Drawing
c.1930 (drawn)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
George Robey (1869–1954) was one of Britain’s most successful music hall comedians, a master of comic songs, caricatures and sketches, who became known as 'the Prime Minister of Mirth'. He made his first appearance on the London stage at the Aquarium in 1891, and after appearing at London's Oxford Music Hall in the same year, he was engaged for most of the leading halls. Robey was known for his ‘trademark’ hat - a semi-clerical bowler - and enormous black eyebrows which he raised quizzically to great comic effect. He could make audiences cry helplessly with laughter just by coming on stage and looking at them, asking them to 'desist from this unseemly merriment'. He was one of the music hall performers to make the change from the halls and variety to revue, appearing in The Bing Boys Are Here at the Alhambra Theatre in 1916, followed by The Bing Boys on Broadway, also at the Alhambra, in 1918. He received a knighthood in 1954, the year of his death.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | pen and ink on post card |
| Brief description | Self-portrait of George Robey (1869-1954). Pen and ink. Given by Gwendoline Playle. |
| Physical description | Pen and ink self-portrait line drawing by George Robey (1869-1954), on the back of a post-card. Head and shoulders portrait showing him looking to the left, his nose hatched in red, wearing a collarless jacket and bowler hat. Signed in ink: 'Good luck. Geo. Robey'. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions | Good luck Geo. Robey Note Inscribed in ink below the image |
| Credit line | Given by Gwendoline Playle |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | George Robey (1869–1954) was one of Britain’s most successful music hall comedians, a master of comic songs, caricatures and sketches, who became known as 'the Prime Minister of Mirth'. He made his first appearance on the London stage at the Aquarium in 1891, and after appearing at London's Oxford Music Hall in the same year, he was engaged for most of the leading halls. Robey was known for his ‘trademark’ hat - a semi-clerical bowler - and enormous black eyebrows which he raised quizzically to great comic effect. He could make audiences cry helplessly with laughter just by coming on stage and looking at them, asking them to 'desist from this unseemly merriment'. He was one of the music hall performers to make the change from the halls and variety to revue, appearing in The Bing Boys Are Here at the Alhambra Theatre in 1916, followed by The Bing Boys on Broadway, also at the Alhambra, in 1918. He received a knighthood in 1954, the year of his death. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.6119-2009 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | February 10, 2009 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSON
