Old Vic

Theatre in/near Waterloo, existing between 1818 and now.

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(51.502 -0.1094, 51.502 -0.109) 
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Theatre · * · ·
JANUARY
20
2014
The Old Vic, one of the most reknowned theatres in London, was established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre.

The theatre was founded by James King and Daniel Dunn (formerly managers of the Surrey Theatre in Bermondsey), and John Thomas Serres, then Marine painter to the King. The latter managed to secure the patronage of Princess Charlotte and her husband Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, naming the theatre the Royal Coburg Theatre. The theatre was a 'minor' theatre (as opposed to one of the two patent theatres) and was thus technically forbidden to show serious drama.

Nevertheless, when the theatre passed to George Bolwell Davidge in 1824 he succeeded in bringing legendary actor Edmund Kean south of the river to play six Shakespeare plays in six nights. The theatre's role in bringing high art to the masses was confirmed when Kean addressed the audience during his curtain call saying "I have never acted to such a set of ignorant, unmitigated brutes as I see before me." More popular staples in the repertoire were 'sensational and violent' melodramas demonstrating the evils of drink, "churned out by the house dramatist", confirmed teetotaller Douglas Jerrold.

In 1833 it was bought by Daniel Egerton and William Abbot who tried to capitalise on the abolition of the legal distinction between patent and minor theatres, enacted in Parliament earlier that year. On 1 July 1834 the theatre was renamed the Royal Victoria Theatre, under the 'protection and patronage' of Victoria, Duchess of Kent, mother to Princess Victoria, the 14-year-old heir presumptive.

In 1880, under the ownership of Emma Cons to whom there are plaques outside & inside the theatre, it became The Royal Victoria Hall


The theatre was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 when it became formally known as the Royal Victoria Hall And Coffee Tavern. It was run on 'strict temperance lines' and by this time it was already known as the Old Vic.

In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian Baylis assumed management and began a series of Shakespeare productions in 1914. The Old Vic Company was established in 1929, led by Sir John Gielgud. Between 1925 and 1931, Lilian Baylis championed the re-building of the then-derelict Sadler's Wells Theatre, and established a ballet company under the direction of Dame Ninette de Valois. For a few years the drama and ballet companies rotated between the two theatres, with the ballet becoming permanently based at Sadler's Wells in 1935.

The building was damaged in 1940 during air raids but it became a Grade II listed building in 1951 after it reopened.

The Old Vic company formed the core of the National Theatre of Great Britain on its formation in 1963, under Laurence Olivier. The National Theatre remained at the Old Vic until new premises were constructed on the South Bank, opening in 1976.

The theatre underwent complete refurbishment in 1985 and in 1998, the building was bought by a new charitable trust, The Old Vic Theatre Trust 2000. In 2003 American actor Kevin Spacey was appointed as new artistic director of the Old Vic Theatre Company which received considerable media attention.


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CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE LOCALITY

Comment
Bruce McTavish   
Added: 11 Mar 2021 11:37 GMT   

Kennington Road
Lambeth North station was opened as Kennington Road and then Westminster Bridge Road before settling on its final name. It has a wonderful Leslie Green design.

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Born here
sam   
Added: 31 Dec 2021 00:54 GMT   

Burdett Street, SE1
I was on 2nd July 1952, in Burdett chambers (which is also known as Burdett buildings)on Burdett street

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Comment
Peter   
Added: 4 Dec 2023 07:05 GMT   

Gambia Street, SE1
Gambia Street was previously known as William Street.

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LATEST LONDON-WIDE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PROJECT

Comment
Wendy    
Added: 22 Mar 2024 15:33 GMT   

Polygon Buildings
Following the demolition of the Polygon, and prior to the construction of Oakshott Court in 1974, 4 tenement type blocks of flats were built on the site at Clarendon Sq/Phoenix Rd called Polygon Buildings. These were primarily for people working for the Midland Railway and subsequently British Rail. My family lived for 5 years in Block C in the 1950s. It seems that very few photos exist of these buildings.

