Later Victorian Portraits Catalogue

I. IN PRIVATE CHARACTER
Self-portraits
Paintings, drawings, sculptures and prints
Photographs
II. IN STAGE CHARACTER (alphabetically by play)

I. IN PRIVATE CHARACTERback to top

Self-portraitsback to top

1877
Painting, signed and dated, with Helena Modjeska, to whom presented 1881; priv. coll., USA. [1]

c.1885
Oil on canvas, 610 x 508mm, head-and-shoulders, half-profile to right, wearing wing collar and dark coat; SNPG, PG1981.

1906
Ink sketch in letter date-stamped 30 Mar. 1906, inscr. ‘I send you a picture of us, Uncle Ian and me and mother and the chauffeur’, half-length thumbnail figure seated in open automobile, wearing cap; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Paintings, drawings, sculptures and printsback to top

1870
Chalks on green paper by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, monogrammed and dated, head, profile to right, lips pursed; Tate, N04285. Ref. Forbes-Robertson 1925, pp.46–7.

A study for Dante’s Dream, see below.

1871
Oil on canvas, 2160 x 3124mm, by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Dante’s Dream, as Eros, whole-length, profile to right, leaning forward; Walker AG, 3091. Exh. RA Winter 1883 (318); and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Walker AG, Liverpool, 2003 (147). Repr. Treuherz et al. 2003, fig.61.

Oil on canvas replica, 1880, The McManus, Dundee, 6-1949. Exh. Burlington Fine Arts Club 1883 (85); and Manchester Jubilee Exh. 1887 (702).

?early 1880s
Ink drawing, initialled ‘V.W.B’, head-and-shoulders, near-profile to left, wearing loose-knot tie; untraced. Repr. on printed notepaper, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1884
Pen and ink portrait chargé by Philip William ‘Phil’ May, signed and dated, whole-length, profile to right, in composite design; untraced. Repr. Society, Dec. 1884, p.49, captioned ‘The Seven Ages of Society’, Forbes-Robertson no.152 in key; cutting Garrick Club, London, Fitzgerald Irving scrapbooks, vol.6, p.386.

See also M. Bancroft, S. Bancroft, Burnaby, Irving.

1885
Oil on canvas by Alfred Collins, half-length, profile to left; priv. coll. Repr. Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.136.

1892
Drawing by Thomas Walter Wilson, signed and dated, head-and-shoulders, profile to left, in back row of composite multi-figure group; untraced. Engr. by Richard Taylor repr. ILN, 28 Jan. 1893, pp.116–17, captioned ‘The Dramatic Profession of To-Day’, Forbes-Robertson no.10 on key (p.118).

See also Brough, Farren, Hare, Irving, James, Langtry, Moore, Terry, Toole, Tree, Wyndham.

1894
Oil on canvas, 1285 x 1040mm, by Hugh de Twenebrokes Glazebrook, three-quarter-length seated, to right, half-profile to right, wearing brown suit, holding book on lap; coll. Royal Shakespeare Co., Stratford-upon-Avon, STRPG.A1993.178; Christie’s, 7 July 1916 (149). Repr. MA, 1894, p.307.

For another portrait of Robertson by Glazebrook, see below, ‘In private character, Paintings, drawings, sculptures and prints, 1898’. Portraits by Glazebrook were exh. SPP 1909 (98) and Latin–British Exh. 1912, but it is not known which likeness/es were shown.

1895
Watercolour caricature by Leslie Ward (‘Spy’); see NPG 3008.

c.1895
Oil on canvas, 635 x 508mm, by Theodore Blake Wirgman, signed and inscr. on reverse, bust-length, profile to left, wearing grey jacket and white cravat with pin; Peter Francis, Carmarthen, 24 July 2012 (11); Christie’s, South Kensington, 6 Aug. 1980 (75). Exh. SPP 1895 (48).

1897–8
Bronze bust by Emil Fuchs; see NPG 3642.

c.1897–8
Oil, 1003 x 737mm, by Emil Fuchs, half-length seated, left hand on knee; untraced; formerly Brooklyn Art M.

Presumably executed around the same time as the bust, see above.

1898
Oil on canvas, 1240 x 850mm, by Hugh de Twenebrokes Glazebrook, three-quarter-length standing, to front, wearing dark morning dress, holding small book in right hand; untraced. Exh. New G., 1898. Repr. ‘Pictures of 1898’, Pall Mall Gazette, p.89.

For another portrait of Robertson by Glazebrook, see above, ‘In private character, Paintings, drawings, sculptures and prints, 1894’. Portraits by Glazebrook were exh. SPP 1909 (98) and Latin–British Exh. 1912, but it is not known which likeness/es were shown.

publ. 1900
Caricature design by Edward Tennyson Reed, signed and inscr. ‘Unauthorized Rumours!’, whole-length standing, profile to left, wearing pith helmet, third from right in group of nine figures; in folio of cartoons and caricatures offered at Lawrences, Crewkerne, 15 Apr. 2016 (1545); see Bridgeman Images AAH3057557. Repr. Punch, 10 Jan. 1900, p.21, captioned ‘Unauthorised War Rumours: the Leno Light Horse!: The report that Colonel Sir Daniel Leno is raising a squadron of light horse, drawn entirely from stage circles, is, we regret to learn, entirely without foundation’.

The joke refers both to the Anglo-Boer War and to Dan Leno’s act as a member of the Household Cavalry.

See also Grain, Irving, Leno, Tree.

1901
Ink and wash caricature by Max Beerbohm, whole-length (no further details); untraced; Sotheby’s, 12 Nov. 1976 (6150). Exh. Carfax G., 1901. Ref. Hart-Davis 1972, no.552.

1904
Ink drawing by H. Beaumont, signed and inscr. ‘SS Vaderland / 18 iiii 1904 / “Wouldn’t that be great?”’, whole-length, profile to right, wearing cap, cigarette-holder in left hand, looking to magician pulling rabbit from child’s head; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

c.1906
Oil by Charles Orchardson (no further details); untraced. Exh. SPP 1906 (24).

1900s
Pencil drawing by Carl Bohnen, signed, head-and-shoulders, to front, wearing wing collar; untraced. See American Gallery website.

Ink and watercolour caricature by L.J. Binns, signed and inscr. ‘Forbes-Robertson’, whole-length standing, head tilted to right, hands clasped; Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York PL, image ID 1628842.

c.1910–15
Ink sketch by Gertrude Elliott, in letter, inscr. ‘This is Dadsy having a chat with a Winnipeg policeman. I have given Dadsy rather a snub nose but that can’t be helped now’, whole-length standing, profile to right, wearing bowler hat and heavy overcoat, holding stick and looking up at very tall figure to right; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1913
Oil on canvas, 1710 x 880mm, by George Harcourt, signed lower right, nearly whole-length standing, half-profile to left, wearing grey morning suit and grey cravat, left hand resting on desk; Garrick Club, London, G0230. Exh. RA 1913 (880); RSPP 1919 (93); and George Harcourt Memorial Exh., 1950. Repr. Ronald 1931, p.196; and Ashton 1997, no.230.

Photogravure by T. & R. Annan & Sons, Glasgow, repr. [Cassell] 1913 (103); print, 490 x 250mm, Lawrence’s, Crewkerne, 1–4 July 2008 (1093, dated to Nov. 1913).

Plaster bust by Leonard Stanford Merrifield, untraced. Exh. RSPP 1921 (122).

Photographic print mounted on souvenir card captioned ‘“Sir Johnstone Forbes-Robertson” / by L.S. Merrifield / at the Royal Sociey of Miniature Painters [sic]’, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Repr. Connoisseur, July 1922, p.179.

