.	The Provoked Wife.	Sir John Brute. (Lady Brute, Miss Younge.)
May	2.	Rule a Wife and have a Wife.	Leon. (Estifania, Mrs. Abington)
	7.	The Stratagem.	Archer. (Mrs. Sullen, Mrs. Abington.)
	9.	Much Ado about Nothing.	Benedict. (Beatrice, by Mrs. Abington.)
	13.	King Lear	King Lear. (Cordelia, Miss Younge.)
	16.	The Wonder	Don Felix. (Violante, by Mrs. Yates.)
	21.	King Lear	King Lear. (Cordelia, by Miss Younge.)
	23.	The Suspicious Husband.	Ranger. (Mrs. Strickland, Mrs. Siddons; Clarinda, Mrs. Abington.)
	27.	King Richard the Third.	King Richard. (Lady Anne (first time), Mrs. Siddons.)
	30.	Hamlet	Hamlet. (Ophelia, by Mrs. Smith.)