Characters by Messrs. Arthur Blunt, Mark Lemon, Tom Taylor, Henry Silver, and Miss Ellen Terry.
Tickets for the Dress Circle and Stalls, One Guinea each, may be obtained from any Member of the Committee; at the Theatre Royal; from Messrs. Hime and Addison, and Mr. Slater, St. Ann's Square; and Messrs. Forsyth, St. Ann's Street.
On this occasion, says an anonymous writer, "The celebrated cartoonist received the reception of the evening. The audience rose en masse and cheered. Tom Taylor, playing in his own piece the principal character, was, comparatively speaking, nowhere. The most interesting personality of the Punch Staff was unquestionably Tenniel."
Affiliated with Punch, in its membership at least, was that "Guild of Literature and Art" of which Charles Dickens was the father. Its theatrical career began in 1845 at the Royalty Theatre, Soho, at that time called Miss Kelly's, the initial performance being Ben Jonson's "Every Man in his Humour," with Mark Lemon as Brainworm and Dickens as Bobadil. (See p. [137].) On May 15th, 1848, much the same company, in aid of the fund for the endowment of the perpetual curatorship of Shakespeare's house at Stratford-on-Avon, gave the "Merry Wives of Windsor," when Dickens played Shallow; George Cruikshank, Pistol; John Leech, Slender; Mark Lemon, Falstaff; and other characters were represented by George Henry Lewes, John Forster, Dudley Costello, Augustus Egg, R.A., and Mr. Cowden Clarke—a goodly company. Mr. Sala says that Lemon's conception of Falstaff (which was also known to the public through the jovial editor's "readings"), though well understood, was "the worst he ever saw;" but Mrs. Cowden Clarke declared it "a fine embodiment of rich, unctuous raciness, no caricature, rolling greasiness and grossness, no exaggerated vulgarisation of Shakespeare's immortal 'fat knight,' but a florid, rotund, self-indulgent voluptuary—thoroughly at his ease, thoroughly prepared to take advantage of all gratification that might come in his way, and thoroughly preserving the manners of a gentleman accustomed to the companionship of a prince. John Leech's Master Slender," she continues, "was picturesquely true to the gawky, flabby, booty squire.... His mode of sitting on a stile, with his long ungainly legs dangling down ... ever and anon ejaculating his maudlin cuckoo cry of 'Oh sweet Ann Page,' was a delectable treat." Without disrespect to Leech's memory, it may be said that others of his friends did not form a similarly favourable opinion of his histrionic powers.
A company quite as notable in its way was that which played "Not so Bad as We Seem," by Lytton (with whom Punch had made his peace), at Devonshire House, on May 27th, 1851, before the Queen and the Prince Consort, at the instance of the Duke of Devonshire. The playbill deserves to be preserved here, although the only Punch names among the actors are those of Jerrold, Lemon, and Tenniel—the last-named of whom is the only survivor of them all.
Men.
| The Duke of Middlesex The Earl of Loftus | Peers Attached To the Son of James II., Commonly Called the First Pretender | Mr. Frank Stone, A.R.A. Mr. Dudley Costello |
| Lord Wilmot | a Young Man at the Head of the Mode More Than a Century Ago, Son To Lord Loftus | Mr. Charles Dickens |
| Mr. Shadowly Softhead | a Young Gentleman From the City, Friend and Double of Lord Wilmot | Mr. Douglas Jerrold |
| Mr. Hardman | a Rising Member of Parliament and Adherent To Sir Robert Walpole | Mr. John Forster |
| Sir Geoffrey Thornside | a Gentleman of Good Family and Estate | Mr. Mark Lemon |
| Mr. Goodenough Easy | in Business, Highly Respectable, and a Friend of Sir Geoffrey | Mr. F. W. Topham |
| Lord le Trimmer Sir Thomas Timid | frequenters of Wills' Coffee House | Mr. Peter Cunningham Mr. Westland Marston |
| Mr. Jacob Tonson | a Bookseller | Mr. Charles Knight |
| Smart | Valet To Lord Wilmot | Mr. Wilkie Collins |
| Hodge | Servant To Sir Geoffrey Thornside | Mr. John Tenniel |
| Paddy O'Sullivan | Mr. Fallen's Landlord | Mr. Robert Bell |
| Mr. David Fallen | Grub Street Author and Pamphleteer | Mr. Augustus Egg, A.R.A. |
| Lord Strongbow, Sir John Bruin, Drawers, Newsmen, Watchmen, &c. &c. | Coffee House Loungers |
Women.
| Lucy | Daughter to Sir Geoffrey Thornside | Mrs. Compton |
| Barbara | Daughter to Mr. Easy. The Silent Lady of Deadman's Lane. | Miss Ellen Chaplin |