Ink sketches by E.A. Ross, inscr. ‘FR at rehearsal’ and ‘another back view of F-R’, whole-length standing, from back, with bowler hat and walking cane; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), where date noted.

publ. 1913
Design by Alexander ‘Alick’ Penrose Forbes Ritchie, whole-length standing, profile to left, wearing large floppy bow tie and cape, right hand raised, left hand holding soft hat and walking stick; untraced. Repr. as lithograph Vanity Fair, 4 June 1913 (no.2326); print, 346 x 207mm, NPG D9740.

publ. c.1913–16
Pen and ink caricature by Harry Furniss; see NPG 4095(4).

1914
Oil on canvas, 1130 x 1510mm, by (John) Byam Liston Shaw, Design for the New Act Drop for the London Coliseum, signed and dated, whole-length standing, profile to left, in costume as Hamlet, with numerous other theatrical, musical and artistic celebrities represented in an architectural setting; English National Opera, London. Exh. RA 1914 (536); Byam Shaw, Ashmolean M., Oxford, 1986 (29, ill.); and Edwardian Opulence, Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, 2013 (55, ill. with key [no.17 on key]). Repr. Sketch, 6 May 1914, p.133.

The full-size act drop was destroyed.

See also Alexander, Alma-Tadema, Anderson, M. Bancroft, S. Bancroft, Campbell, Farren, Hare, Irving, Leighton, Leno, Millais, Terry, Tree, Waller, Watts, Whistler, Wyndham.

1917
Oil on canvas, 770 x 635mm, by Ambrose McEvoy, signed and dated, bust-length, to front, wearing large floppy cravat and cape; Garrick Club, London, G1116; Christie’s, South Kensington, 6 Sept. 2006 (75). Repr. Johnson 1919, pl.53.

c.1917–18
Lithograph on sheet, 433 x 281mm, by Howard van Dusen, head-and-shoulders, to left, on sheet with smaller image by John Hassall drawn from a photograph of Robertson in costume as Hamlet (see ‘In stage character, Hamlet, Photographs, 1897’), signed in the plate by both artists and sitter; NPG D37727.

From a lithograph series showing theatrical performers in propria persona and in costume.

1919
Pencil sketch, 210x 139mm, by Fred Roe, inscr. with sitter’s name, on reverse of seating plan for RIPWC Banquet, 12 Mar. 1919, head-and-shoulders, profile to left, wearing dinner jacket, with slighter sketch, profile to left, looking down; NPG D43128.

See NPG Portrait Set ‘Character sketches: drawings by Fred Roe, 1900–27 (volume 1)’.

1920
Oil on canvas, 1125 x 870mm, by Meredith Frampton, three-quarter-length seated, to left, looking to viewer, legs crossed, hands on thigh; coll. Royal Shakespeare Co., Stratford-upon-Avon, STRPG:A:1993.48. Exh. RA 1921 (333); Hull, 1922 (no further details); and British Empire Exh., Wembley, 1924.

1926
Pen and ink drawing by Alfred Wolmark, head-and-shoulders; untraced; Phillips, 7 Sept. 1993 (307).

Bust by A. Sava Botzaris, wearing wing collar; untraced. Photograph, inscr. ‘From Bust by Sava 1926 (1 Doughty St)’, showing the work in the clay; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Bronze cast, 370mm high, inscr. on plinth ‘Johnston / Forbes-Robertson / 1853–1937 / Gift of his Wife.’; Garrick Club, London, S0010. Probably exh. A Sava Botzaris exhibition of sculpture, drawings and caricature, Leicester Galleries, 1938. Repr. Ashton 1997, no.510, where sculptor’s name given as Sarah Bobsaris.

publ. 1926
Pen, ink and black chalk drawing, 364 x 279mm, by Bernard Partridge, inscr. ‘Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson / Actor (1853–1937) / by Sir Bernard Partridge (1865-1945) / study for portrait – see Punch 3 March 1926’, three-quarter-length standing, profile to left, thumbs in waistcoat armholes, with faint pencil sketches of Henry Irving and Squire Bancroft to left and right respectively; NPG D6612b. Repr. Punch, 3 Mar. 1926, p.249, from a more emphatic ink version with three subsidiary portraits, signed and inscr. ‘“Under Three Reigns”’.

c.1926
Oil by George James Coates, half-length, to front, wearing dark jacket, wing collar and brown tie; Birmingham MAG, 1932P293. Exh. RSPP 1926 (23). Repr. Coates 1937, p.187.

1928
?Oil by Chloe Forbes-Robertson, sitter’s daughter (b. 1909), head-and-shoulders, half-profile to left; untraced, known from snapshot inscr. ‘Chloe’s first portraits / 1928’ in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

publ. 1928
Caricature by ‘Matt’, head-and-shoulders, profile to left, wearing high collar and pince-nez; untraced. Repr. Cassells Weekly, 20 June 1928, p.448, clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

c.late 1920s
Pencil sketches by David Low; see NPG 4529(307) and NPG 4529(307a)

before 1932
?Bronze head, 245 x 220mm, by Lawrence Tompkins, signed; Musée national d’art moderne, Centre Pompidou, Paris, JP 85 S.

undated
Watercolour by Eric Forbes-Robertson (sitter’s brother), head-and-shoulders, untraced; family coll., 1966.

Photographsback to top

c.1855–6
Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length standing, left elbow on table, wearing lace collar and petticoats; oval print, inscr. ‘Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson / Born 1853 / 1856?’, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

c.1863
Photograph by unidentified photographer, inscr. on reverse ‘Barnsbury Square’ with names of all sitters, whole-length, reclining on ground with cricket bat, in family group; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Repr. Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.22.

Photographs by McLean & Haes, two known poses:
(a) whole-length standing, legs crossed, wearing kilt, mother to right; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) whole-length standing by drum, wearing kilt and holding drumsticks; carte-de-visite, inscr. ‘age 10’, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Repr. Strand, captioned ‘Aged 12’ (no further details; undated clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol); and Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.32, captioned ‘J.F-R., aged ten / a drummer in an amateur brass band.’

c.1870–71
Photograph by Samuel Butler, three-quarter-length, to front, looking down, wearing full suit of stage armour; print St John’s College, Cambridge. Repr. Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.54, captioned ‘J.F-R. at seventeen’; and Shaffer 1988, pl.106.

?early 1870s
Carte-de-visite by Horatio Nelson King, head-and-shoulders vignette in oval, half-profile to left, wearing large stiff bow tie; V&A, London, S.143:167-2007.

c.1873
Cartes-de-visite by London School of Photography, two known poses from separate sessions:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, to right, left hand holding gloves, right hand tucked into coat with contrasting velvet collar.
(b) half-length, to front, wearing worsted coat and loose-knot tie; trimmed print signed by sitter and inscr. ‘July 1873’, V&A, London, THM 288 box 2 (no item no.).

Both Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

c.1874
Photographs by London Stereoscopic & Photographic Co., three known poses:
(a) carte-de-visite, half-length seated, to left, looking to camera, bushy hair, top hat on table to left. Repr Strand, captioned ‘Aged 21’ (no further details; undated clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol).
(b) cabinet card, three-quarter-length standing, to front, wearing overcoat, holding top hat and gloves; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(c) head-and-shoulders, to front, wearing splay-lapel jacket, stiff collar, white tie with cameo; oval print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1870s
Photograph by unidentified photographer, head-and-shoulders, half-profile to left, wearing stiff collar, white tie with cameo; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, three-quarter-length standing, to front, right hand behind back, left hand holding folded or rolled paper, wearing morning coat, bow tie, check trousers; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by Alexander Bassano, three-quarter-length standing, wearing dark morning coat with pale cravat, top hat and rolled umbrella under left arm; V&A, London, S.143:158-2007.

