Robert William Honner
Encyclopedia
Robert William Honner was an English actor and theatre manager.
, where Joseph Grimaldi
the younger and Thomas Hamblin were his schoolfellows.
His father gave up his profession to become proprietor of the Heathcock Tavern, Heathcock Court, close to the Sans Pareil Theatre (now the Adelphi) in the Strand. There Honner found opportunities for indulging his taste for theatricals. His father soon died, leaving his mother unprovided for.
His wife was Maria Honner, whom he married 21 May 1836.
He died at Nichols Square, Hackney Road, London, on 31 December 1852. In the registration of his death he is called Robert Walter Honner.
; but the speculation was a failure, and he was left destitute. He visited the southern and western parts of England, then joined the corps de ballet at the Coburg Theatre, London, and in 1824 went to the Surrey. In 1825 Honner was again at the Coburg, and soon afterwards joined Andrew Ducrow
, with whom he remained a long period, although he still went provincial tours, during which he played every character from leading business to harlequin
, clown, and pantaloon
. He acted subsequently at Sadler's Wells under Grimaldi (1827); at the Surrey first with Elliston, and then with Charles Elliston and D. W. Osbaldiston, and at the Old City Theatre in Milton Street under Benjamin Webster in 1829. At later dates he returned to the Coburg; was one of Davidge's company at Liverpool, was stage-manager for George Almar at Sadler's Wells (1833), and was lessee of Sadler's Wells, as well as acting-manager for Davidge at the Surrey, from 1835 to 1838. He also often appeared at the latter house at short notice for John Reeve, T. P. Cooke, and others who happened to be indisposed. As lessee of Sadler's Wells from 1838 to 1840 he tried to establish a taste for the legitimate drama. For Mrs. Davidge he managed the Surrey from 1842 to 1846, and after a short lease of the City of London Theatre in Norton Folgate he joined John Douglass as stage-manager of the Standard Theatre, where he remained till his death. He was a good actor, his chief rôles being Richmond, Laertes, Fag in "The Jew", Scrooge the Miser
in the "Christmas Carol
", and Jemmy Twitcher in the "Golden Farmer".
Early and personal life
Honner was the youngest son of John Honner, solicitor, of the firm of Fletcher & Honner, of the parish of St. Anne, Soho, who died in 1817. He was educated at a private school at PentonvillePentonville
Pentonville is an area of north-central London in the London Borough of Islington, centred on the Pentonville Road. The area is named after Henry Penton, who developed a number of streets in the 1770s in what was open countryside adjacent to the New Road...
, where Joseph Grimaldi
Joseph Grimaldi
Joseph Grimaldi , was an English actor and comedian who is perhaps best known for his invention of the modern day whiteface clown. He chiefly appeared at Drury Lane in pantomime where his greatest success was appearing in Harlequin and Mother Goose; or the Golden Egg and followed with a successful...
the younger and Thomas Hamblin were his schoolfellows.
His father gave up his profession to become proprietor of the Heathcock Tavern, Heathcock Court, close to the Sans Pareil Theatre (now the Adelphi) in the Strand. There Honner found opportunities for indulging his taste for theatricals. His father soon died, leaving his mother unprovided for.
His wife was Maria Honner, whom he married 21 May 1836.
He died at Nichols Square, Hackney Road, London, on 31 December 1852. In the registration of his death he is called Robert Walter Honner.
Career
In 1817 Honner was articled for a period of three years to Charles Leclercq, the ballet-master, and shortly after appeared for his master's benefit at the Sans Pareil in a ballet called "The Crown of Roses". In 1820 he went as a dancer with Mr. Kinloch to the Pantheon Theatre, EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
; but the speculation was a failure, and he was left destitute. He visited the southern and western parts of England, then joined the corps de ballet at the Coburg Theatre, London, and in 1824 went to the Surrey. In 1825 Honner was again at the Coburg, and soon afterwards joined Andrew Ducrow
Andrew Ducrow
Andrew Ducrow was a British circus performer, often called the "Father of British circus equestrianism" and "the Colossus of equestrians" he was the originator of horsemanship acts and proprietor of the Astley’s Amphitheatre. Ducrow was trained by his father who had immigrated to England from...
, with whom he remained a long period, although he still went provincial tours, during which he played every character from leading business to harlequin
Harlequin
Harlequin or Arlecchino in Italian, Arlequin in French, and Arlequín in Spanish is the most popularly known of the zanni or comic servant characters from the Italian Commedia dell'arte and its descendant, the Harlequinade.-Origins:...
, clown, and pantaloon
Pantalone
Pantalone, or Pantalone del bisognosi, Italian for 'Pantalone of the needy', is one of the most important principal characters found in commedia del arte...
. He acted subsequently at Sadler's Wells under Grimaldi (1827); at the Surrey first with Elliston, and then with Charles Elliston and D. W. Osbaldiston, and at the Old City Theatre in Milton Street under Benjamin Webster in 1829. At later dates he returned to the Coburg; was one of Davidge's company at Liverpool, was stage-manager for George Almar at Sadler's Wells (1833), and was lessee of Sadler's Wells, as well as acting-manager for Davidge at the Surrey, from 1835 to 1838. He also often appeared at the latter house at short notice for John Reeve, T. P. Cooke, and others who happened to be indisposed. As lessee of Sadler's Wells from 1838 to 1840 he tried to establish a taste for the legitimate drama. For Mrs. Davidge he managed the Surrey from 1842 to 1846, and after a short lease of the City of London Theatre in Norton Folgate he joined John Douglass as stage-manager of the Standard Theatre, where he remained till his death. He was a good actor, his chief rôles being Richmond, Laertes, Fag in "The Jew", Scrooge the Miser
Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge is the principal character in Charles Dickens's 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is a cold-hearted, tight-fisted and greedy man, who despises Christmas and all things which give people happiness...
in the "Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
", and Jemmy Twitcher in the "Golden Farmer".