THE LATE SIR HENRY IRVING

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XLIX, Issue 12628, 16 October 1905, Page 4

THE LATE SIR HENRY IRVING

Ofr cables this morning announce the passing, with dramatic suddenness, of th*> most notable actor of the present day, Sir Henry Irving. The news will, wo feel sure, cause a sharp pang of regret throughout the whole world. It is not alone as .a brilliant exponent of dramatic art that Sir Henry Irving will be remembered. His life-long aim to elevato the profession he adorned will be a lasting monument to his name, for it is doubtful whether any other man has endeavoured more zealously to raos© to their proper level the stage and the dramatic profession. The deceased was originally named John Henry Brodiribb, but assumed by royal patent the name of Henry Irving. He was born at Ke.;nton, Glastonbury, in 1838, and was educated at Dr. Pinches' school in George Yard, Lombard Street, London. His first appearance on the stage was at the Sunderland Theatre in 185 C, aod he

afterwards played in Edinburgh, London, Glasgow, and elsewhere. His first great success was made in 1870, when ho appeared as Digby Grant in the comedy "Two Roses." In 1871 he appeared at the Lyceum in "The Bells," and then after a series of successes came •?■ that famous representation of " Ramlet " in 1874, which created such a sensatfon, and finally gave him his preeminent position on the stage. " Macbeth," "Othello," Tennyson's "Queen Mary," "Richard III.," and "The Lyons Mail," followed in 1875, 1876, and 1877; arid then, in December, 1878, he took over the sole management of the Lyceum, and opened with " Hamlet " again. In " Othello" afterwards he ■alternated the characters of Othello and lago with the late Mr Edwin Booth, and produced and in conjunction with Miss Ellen Terry played in " The Merchant of Venice," "Much Ado About Nothing," "The Cup," "Twelfth' Night," " Faust," " The Dead Heart " (1S89), " Ravenswood" (1890), « The Corsiean Brothers" (1891), " Henry VIII." (1892), Tennyson's " Becket •• (1893) " King Arthur " (1895), " Cym- • beline " (1896), " Madame Sans-Gene " (1897), and " Petei- the Great!' (1898).Ihe interest in the last play was greatly increased by the fact that the author was Mi* Lawrence Irving, the great actor's son. In 1883 he first visited America, and the experiment answered so well that the visit has been many times repeated since. In 1895 Sir Henry was knighted. On several occasions during recent years dt was rumoured that Sir Henry was about to retire from the stage, but these rumours w«re contradicted and replaced by others -that theaptor Knight intended to visit tJie Colonies before making bis final appearance before the' footlights. He has during his time played many parts, and his exit from the world's stage leaves that stage the poorer.