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Not on display

Lounging in the Aq

Sheet Music
ca. 1880 (printed and published)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Lounging in the Aq was performed by George Leybourne in answer to Alfred Vance's Walking in the Zoo. It shows Leybourne by one of the fish tanks in The Royal Aquarium and Winter Garden, the ambitious establishment in Toothill Street, Westminster, Westminster, opened in January 1876, intended to rival the Crystal Palace as a venue for exhibitions, concerts and plays. It was covered with a roof of glass and iron and decorated with palm trees, fountains, pieces of original sculpture, thirteen large tanks meant to be filled with curious sea creatures, an orchestra capable of accommodating 400 performers, and an unusually large organ installed under Sullivan’s supervision. Arthur Sullivan was on the board of directors, along with Henry Labouchere and William Whiteley.

The Aquarium adopted an expensive system of supplying fresh and sea-water from four cisterns, sunk into the foundations. This quickly ran into operating problems, and although fish were there for a short while, for most of its existence there were none, which became a standing joke; but the directors did display a dead whale in 1877. The all-day variety entertainments at the Aquarium gradually became less respectable, with billiards matches, novelty acts and side-shows of all kinds, and commercial stalls offering perfumery and gloves. George Robey made his first professional appearance at the Aquarium in 1891.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleLounging in the Aq (published title)
Materials and techniques
Lithograph
Brief description
Music sheet cover for Lounging in the Aq, composed by Alfred Lee and lyrics by T.L. Clay, sung by George Leybourne, published by Charles Sheard. Colour lithograph by Alfred Concanen, ca. 1880
Physical description
Cover of the sheet music for 'Lounging in the Aq'. The foreground depicts George Leybourne in front of one of the aquariusm at The Royal Aquarium, while the construction of the Royal Aquarium can be seen in the background, probably its central apse. Credits of the song are printed above and below the image.
Dimensions
  • Height: 36cm (approx)
  • Width: 25.5cm (approx)
Marks and inscriptions
LOUNGING IN THE AQ/ LOUNGING IN THE AQ/ THAT AGAINST ALL OTHER MODES OF KILLING TIME I'LL BACK/ FUN THAT'S NEVER SLACK EYES BROWN BLUE & BLACK/ MAKE ME FEEL IN PARADISE WHILE LOUNGING IN THE AQ/ WRITTEN BY T.L. CLAY/ COMPOSED BY ALFRED LEE/ SUNG WITH GREATEST SUCCESS BY GEORGE LEYBOURNE/ LONDON:CHARLES SHEARD, 192, HIGH HOLBORN WC. (Text on front of cover.)
Credit line
Gabrielle Enthoven Collection
Subject depicted
Associations
Literary referenceLounging in the AQ
Summary
Lounging in the Aq was performed by George Leybourne in answer to Alfred Vance's Walking in the Zoo. It shows Leybourne by one of the fish tanks in The Royal Aquarium and Winter Garden, the ambitious establishment in Toothill Street, Westminster, Westminster, opened in January 1876, intended to rival the Crystal Palace as a venue for exhibitions, concerts and plays. It was covered with a roof of glass and iron and decorated with palm trees, fountains, pieces of original sculpture, thirteen large tanks meant to be filled with curious sea creatures, an orchestra capable of accommodating 400 performers, and an unusually large organ installed under Sullivan’s supervision. Arthur Sullivan was on the board of directors, along with Henry Labouchere and William Whiteley.

The Aquarium adopted an expensive system of supplying fresh and sea-water from four cisterns, sunk into the foundations. This quickly ran into operating problems, and although fish were there for a short while, for most of its existence there were none, which became a standing joke; but the directors did display a dead whale in 1877. The all-day variety entertainments at the Aquarium gradually became less respectable, with billiards matches, novelty acts and side-shows of all kinds, and commercial stalls offering perfumery and gloves. George Robey made his first professional appearance at the Aquarium in 1891.
Collection
Accession number
S.444-2012

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Record createdMay 1, 2012
Record URL
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