Carte-de-visite by unidentified photographer, head-and-shoulders, to left, wearing check suit, wing collar, dark tie; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

c.1880
Photograph by unidentified photographer, head-and-shoulders, profile to left, hint of moustache, wearing jacket with braided lapels; carte-de-visite sized print, inscr. ‘1880?’, Mander & Mitchenson Coll.., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1882–3
Cabinet card by Alexander Bassano, publ. St James’s Photographic Co., head-and-shoulders, looking to left, with moustache and hint of beard, wearing wing collar and pale tie; NPG x4174. See NPG Portrait Set ‘Bassano cabinet cards, 1870s–1900s’.

?early 1880s
Cabinet card by London Stereoscopic & Photographic Co., three-quarter-length standing, to front, wearing wing collar, bow tie and overcoat, right hand holding top hat, left hand holding gloves; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1883
Carbon print, 115 x 90mm, by St James Photographic Co., head-and-shoulders, profile to right, wearing narrow wing collar and cravat with large pin. Publ. The Theatre, June 1883 (no further details), captioned ‘“Every man is odd” – Troilus and Cressida’; prints colls NPG x135388; and V&A, London, S.143:166-2007 (cropped version).

mid-1880s
Photographs by Window & Grove, four known poses:
(a) half-length, to front; cabinet card, signed by sitter, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) head-and-shoulders vignette, to front, looking to right; NPG x12559.
(c) oval vignette, looking to left; NPG x14281.
(d) ‘Cabinet Cameo Portrait’, signed by sitter, comprising four similar vignettes, including one full profile to left; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Carte-de-visite by Lombardi & Co, bust-length, profile to right, wearing buttoned coat; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Carte-de-visite by Joseph Parkin Mayall apparently taken at the same time as above image, head-and-shoulders vignette, near-profile to right, wearing same clothes plus overcoat; V&A, London, S.143:144-2007.

Photograph by London Stereoscopic & Photographic Co., head-and-shoulders, profile to left, wearing wing collar, cravat with pin, handkerchief in breast pocket. Engr. by ‘CH’ repr. Pall Mall Budget, 14 Feb. 1895, p.23.

Cabinet card by London Stereoscopic & Photographic Co., head-and-shoulders, looking left, wearing stiff collar, large tie-pin and narrow patterned scarf; oval print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Cabinet card by Window & Grove, half-length, to front, wearing wing collar, tie with pin and buttoned coat; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), signed by sitter.

c.1888
Photograph by Elliott & Fry, three-quarter-length, seated to left, looking to camera, wearing long buttoned jacket and pinstripe trousers, left arm resting on table. Repr. Strand, captioned ‘Aged 28’ (no further details; undated clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol).

c.1889
Half-plate negatives by Alexander Bassano, three known poses:
(a) bust-length, half-profile to left, wing collar, flat-knot tie, handkerchief in breast pocket; NPG x96392.
(b) head-and-shoulders, profile to right; NPG x96393.
(c) three-quarter-length standing, profile to left, hands behind back, wearing check trousers; NPG x96394.

Carbon print, 140 x 95mm, by W. & D. Downey, head-and-shoulders, head turned to left, wing collar, bow tie, jacket buttoned. Publ. Downey & Downey 1890–94, 3rd series, pp.79–80; prints colls NPG x36111 and NPG Ax16004; V&A, London, S.143:168-2007; and MEPL, London, 10125296. Sitter wears same jacket as in Bassano portrait NPG x96392 above.

See NPG Portrait Set ‘The Cabinet Portrait Gallery: photographs by W. & D. Downey, published 1890–94’.

Cabinet cards by W. & D. Downey, two known poses:
(a) half-length standing, half-profile to left, wearing stiff collar and regular tie, hands in trouser pockets; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) head-and-shoulders, to front, wearing wing collar, waistcoat with lapels and jacket; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Sitter appears roughly the same age in all these Downey images, but dress differs.

after 1889
Cabinet cards by Hayman Seleg Mendelssohn, three known poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders, turned to front; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details); another cabinet card, 145 x 101mm, slightly cropped from foot, NPG x36212, signed and inscr. by sitter ‘Ever yours truly, my dear Mrs Maude’.
(b) three-quarter-length seated, to left, in high-backed chair, right hand to chin, ring on left little finger; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘This may be published’.
(c) head-and-shoulders, profile to right, wearing different collar but same cravat and pin; Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York PL, image ID TH-13501. Repr. uncropped Terry 1908, p.224.

publ. 1890
Photographs by Herbert Rose Barraud, two known poses:
(a) carte-de-visite, head-and-shoulders vignette, to front, wearing wing collar and bow tie; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) carbon print, three-quarter-length standing, hands clasped, carved antique-style balustrade in background. Publ. MWD, vol.III, 1890, pp.81–4; prints colls NPG Ax5496; NG Canada, Ottawa, 23895.93; and MEPL, London, 10125289.

See NPG Portrait Set ‘Men and Women of the Day: photographs by Barraud and others, published 1888–1893’.

?c.1890
Carte-de-visite by Henry A. Niblett, head-and-shoulders vignette, near-profile to right, wearing wing collar and loose-knot tie; V&A, London, S.143:161-2007.

1892
Photographs by unidentified photographer, two similar poses, inscr. on reverse ‘George Meredith, his daughter & myself / July 1892’, three-quarter-length, to front, seated on ground in garden, George Meredith in wicker chair to left, daughter far left; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1893
Photographs by Alfred Ellis, three known poses:
(a) half-length, profile to left, arms folded on back of upright chair: National Archives (COPY 1/414/890). Carbon print publ. The Theatre, vol.xx, 1 Jan. 1894, captioned ‘Dost like the picture? / [Bulwer] Lytton / The Lady of Lyons’; prints colls NPG x36112; Garrick Club, London, Athole Stewart Album no.79; and V&A, London, S.143:162-2007 (cropped version). Postcard with facsimile signature, publ. Alfred Ellis & Walery, print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

This is one of four poses (described as two head-and-shoulders, two three-quarter-length) reg. for copyright 1893 Dec. 18: National Archives (COPY 1/414/889–92).

(b) head-and-shoulders, to left, wearing wing collar and tie with linked rings motif (presumably one of the head-and-shoulders poses reg. for copyright).
(c) whole-length standing, profile to right, right hand in pocket, left arm on mantelpiece, left foot on fender; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘about 1885’ and ‘taken in the 1890s’.

Poses (b) and (c) repr. The Englishwoman, pp.115, 117 (no further details; undated clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol). The Englishwoman was publ. 1895–1900.

reg. 1895
Photograph by Francis Thomas Beeson for George Newnes Ltd, ‘almost profile face’, reg. for copyright 1895 July 12: National Archives (COPY 1/421/157).

Photographs by Alexander Corbett for Alfred Ellis, four poses (three head-and-shoulders, one three-quarter-length) reg. for copyright 1895 Oct. 24: National Archives (COPY 1/422/230–33).

early to mid-1890s
Cabinet cards by Turner & Drinkwater, Hull, two known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, to front, wearing tweed suit, hands in trouser pockets.
(b) head-and-shoulders, near profile to left.

Both Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

c.1895
Photographs by Alexander Bassano, wearing wing collar and regular knot tie with motifs, velvet collar to jacket, two poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders, looking left. Postcard after sitter’s marriage as double image with wife, Philco series, 3044F; print, mailed 5 Mar. 1905, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) head-and-shoulders, profile to left. Postcard, ‘printed in Saxony’; print Garrick Club, Dorothy Burr Postcard Album no.49, inscr. ‘July 1902’.

Photograph by unidentified photographer, half-length seated, profile to left, wearing high collar and pale tie with pin, left arm resting on carved table with book, right arm on chairback; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘[?]H 1896’.

