John Drinkwater (1882-1937), Poet and playwright

Sitter in 15 portraits
Initially an insurance clerk, in the period immediately before the First World War John Drinkwater was one of a group of poets, including Rupert Brooke, who were associated with the Gloucestershire village of Dymock. In 1918, he scored his first major success with his play, Abraham Lincoln. He published his first collection of poetry in 1923. Most of his later writing, however, failed to live up to the promise and popularity of his earlier work and his fame gradually declined. He progressed into literary criticism, and later became manager of Birmingham Repertory Theatre.