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Steve   
Added: 19 Mar 2024 08:42 GMT   

Road construction and houses completed
New Charleville Circus road layout shown on Stanford’s Library Map Of London And Its Suburbs 1879 with access via West Hill only.

Plans showing street numbering were recorded in 1888 so we can concluded the houses in Charleville Circus were built by this date.

Source: Charleville Circus, Sydenham, London

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Comment
Steve   
Added: 19 Mar 2024 08:04 GMT   

Charleville Circus, Sydenham: One Place Study (OPS)
One Place Study’s (OPS) are a recent innovation to research and record historical facts/events/people focused on a single place �’ building, street, town etc.

I have created an open access OPS of Charleville Circus on WikiTree that has over a million members across the globe working on a single family tree for everyone to enjoy, for free, forever.

Source: Charleville Circus, Sydenham, London

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Comment
Charles   
Added: 8 Mar 2024 20:45 GMT   

My House
I want to know who lived in my house in the 1860’s.

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NH   
Added: 7 Mar 2024 11:41 GMT   

Telephone House
Donald Hunter House, formerly Telephone House, was the BT Offices closed in 2000

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Comment
Paul Cox   
Added: 5 Mar 2024 22:18 GMT   

War damage reinstatement plans of No’s 11 & 13 Aldine Street
Whilst clearing my elderly Mothers house of general detritus, I’ve come across original plans (one on acetate) of No’s 11 & 13 Aldine Street. Might they be of interest or should I just dispose of them? There are 4 copies seemingly from the one single acetate example. Seems a shame to just junk them as the level of detail is exquisite. No worries if of no interest, but thought I’d put it out there.

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Comment
Diana   
Added: 28 Feb 2024 13:52 GMT   

New Inn Yard, E1
My great grandparents x 6 lived in New Inn Yard. On this date, their son was baptised in nearby St Leonard’s Church, Shoreditch

Source: BDM London, Cripplegate and Shoreditch registers written by church clerk.

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Comment
Vic Stanley   
Added: 24 Feb 2024 17:38 GMT   

Postcose
The postcode is SE15, NOT SE1

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LOCAL PHOTOS
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Elephant & Castle
TUM image id: 1683196643
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Hopton’s Almshouses
TUM image id: 1513445642
Licence: CC BY 2.0

In the neighbourhood...

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The Hole In The Wall, Waterloo. A noted venue for many a traveller awaiting their train or ending their evening.
Credit: Virtual Tourist
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1893 programme cover - Canterbury Theatre
Credit: London Borough of Lambeth
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Hopton’s Almshouses, Hopton Street, Bankside (1957)
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Collingwood Street, near Blackfriars Road c1900 The street was renamed Colombo Street in 1937 by the London County Council. The weatherboarded cottages suffered severe bomb damage during the Blitz and were demolished in 1948
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Railway Bridge 27 XTD, Gambia Street, London
Credit: www.waymarking.com
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Gladstone Street showing Albert Terrace in the background (1977)
Credit: Ideal Homes
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Deep beneath the former Eurostar terminal at Waterloo Station, Leake Street, once a dismal, tunnel for vehicular traffic now enjoys a new lease of life as an ever changing, unofficial art gallery.
Credit: Instagram/@njcoxx
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Lambeth Telegraph Tower in 1810. At a short distance west of the Fishmongers’ Almshouses, near to West Square, on the south side of St George’s Road, formerly stood this tall boarded structure. It served for some time the purposes of a semaphore telegraph tower
Credit: Wiki Commons
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York Road, South Bank (2013) York Road started its life in 1824. Part of the land was sold to the London and South Western Railway in 1848 when the line was extended from Nine Elms. Waterloo Station, which was raised above the marshy ground on a series of arches, was designed by Sir William Tite and opened on 11 July 1848.
Credit: Wiki Commons/Mikey
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Exit from Waterloo station (1922)
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