?mid-1890s
Photographs by W. & D. Downey, three known poses:
(a) cabinet card, three-quarter-length standing, to left, wearing three-piece worsted suit with watch-chain, hands in trouser pockets; two prints, one inscr. ‘about 1895’.
(b) cabinet card, head-and-shoulders, to front, wearing wing collar and collared waistcoat under unbuttoned coat.
(c) cabinet card, half-length, profile to left, wearing high collar and large tie.

All Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Carte-de-visite by W. & D. Downey, half-length, profile to left, wearing wing collar and pale bow tie, arms leaning on table to left; Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York PL, image ID TH-13502.

reg. 1898
Photographs by William Crooke, Edinburgh, two poses (both profiles) reg. for copyright 1898 May 23: National Archives (COPY 1/436/330–31).

Photograph by James Stack Lauder of Lafayette for The Gentlewoman Ltd, half-profile, standing, wearing morning dress, right hand resting on table, left hand holding book, reg. for copyright 1898 Sept. 27: National Archives (COPY 1/437/644).

publ. 1899
Photograph by John Caswall Smith, half-length, profile to left, right hand to cheek. Repr. AJ, 1899, p.215.

late 1890s
Photograph by Elliott & Fry, head-and-shoulders, profile to left. Repr. as vignette engr. Strand, captioned ‘Present Day’ (no further details; undated clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol).

Cartes-de-visite by W. & D. Downey, two known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, to left, hands in pockets, wearing stiff collar and dark three-piece suit.
(b) half-length, profile to left.

Both Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photographs by Lizzie Caswall Smith, half-length, seated in chair with curved arms, wearing wing collar, tie with triangle motif, dark suit, three known poses:
(a) to front, hands off-frame to left; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) profile to left, pensive expression, left hand tucked into jacket collar; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(c) half-length, to left, turned to camera, hands on lap. Repr. Play Pictorial, no.129, 1913.

1900
Cabinet card by Reutlinger, Paris, three-quarter-length standing, to front, Gertrude seated to right; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. on reverse ‘Wedding trip’.

c.1900
Photographs by Lizzie Caswall Smith, head-and-shoulders, wearing high stiff collar, three known poses:
(a) half-profile to right.
(b) half-profile to left (or could be reverse print). Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd, dual print with portrait of wife; two variant prints, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(c) head-and-shoulders, to front. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd; print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, half-length, profile to right, wearing trilby hat, left hand to cheek, elbow resting on cane chairback; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘about 1900’.

Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length seated, wearing bowler hat and overcoat, Gertrude seated to right, in front of Niagara Falls; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘1900’.

Photograph by Window & Grove, half-length, profile to right, wearing high collar, tie with motif, wide-lapelled jacket with stripe in weave; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Cabinet cards by Robert Johnson, four known poses:
(a) half-length, to right, looking to camera, wearing high collar and cravat, right elbow resting on chair arm, right hand holding half-smoked cigarette; NPG x36213.
(b) three-quarter-length, to left, looking to camera, arms folded; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(c) three-quarter-length seated, to left, looking to right, left hand in trouser pocket; two prints (one head-and-shoulders detail), Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(d) head-and-shoulders, to left, head turned to look right; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Cabinet card by Lambert Weston & Son, Folkestone, head-and-shoulders, profile to left, wearing high wing collar; mounted print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by John James Avery, Holloway, London, whole-length, seated on hammock in garden, wearing dark suit and panama hat, holding book. Repr. Play Pictorial, no.129, 1913, captioned ‘Dolce Far Niente / Mr Forbes Robertson dreaming of a Tranquil Future…’.

publ. 1900
Photographs by Langfier Ltd, standing, hands in pockets, wearing tweed or homespun suit, two known poses:
(a) to front, looking right. Postcard, publ. J. Beagles & Co., no.1093.
(b) half-profile to right. Photogravure by E. Wrench; V&A, London, S.1669-1986.

1902
Six snapshots in family album, inscr. ‘taken at Hangar Hill, Ealing / Blossom 11 months’, wearing pale fedora, with daughter Maxine and dog; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph, possibly by Lafayette (indistinct stamp lower left), half-length seated, to left, looking to camera, hands clasped on back of chair, wearing collar and cravat; large-format print, inscr. ‘1902’, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

early 1900s
Photographs by Lafayette, three known poses from different sessions:
(a) head-and-shoulders vignette, to front, wearing stiff collar, patterned tie and tweed jacket; cabinet card Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Postcard, publ. Raphael Tuck & Sons c.1904, ‘Celebrities on the Stage’ series, no.222.

(b) half-length, showing handkerchief in breast pocket. Postcard, publ. Siegmund Hildesheimer & Co. Ltd; prints colls Russell-Cotes AGM, Bournemouth, T11.10.2006.13.3; and Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(c) half-length seated, to left, turned to camera, wearing high stiff collar and dark coat, left arm over chairback; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘1902’.

Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length, half-profile to left, standing in studio holding palette beside portrait of Gertrude.

Postcard, ‘Yes or No’ series; print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Cabinet card by Jacques & Gay, Brighton, half-length, profile to left, wearing wing collar and tweed suit; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), signed by sitter.

1903
Snapshots in family album, inscr. ‘Bedford Square / Dadda & Blossom / 18 mos exactly’, half-length, profile to right, wearing top hat, bending towards infant in pram; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photographs by Richard Williams Thomas, two known poses:
(a) whole-length, to right, seated in armchair in sitting room, newspaper on knee, dog asleep on hearthrug to right; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘1903’.
(b) three-quarter-length, from behind, profile to right, seated at piano; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘about 1902’.

Photograph by Lyons (no further details), half-length, to front, seated in tall carved chair; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘1903 in Canada by Lyons’.

c.1903
Photograph by Victor Georg, Chicago, head-and-shoulders, to front, wearing wing collar; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1904
Photograph by Gilbert & Bacon, Philadelphia, three-quarter-length, turned to front, wearing wing collar, arms folded, cigarette holder in right hand; Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York PL, image ID TH-13489.

Forbes-Robertson played Hamlet in Philadelphia Jan. 1904.

Photograph by Daily Mirror, whole-length, to front, wearing top hat in rain, with brother Norman to left unfurling umbrella; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘April 23rd 1904 / Leaving Southwark Cathedral / NFR & JFR’.

c.1904
Photograph by unidentified photographer, head-and-shoulders, half-profile to left, wearing wing collar and bow tie with horseshoe motif; Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York PL, image ID TH-13492.

Postcard, publ. Charles William Faulkner & Co.; prints colls MEPL, London, 10088450; and Garrick Club album (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, head-and-shoulders vignette, to front, wearing high stiff collar and tie with triangular motif; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘1904’ and bearing copyright stamp.

1905
Four snapshots in family album, inscr. ‘summer 1905’, nearly full-length standing and seated, in garden, wearing light-coloured fedora, holding daughter Jean; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by Alice Boughton, monogram and inscr. ‘Copyright by Alice Boughton New York 1905’, half-length, to front, wearing wing collar, arms crossed; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

c.1905
Photograph by unidentified photographer, nearly whole-length, profile to right, seated with Gertrude to right; Topfoto ARP1288084.

1906
Oval cabinet card by Lizzie Caswall Smith, inscr. by sitter ‘From Blossom and her Dadda with warmest greetings from J. Forbes Robertson 1906’, nearly whole-length seated, profile perdu to right, leaning down with left hand behind head of daughter Maxine (b. 1901); Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length seated, profile to right, wearing top hat, with Gertrude and many other actors in New York. Repr. New York Times, 28 Oct. 1906, captioned ‘Mr Forbes Robertson, Miss Gertrude Elliott and their English company, photographed in the interval of a rehearsal of “Caesar and Cleopatra”’.

c.1908
Postcard by Stereoscopic Co., bust-length, to front, wearing high stiff collar, knotted tie, waistcoat, jacket and overcoat; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol, RS/A6/0024, where dated c.1908.

