H Beard Print Collection
Print
17 November 1809 (published)
17 November 1809 (published)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Caricature print of John Philip Kemble wearing 'The OP Spectacles'. Published in London by T. Tegg.
In 1808 Covent Garden Theatre was rebuilt following a fire. The rebuilding cost was £300,000, and even with £76,000 raised by public subscription, a gift of £10,000 from the Duke of Northumberland, and the insurance settlement of between £44,000 and £60,000, there remained a large shortfall. To increase revenue, the management reconfigured the upper gallery to squeeze in more of the one shilling seats, creating what angry patrons described as ‘pigeon holes’. The price for a seat in the pit was raised from 3s. 6d. to four shillings, and the admission to the public boxes went up from six to seven shillings. A whole tier of boxes became ‘private’ and could only be hired by the season. Audiences were furious and turned their anger on the theatre’s manager, the actor John Philip Kemble (1757–1823). On 18 September 1809 Kemble stepped on stage in the costume of Macbeth to welcome the audience to the first production in the new theatre, and was met with a barrage of shouting, hissing and hooting which continued throughout the performance. Although magistrates were summoned, and some protesters arrested, the disturbance did not end until two in the morning.
This was the start of what were known as the Old Price (or O.P.) Riots. For the next ten weeks every performance at Covent Garden was disrupted. The principal objective of the protesters was to force the management to restore the old system of pricing. Cruikshank’s print shows a horrified Kemble looking at the world through O.P. Spectacles. By December 1809 the cost of legal fees, wages for bouncers, and free passes for allies who were paid to chant ‘N.P.’ (or ‘New Prices’), meant that the theatre was losing £300 per night. Kemble capitulated and made a public apology: it was agreed that the private boxes would be returned to public use and the pit would again be priced at 3s 6d. The rioters did not secure a complete victory, however. A seat in a box remained at the increased price of seven shillings and the ‘pigeon holes’ were retained.
In 1808 Covent Garden Theatre was rebuilt following a fire. The rebuilding cost was £300,000, and even with £76,000 raised by public subscription, a gift of £10,000 from the Duke of Northumberland, and the insurance settlement of between £44,000 and £60,000, there remained a large shortfall. To increase revenue, the management reconfigured the upper gallery to squeeze in more of the one shilling seats, creating what angry patrons described as ‘pigeon holes’. The price for a seat in the pit was raised from 3s. 6d. to four shillings, and the admission to the public boxes went up from six to seven shillings. A whole tier of boxes became ‘private’ and could only be hired by the season. Audiences were furious and turned their anger on the theatre’s manager, the actor John Philip Kemble (1757–1823). On 18 September 1809 Kemble stepped on stage in the costume of Macbeth to welcome the audience to the first production in the new theatre, and was met with a barrage of shouting, hissing and hooting which continued throughout the performance. Although magistrates were summoned, and some protesters arrested, the disturbance did not end until two in the morning.
This was the start of what were known as the Old Price (or O.P.) Riots. For the next ten weeks every performance at Covent Garden was disrupted. The principal objective of the protesters was to force the management to restore the old system of pricing. Cruikshank’s print shows a horrified Kemble looking at the world through O.P. Spectacles. By December 1809 the cost of legal fees, wages for bouncers, and free passes for allies who were paid to chant ‘N.P.’ (or ‘New Prices’), meant that the theatre was losing £300 per night. Kemble capitulated and made a public apology: it was agreed that the private boxes would be returned to public use and the pit would again be priced at 3s 6d. The rioters did not secure a complete victory, however. A seat in a box remained at the increased price of seven shillings and the ‘pigeon holes’ were retained.
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Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | H Beard Print Collection (named collection) |
| Materials and techniques | Hand coloured etching |
| Brief description | Hand coloured caricature print of John Philip Kemble wearing 'The OP Spectacles'. Published in London by T. Tegg, 17 November 1809, Harry Beard Collection |
| Physical description | Hand coloured caricature print of John Philip Kemble, head and shoulders, wearing 'The OP Spectacles'. Kemble is portrayed with large spectacles with the letters O and P on each lens, and theatrical scenes behind. The frame of the spectacles is inscribed: on the left the inscription reads 'OLD HOUSE OLD PRICE & NO PRIVATE BOXES', and on the right:'OLD HOUSE OLD PRICES & NO PIGEON HOLES', with the letters 'N.P.B.' on the nose piece. |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label | Covent Garden Theatre burnt down in 1808. It was rebuilt the following year, but audiences were enraged by the increased ticket prices and reduced gallery space. They rioted, demanding a return to the ‘Old Prices’. The theatre’s proprietors were forced to concede defeat. In these satirical prints, actor-manager John Philip Kemble (1757–1823) is shown wearing spectacles that symbolise the old and new prices.(29/05/2015) |
| Credit line | Harry R. Beard Collection, given by Isobel Beard |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Caricature print of John Philip Kemble wearing 'The OP Spectacles'. Published in London by T. Tegg. In 1808 Covent Garden Theatre was rebuilt following a fire. The rebuilding cost was £300,000, and even with £76,000 raised by public subscription, a gift of £10,000 from the Duke of Northumberland, and the insurance settlement of between £44,000 and £60,000, there remained a large shortfall. To increase revenue, the management reconfigured the upper gallery to squeeze in more of the one shilling seats, creating what angry patrons described as ‘pigeon holes’. The price for a seat in the pit was raised from 3s. 6d. to four shillings, and the admission to the public boxes went up from six to seven shillings. A whole tier of boxes became ‘private’ and could only be hired by the season. Audiences were furious and turned their anger on the theatre’s manager, the actor John Philip Kemble (1757–1823). On 18 September 1809 Kemble stepped on stage in the costume of Macbeth to welcome the audience to the first production in the new theatre, and was met with a barrage of shouting, hissing and hooting which continued throughout the performance. Although magistrates were summoned, and some protesters arrested, the disturbance did not end until two in the morning. This was the start of what were known as the Old Price (or O.P.) Riots. For the next ten weeks every performance at Covent Garden was disrupted. The principal objective of the protesters was to force the management to restore the old system of pricing. Cruikshank’s print shows a horrified Kemble looking at the world through O.P. Spectacles. By December 1809 the cost of legal fees, wages for bouncers, and free passes for allies who were paid to chant ‘N.P.’ (or ‘New Prices’), meant that the theatre was losing £300 per night. Kemble capitulated and made a public apology: it was agreed that the private boxes would be returned to public use and the pit would again be priced at 3s 6d. The rioters did not secure a complete victory, however. A seat in a box remained at the increased price of seven shillings and the ‘pigeon holes’ were retained. |
| Other number | F.118-64 - H Beard collection numbering |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.4776-2009 |
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| Record created | September 29, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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