Category Archives: London

A comic dance

Posted on June 17, 2013 by mercedes-c

One of the highlights in the career of the actor and pantomimist Joseph Grimaldi (1778-1837) was his performance in Harlequin and Mother Goose, or, The Golden Egg. The DNB notices how ‘fashionable and influential people, including Byron and Lord Eldon, … Continue reading →

Posted in Clowns, Colour, Entertainment, Fools, London, Music, Portraits, Prints, Theatre | Comments Off on A comic dance

A peep at the balloon

Posted on February 3, 2013 by mercedes-c

On Saturday, 7 July 1810, the Oxford-born chemist James Sadler (1753-1828) took part in the celebrations of the installation of the new Chancellor of the University by ascending in a balloon from Merton fields with his fourteen-year-old son, Windham. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Aerostation, Everyday life, London, Popular prints, Prints, Satirical prints, Science, Uncategorized, Woodcuts | Comments Off on A peep at the balloon

Douce’s ‘Portraits of English literati’

Posted on November 25, 2011 by mercedes-c

Douce’s collection also includes a large number of portraits, most of which seem to have been either given to him by friends and acquaintances, or cut from newspapers and magazines. As Douce knew many of the sitters personally, sometimes he … Continue reading →

Posted in London, Portraits | Comments Off on Douce’s ‘Portraits of English literati’

Modern life is rubbish

Posted on November 14, 2011 by mercedes-c

The quadrille-craze mentioned in my previous post on William Hawkes Smith’s music-sheet was also one of the subjects depicted by George and Isaac Robert Cruikshank in their illustrations to Pierce Egan’s Life in London (1821). In Egan’s social comedy, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Broadsides, Letters, London, Satirical prints | Comments Off on Modern life is rubbish