Photographs by Ernest Walter Histed, wearing stiff collar and tie with spots in triangular motif, very dark background, two known poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders, to front, looking right, staring eyes. Repr. unidentified periodical, 15 Aug. 1908; clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) bust-length, to left, turned to camera; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Repr. unidentified periodical, credited ‘Histed’; clipping, inscr. ‘1913’, in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Cabinet card by Arnaud, Glasgow, half-length, to front, wearing high stiff collar and tie with triangular motif; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Carte-de-visite by London Stereoscopic & Photographic Co., head-and-shoulders, profile to left, wearing high stiff collar and dark suit.

Postcard, publ. Davidson Brothers; print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

mid- to late 1900s
Cabinet card by Dover Street Studios Ltd, half-length, profile to right, wearing wing collar, tie and jacket with satin revers; mounted print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1910
Photographs by Speaight Ltd, three known poses:
(a) whole-length seated, to right, looking down at book held by daughter (?Jean, b. 1905) sitting on his knee.
(b) half-length, profile to left, holding baby daughter Chloe (b. summer 1909) on his knee.
(c) as (b), with Gertrude seated to left of child.

All in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by Frank William Micklethwaite, Toronto, ‘Toronto Press Club Dinner to Mr Forbes-Robertson, Toronto May 3, 1910’, seated at top table among scores of other diners; Toronto Public L., TEC 720/1819 May 03.

Photograph by Walter Mackenzie, Montreal, stamped and dated, head-and-shoulders, turned to front, wearing wing collar; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, inscr. with names of sitters and ‘The last day in the Garden! / August 1910 / Sept.7th William Holman Hunt passed over’, whole-length standing behind chair, wearing straw hat, looking down at William Holman Hunt, with others in garden at Sonning, Berks; Forbes Robertson Archive, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, New York, half-length seated, back view, right hand raised, with four other images reflected in mirrors; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘Autumn 1910 New York’.

c.1910
Postcards, publ. Rotograph Co., New York, half-length, wearing wing collar and tweed-weave jacket, two known poses:
(a) profile to left, hands clasped.
(b) to front, looking to left.

Prints Emory U., Atlanta, GA (no further details).

Photographs by unidentified photographer/s, with Percy Burton, two known poses:
(a) whole-length standing, to front, wearing double-breasted suit, holding overcoat, gloves, bowler hat and stick, Burton standing to left. Repr. Burton 1938, facing p.128.
(b) whole-length, half-reclining on lawn at Maxine Elliott’s house Hartsborne Manor, with Burton reclining to right. Repr. Burton 1938, facing p.129.

Cabinet cards by Turner & Drinkwater, Hull, three known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, to front, hands in pockets, wearing tweed suit, trilby hat on table to left; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) head-and-shoulders, profile to left; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(c) head-and-shoulders, half-profile to left. Postcard, publ. J. Beagles & Co.; print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Bromide print (damaged) by unidentified photographer, inscr. on reverse ‘Forbes-Robertson writing in his study at home in England’, three-quarter-length, to right, seated behind desk looking down, writing or signing letter; NPG x197893.

See NPG Portrait Set ‘Terence Pepper gift: photographs, prints and drawings, 1808–2008’.

1911
Snapshot by unidentified photographer, inscr. ‘Bridge of the Lusitania May 1911 / taken by the 1st officer’, half-length standing on deck of liner, profile to left, wearing naval cap, Gertrude standing to left; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

c.1911
Half-plate negative by Elliott & Fry, head-and-shoulders, turned to front, wearing stiff collar; NPG x82173.

The sitter’s appearance accords with the images by Lizzie Caswall Smith c.1920 (see below); dress similar to that in following image, which may date from the same session.

Photograph by unidentified photographer, half-length seated in high-back basketweave chair, wearing wing collar, large cravat and dark coat, right hand on thigh holding small book; prints colls L. of Congress, LC-US262-103884, where dated c. 1911; and MEPL, London, 10665087.

1913
Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length standing, in group outside Castle Inn, Lulworth, Dorset, with Gertrude and members of film crew preparing for Hamlet. Repr. Dorset Life, Jan. 2012.

Photograph by unidentified photographer, three-quarter-length standing, profile to right, right hand holding medal on ribbon, left holding cane. Repr. Sketch Supplement, 28 Mar. 1913, captioned ‘Paying Farewell to London after Thirty Nine Years’.

1915
Photograph by Langton (no further details), inscr. ‘Government House, Victoria BC / Feb 3 1915’, whole-length standing, with seven others in centre of group outside doorway; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by James & Merrihew, Seattle, signed, inscr. to Frank Lacy and dated May 1915, head-and-shoulders vignette on large sheet, to front; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

before 1916
Cabinet card by Culver Service Photos, New York, whole-length seated, to left, on wide window seat, reading book, legs crossed; NPG x197894.

See NPG Portrait Set ‘Terence Pepper gift: photographs, prints and drawings, 1808–2008’.

1916
Glass negative by Bain News Service, full-length standing, in New York on quayside beside liner, Laura Cowie to left; L. of Congress, LC-DIG-ggbain-20053.

Photograph by Bassano Ltd, head-and-shoulders, half-profile to right, wearing wing collar; NPG x84225.

See NPG Portrait Set ‘Bassano Theatricals’.

1916
Photograph by Walford Graham Robertson, half-length seated, to front, holding hat, with J.M. Barrie and cast on the roof of Wyndham’s Theatre, apparently rehearsing for a performance at the London Coliseum on 9 June 1916; NT, Smallhythe Place, Kent, 1120636. Repr. Cheshire 1989, p.104 (Forbes-Robertson no.25 on key).

See also Alexander, Moore, Terry.

1917
Photograph (or camera still shot) by unidentified photographer, half-length, from back, seated in group of nine RADA council members discussing production of film version of Masks and Faces, directed by Fred Paul and released by Ideal Films Mar. 1917; BFI. The RADA meeting was a re-enactment of an actual meeting, and the re-enactment was screened as a prologue to the film. Repr. Blomfield 2013, p.316.

See also Alexander, S. Bancroft, Hare.

c.1920
Platinotypes by Lizzie Caswall Smith, head-and-shoulders, to front, wearing wing collar and plain tie; NPG x29102.

1924
Photograph by Lewis (no further details), head-and-shoulders, profile to left, wearing wing collar and bow tie with spots; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), annotated ‘1924’.

1925
Photograph by unidentified photographer, three-quarter-length, to right, standing in studio, holding palette; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘1925’.

Photographs by Sasha (Alexander Stewart), signed in red chalk, two known poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders, to left, looking to camera, wearing high stiff collar.
(b) three-quarter-length, profile to right, standing in studio, holding palette, on right a female portrait sitter, her portrait on easel and two young women looking on (?all three his daughters).

Both in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), annotated ‘1925’.

1927
Photograph by Fotopress, whole-length seated, holding rolled umbrella and top hat, looking down to right, with Gertrude and seven other family members, on stage set; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘Clan Matinee’.

A second photo of similar group (ten figures) repr. unidentified newspaper, 17 May 1927, where identified as presentation of Twelfth Night at St James’s Theatre in aid of Sadler’s Wells; clipping, inscr. ‘Clan Matinee’, in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

1928
Photograph by Alfieri Picture Service, whole-length standing on steps, wearing overcoat and top hat, with daughter Diana; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. with sitter’s names and ‘Jan:12 1928’.

Photograph by London News Agency, variant of previous pose; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. with sitters’ names and ‘Jan:12 1928 / (Visitors at Gallery / Lord Iveagh’s Pictures)’.

Photograph by uncredited press photographer, whole-length, walking towards camera, wearing morning suit and grey top hat, wife or daughter to left; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘Leaving Burlington House (Royal Academy) May 1928’.

1929
Photographs by London News Agency, ‘Pictures of Sir Johnston, Chloe and Diana taken at “22” on Sir Johnston’s Birthday January 16th 1929’, four variant poses, whole-length, seated on sofa between daughters; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by London News Agency, whole-length, to front, wearing overcoat and top hat, walking towards camera with daughter Maxine; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘Dadsy and Blossom leaving Burlington House (Dutch Exhibition) Spring 1929’ and ‘ref no.9/3/26’.

issued 1929
Photograph by Herbert Photos, New York, head, close-up, to front wearing wing collar; seen in Rogers Photo Archive 2013. Image is soft-focus and seems to date from 1900s.

1930
Bromide print by Walter Stoneman for NPR, half-length, to left, right hand to cheek; NPG x167172.

See NPG Portrait Set ‘National Photographic Record’.

1931
Photograph by unidentified photographer, wearing court dress, stone steps in background, two known poses:
(a) whole-length, to front.
(b) whole-length, profile to left.

Both in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘2 June 1931’.

1934
Photograph by World Wide Fotos, three-quarter-length, to left, seated in armchair, reading book on music stand to left; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘Dadsy on his 81st birthday’.

1937
Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length, to front, standing on steps of town house, wearing top hat and overcoat; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘Last photo in 1937’. Repr. The Times, 28 Jan. 1978.

undated
Photograph by unidentified photographer, bust-length, profile to left, wearing bow tie and stiff collar; V&A, London, S.143:170-2007.

A considerable number of additional professional portrait photographs, undated and unattributed, are in the Forbes-Robertson Archive, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol, which is in the process of being catalogued (Mar. 2017).

II. IN STAGE CHARACTER (alphabetically by play)back to top

Anne-Mie (as ‘Koenraad Deel’)

Photographs

1880
Photographs by London Stereoscopic & Photographic Co., two known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, to right, embracing actress in front of trellis; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘“Anni Mie” a Dutch play’.
(b) three-quarter-length, to front, right hand to head, leaning against stage tree; V&A, London, S.143:164-2007.

As You Like It (as ‘Orlando’)

Photographs

1885
Photographs by Benjamin Joseph Falk, New York, two known poses:
(a) whole-length standing, to front, right arm across body grasping sword hilt; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) head-and-shoulders, profile to left, wearing feathered cap, jerkin and chain; seen on Cabinet Card Gallery blog Sept. 2016.

One of these images repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913.

Caesar and Cleopatra (as ‘Caesar’)

1907
Watercolour costume design by Percy Anderson, inscr. ‘Caesar’, whole-length standing, profile to left, wearing laurel wreath and imperial robe; Harry Ransom Center, U. of Texas at Austin (no further details). Exh. A Tonic to the Imagination: Costume Designs for Stage and Screen by B.J. Simmons & Co 1889–1959, Harry Ransom Center, U. of Texas at Austin, 1997 (1).

Although strictly a costume design, and presumably drawn before the play was performed, the figure has Robertson’s features. [2]

c.1907
Bronze medallion by R. Tait McKenzie (no further details); NPG, Washington, DC, IAS75002223.

after 1907
Bronze medallion by R. Tait McKenzie, head, profile to right, with laurel wreath, Delaware AM., Wilmington, 35-167; photograph by Haessler, Philadelphia, inscr. with names of sculptor and photographer, Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

exh. 1908
?Medal by Florence A. Goodchild (no further details); untraced. Exh. RA 1908 (1385).

Photographs

1907
Photographs by Lizzie Caswall Smith, five known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, profile to left, wearing laurel wreath and decorated robe. Repr. Forbes Robertson 1925, facing p.244.
(b) head-and-shoulders, to front, wearing cloak and plumed helmet. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd; print Emory U., Atlanta, GA (no further details).
(c) whole-length standing, to front, wearing elaborately patterned cloak and laurel wreath; Garrick Club, Photograph Box D.
(d) three-quarter-length standing, profile to left, wearing elaborately patterned cloak; seen on Google Images 2013.
(e) three-quarter-length standing, to front, wearing laurel wreath and toga, left arm akimbo; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

One of these images repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913.

Photograph by Hall, whole-length standing, profile to left, arm raised towards statue of Sphinx, on whose plinth Gertrude Elliott kneels as Cleopatra; MEPL, London, 10112032.

Photograph by Foulsham & Banfield, whole-length standing, profile to right, wearing full Roman military kit, Cleopatra fixing his chin-strap. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd; print Emory U., Atlanta, GA (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length standing, profile to left, wearing full-length toga, offering head-dress to Cleopatra standing to left. Repr. Pearson 1950, following p.2; and Mander & Mitchenson 1957, pl.399.

Dan’l Druce, Blacksmith (as ‘Geoffrey Wynyard’)

Photographs

1876
Photograph by Elliott & Fry, half-length standing, to front, embracing Marion Terry to right; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, half-length, to front, half-profile to left, wearing wide-brimmed hat; V&A, London, S.143:163-2007.

The Devil’s Disciple (as ‘Dick Dudgeon’)

Photographs

1897
Photograph by Window & Grove, head-and-shoulders, looking to right, wearing Yankee hat; V&A, London, S.143:171-2007.

Diplomacy (as ‘Julian Beauclerk’)
Opened at Prince of Wales’s Theatre 12 Jan. 1878 and revived at Garrick Theatre 1893.

1893
Pen and ink drawing by Aubrey Beardsley, inscr. in ink ‘Mr Forbes / Robertson / (Julian Beauclerc [sic])’ and in pencil ‘…by Tuesday / at 5’, head, to left; V&A, London, E.31-1948. Repr. Pall Mall Budget, 23 Feb. 1893; and Zatlin 2016, no.298, vol.1, p.188.

Ink design by Reginald Cleaver, ‘The Revival of “Diplomacy” at the Garrick Theatre’, inscr. ‘The Woes of Lady Henry Fairfax (Mrs Bancroft)’, three-quarter-length standing, left hand on hip, second from right in back row, in composite with other actors; untraced. Repr. Graphic, 25 Feb. 1893, p.180.

See also M. Bancroft, S. Bancroft, Hare.

Design by unidentified artist, full-page image of eight cast members; untraced. Repr. Graphic, 4 Mar. 1893, p.213, captioned ‘The revival of “Diplomacy” at the Garrick Theatre: a group of the principal actors and actresses’. The portraits are taken from photographic originals, listed on p.211.

See also M. Bancroft, S. Bancroft, Hare.

Photographs

1893
Photograph by Window & Grove, depicting cast at Garrick Theatre, Feb. 1893, standing second from right with eight others; print, 220 x 280mm, reg. for copyright with actors’ names by William Grove 1893 June 6; National Archives (COPY 1/412/518); another print, 143 x 106mm, V&A, London, S.142:215-2007; another print on printed card giving title of play, theatre, date and photographer, David J Holmes Autographs 2012; another print with actors’ signatures, Hare family material. Repr. Bancroft 1939, facing p.88; and Blomfield 2013, p.298.

See also M. Bancroft, S. Bancroft, Hare.

Carte-de-visite by Window & Grove, head-and-shoulders vignette, looking to left, wearing large bow tie; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length, profile to left, right arm outstretched, seated at table with four other figures; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol, RS/081/0063.

1919
Photograph by Foulsham & Banfield, standing centre back in group image of whole cast at Wyndhams Theatre; V&A, THM288 box 4 (no item no.). Repr. Ladies Field, 19 Apr. 1919.

Doctor Faustus (as ‘Dr Faustus’)

1927
Maquette by Charles Leonard Hartwell; untraced. Exh. RA 1927 (1625). Repr. RA Illustrated 1927, p.126.

Bronze statue, inscr. ‘The statuette above represents Sir Johnston Forbes Robertson in the character of Marlowe’s Dr Faustus’, on memorial to Christopher Marlowe, Canterbury. Forbes-Robertson is not known to have played Faustus on the stage.

For the Crown (as ‘Constantine’)
Opened at Lyceum Theatre 27 Feb. 1896.

1896
Chromolithograph by ‘Zeno’, half-length, profile to right, hands on belt, wearing spiked helmet and leopard-skin cape; untraced. Repr. St Paul’s supplement, 28 Nov. 1896; clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Watercolour drawing by Henry Seppings Wright, signed and dated, two poses:
(a) whole-length seated, to front, right hand to head in gesture of despair, Mrs Patrick Campbell standing to right; untraced.
(b) whole-length standing, arms above head; untraced.

Both repr. ILN, 7 Mar. 1896; see Bridgeman Images LIP1605136.

Watercolour drawing by Henry Marriott Paget, initialled, whole-length standing, arms extended in crucifixion pose, Mrs Patrick Campbell standing to right; untraced. Repr. Graphic, 14 Mar. 1896, misidentified as Ian Robertson; see Bridgeman Images LIP1042015.

Photographs

1896
Photographs by W. & D. Downey, three known poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders, profile to right, wearing spiked helmet and leopard skin; prints colls Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (mounted; no further details); and Getty Images 2663393.
(b) three-quarter-length standing, to front, wearing spiked helmet, leopard skin and chainmail; Getty Images 3366825.
(c) three-quarter-length standing, profile to left, wearing spiked helmet, chainmail, sword etc. Postcard, publ. J. Beagles & Co.

One of these images repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913

reg. 1896
Photographs by Thomas Charles Turner, Hull, reg. for copyright 1896 May 8, ten known poses, of which seven solo in variant poses: National Archives (COPY 1/424/729–34, 736); and three with Mrs Patrick Campbell: National Archives (COPY 1/424/735, 737–8). The latter images may include the following prints by unidentified photographer/s:
(a) whole-length standing, profile to left, wearing full-length gown, no helmet, leaning over Campbell kneeling; V&A, London, S.143:149-2007.
(b) whole-length seated, profile to right, wearing helmet, left hand outstretched to Campbell seated on floor. Repr. Mander & Mitchenson 1957, no.373.
(c) whole-length standing, to left, holding Campbell’s hand; Enthoven Coll., M. of London (no further details). Repr. Peters 1984, between pp.150 & 151.

Hamlet (as ‘Hamlet’)
Opened at Lyceum Theatre 11 Sept. 1897.

1897
Drawing by J. Gulick, signed and dated, half-length standing, holding skull; untraced. Repr. Gamble 1902, p.12; [Theatre Royal] 1913; and Forbes-Robertson 1925, frontispiece.

Design by Henry Marriott Paget, initialled, captioned ‘The Entry of Fortinbras in the Final Scene’, whole-length seated, profile to right, on stage with other cast members; untraced. Repr. unidentified periodical, 11 Sept. 1897; clipping in U. of Bristol Theatre Coll., RS/062/0071.

Designs by A.S. Boyd, three poses from different scenes; untraced. Repr. Daily Graphic, 13 Sept. 1897, p.1053, in spread captioned ‘The New Hamlet’.

after 1897
Oil on canvas, 460 x 360mm, attributed to P. Shaken, half-length, profile to right, left hand to heart; V&A, London, S.91-1986. Copied from photograph by W. & D. Downey (see below, ‘In stage character, Hamlet, Photographs, 1897’, pose (b)).

1908–9
Bronze bust, 340 x 240 x 190mm, by Charles James Pibworth, wearing long double chain; Aberdeen AG, 4686. Exh. SPP 1909 (178); RSPP 1913 (880); RA 1914 (2076); RA 1927 (1477); Aberdeen Artists Society 1929; RA 1953 (1172).

Another cast, attributed to Pibworth and sitter’s nephew Frank Forbes-Robertson; untraced; formerly coll. Drury Lane Theatre. Photographs of the clay or plaster versions are in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details); that showing profile view is inscr. ‘To Johnstone [sic] Forbes Robertson Esq / with the sculptor’s kind regards / Charles Pibworth Chelsea 1908’.

1913
Silhouettes by Baron Scotford, cut from black inked paper, two known poses:
(a) signed, dated 11 Sept. 1913 and inscr., whole-length, profile to right, seated on stool, right hand extended holding linked chain; V&A, London, S.1295-2009.
(b) signed lower right, whole-length standing, profile to right; V&A, London, S.1296-2009.

c.1910s–1920s
Oil on canvas, 500 x 400mm, by Thomas Casilear Cole (no further details); untraced, formerly Ulrich M. of Art, Wichita State U., Wichita, KS, 1977.14.7.

c.1931–2
Oil on canvas by Walter Sickert, Sweet Prince, signed and inscr. ‘In grateful and precious memory of a friendship of half a century’, half-length, profile to left, wearing white shirt, black doublet and chain necklace, castle battlements in background; priv. coll. Exh. Beaux Arts G., 1932 (170); and Arts Council of Great Britain 1981–2 (79). Repr. Baron 2006, no.705, p.531.

This portrait is described as ‘a nostalgic recollection’ of Sickert’s own youth in the theatre, and was ‘probably painted from a photograph’ (Baron 2006, p.531). The distinctive linked chain worn by the sitter is seen in several photographs that show him as Romeo (see below, ‘In stage character, Romeo and Juliet, Photographs’), but Hamlet was undoubtedly Sickert’s intention, although the pose is not close to any of Forbes-Robertson in that character.

1932
Bronze statuette by Brenda Putnam, whole-length, seated on throne, leaning back, holding crown on lap; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC. ART Inv. 1051 (realia) (A6d). Photograph by Peter A. Juley & Son; Smithsonian Art M. Archive, J0040065.

undated
Black chalk and white design, 200 x 340mm, for statue/tte by Eric Forbes-Robertson, whole-length, holding skull, on pedestal; V&A, London, E.1972-1966.

Ink design by Fortunino Matania, whole-length, right hand holding sword, descending steps towards group on right; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 2895.

Photographs and film

1897
Cabinet cards by W. & D. Downey, nine known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, to front, right hand on sword hilt; prints colls NPG x36214; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 21804; and Garrick Club, Athole Stewart Album, no.80. See NPG Portrait Set ‘W. & D. Downey cabinet cards, 1872–1902’.

Photogravure by Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent & Co., publ. The Theatre, vol.xxx, 1 Nov. 1897; carbon print NPG Ax28902.

(b) three-quarter-length standing, profile to right, left hand in jacket, right hand holding sword. Colour photogravure, publ. Celebrities of the Stage, 1899, p.13; see MEPL, London, 10088447.

Postcard, monochrome bust-length detail, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd; prints colls NPG x14282; and Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 21806.

(c) half-length, head towards right, left hand holding sword hilt. Postcard, MEPL, London, 10088451 (mis-identified as Othello).
(d) whole-length seated, looking to left, left leg extended, right hand to head; Getty Images 2663081. Repr. Mander & Mitchenson 1957, pl.374.
(e) three-quarter-length seated on upholstered bench, eyes closed, crown resting on lap; prints colls Getty Images 3351988; and V&A, London, S.143:152-2007.
(f) three-quarter-length standing, wearing long fur-trimmed cloak; V&A, London, S.143:153-2007.
(g) whole-length standing, profile to right, looking up at skull held in left hand; prints colls Getty Images 3328552; and V&A, London, S.143:154-2007.
(h) three-quarter-length seated, profile to left, wearing chain necklace. Engr. by ‘G.H.’ repr. Whyte 1898, p.144.
(j) three-quarter-length, profile to left, seated, right hand on chair-arm, left hand on lap. Repr. Whyte 1898, between pp.144–5.

Miniature photograph by unidentified photographer, three-quarter-length standing, profile to right, hands clasped below belt; in undated presentation case, V&A, London, S.601-1997.

Photographs by Lizzie Caswall Smith, seven known poses:
(a) half-length seated, to front, vacant gaze. Photogravure, publ. Virtue & Co.; prints colls NPG x17966; V&A, London, S.1294-2009; and Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 28536.
(b) three-quarter-length standing, profile to left, head bent reading book, left hand on belt. Postcard, publ. J. Beagles & Co.; print Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 21805.
(c) half-length, to front, hands to upper chest, dark cloak or blanket over head. Postcard, publ. J. Beagles & Co.
(d) three-quarter-length standing, to front, looking left, right hand raised, left hand holding sword horizontally to right. Repr. Pearson 1950, facing p.2.
(e) three-quarter-length standing, to front, holding sword hilt at waist, tip pointing up to right; V&A, London, S.143:155-2007. Unattributed images (e) and (f) appear similar in costume and presentation to (a)–(d).
(f) three-quarter-length standing, to front, wearing long fur-trimmed cape, hands clasped holding long sword hilt to right. Repr. unidentified periodical (no further details); clipping, inscr. ‘Feb 1909’, in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(g) half-length, half-profile to right, seated to right in wooden chair with curving arm, left hand to cheek. Repr. on publicity poster for recital at Usher Hall, Edinburgh, 5 Nov. 1897; undated poster Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Another version, cropped and reversed, Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 21808.

Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length standing, looking up, with J.H. Barnes as Polonius. Repr. Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.172, captioned ‘Do you see yonder Cloud? / J.F-R. and J.H. Barnes’

1904
Photographs by Gilbert & Bacon, Philadelphia, three known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length seated, turning to right; mounted print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) three-quarter-length standing, to front, right hand touching skull on low table; mounted print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(c) three-quarter-length standing, holding book; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 21809, signed on mount and dated 2 Feb. 1909.

Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length standing, profile to left, both hands hovering above head of Gertrude Elliott as Ophelia; seen on eBay 2013.

1908
Photograph by unidentified photographer, three-quarter-length, profile to right, seated on wide throne covered in rich fabric, both hands holding crown on lap. Repr. Burton 1938, facing p.97, where image has signature, inscr. and date 1901; dated to 1908 by RSC.

1913
Photographs by Daily Mirror Studios, two shots showing scenes from Drury Lane production (Act 1, scene 2 and Act 5, scene 2); V&A, London, S.1379-2010 and S.6396-2009.

Photograph by unidentified photographer, whole-length seated, arms outstretched, with Horatio and one other, in Act 5, scene 2. Postcard; print Emory U., Atlanta, GA, 167.

Film by Hepworth Manufacturing Co., 97 minutes, directed by Hay Plumb, released 22 Sept. 1913; BFI identifier 31693. For video clips and stills see BFI Screenonline.Two stills repr. Dorset Life, Jan. 2012.

Henry VIII (as ‘The Duke of Buckingham’)

1897
Bronze bust, 330 x 240 x 140mm by Frederick Winter; Aberdeen AG, 4739. Exh. RA 1897 (2082) and 1899 (2032).

Photographs

1892–3
Cabinet cards by Window & Grove; two known poses:
(a) half-length, looking to right, wearing dark cap and gown of velvet and fur; Garrick Club, London, Photograph Box A.

Photogravure, publ. Virtue & Co; prints colls NPG x17964; V&A, London, S.130-2007; and Garrick Club, London, Photograph Box A.
(b) whole-length standing, from back, hands behind back holding sword; mounted print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

One of these images repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913.

King Arthur (as ‘Sir Lancelot’)

1895
Design by Frederick Pegram, whole-length kneeling, profile perdu to right, Ellen Terry on left, Henry Irving on right; untraced. Engr. by Carl Hentschel repr. unidentified publ., captioned ‘“King Arthur” at the Lyceum: Act III’; cutting Garrick Club, London, Fitzgerald Irving scrapbooks, vol.11, p.133.

Design by Henry Marriott Paget, initialled, whole-length kneeling, back to viewer, arms outstretched, facing Henry Irving as Arthur wielding sword, Ellen Terry kneeling as Guinevere, and Lena Ashwell as Elaine lying on bier; untraced. Repr. Graphic, 19 Jan. 1895, p.53, captioned ‘“King Arthur” at the Lyceum’.

Design by Samuel Begg, whole-length kneeling, profile to right, arms raised, with Ellen Terry kneeling and Henry Irving wielding sword; untraced. Repr. Black & White, 19 Jan. 1895, front cover, captioned ‘“King Arthur” at the Lyceum / The King discovers the Guilt of Lancelot and Guinevere’.

Photographs

1895
Photographs by Window & Grove, two known poses:
(a) whole-length standing, to front, wearing armour, raising helmet above head. Repr. unidentified periodical; clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) whole-length standing, arms by side, no helmet; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

One of these images repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913

Lady Bountiful (as ‘Denis Heron’)

Photographs

1891
Photograph by London Stereoscopic and Photographic Co, taken at Garrick Theatre, London, whole-length, profile to right, standing on stage with Kate Rorke as Camilla Brent. Carbon print publ. The Theatre, vol.xvii, 1 June 1891; copy NPG Ax28823; repr. Mander & Mitchenson 1957, pl.359.

1908
Photographs by Foulsham & Banfield, whole-length standing, profile to left, with Gertrude Elliott as Stasia. Postcards, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd, nos 7438A–D.

The Light that Failed (as ‘Dick Heldar’)

1903
Pen and ink caricature, 207 x 152mm, by J. Herbert Beaumont, initialled and inscr., whole-length, profile to left, walking, arms outstretched, wearing shabby grey suit and hat, with large blindfold over face; Garrick Club, London, G0998, with letter from artist dated 17 July 1903.

?1900s
Gouache by unidentified artist, looking at slashed portrait, with chalk version of same composition reversed, inscr. ‘Le Celte’; both untraced. Ref. NPG Archive (NoS).

publ. 1918
Design by William Kerridge Haselden, whole-length seated, turning to front, right hand on hair of kneeling companion; untraced. Repr. Punch, 23 Apr. 1918, in feature marking farewell season.

Photographs

1903
Photographs by Lizzie Caswall Smith, four known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, half-profile to left, hands in pockets. Repr. Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.224.
(b) three-quarter-length seated, to front, wearing jacket and shirt, no tie. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd; print 1903; NPG Ax45841.
(c) half-length standing, half-profile to right, Gertrude Elliott half-length, profile to right, kneeling to left. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd 1903; print NPG Ax45905.
(d) bust-length, to front, scowling. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd; print Women’s L. @LSE/MEPL 10507620.

One of these images repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913.

Photographs by W & D. Downey, five known poses:
(a) whole-length, profile to right, eyes closed, standing with Gertrude Elliott. Repr. Tatler, 4 Mar. 1903, captioned ‘The Love that Triumphed when the Light Failed’.
(b) whole-length standing, to front, wearing bush-jacket, hat on floor, landscape backdrop; Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York PL, image ID TH-13500.
(c) three-quarter-length standing, profile to left, left hand in trouser pocket, right hand holding glass, table with bottle to left; Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York PL, image ID TH-13504.
(d) whole-length standing, profile to right, right arm outstretched to canvas on easel, left hand holding glass, bottle on table to left. Postcard, publ. JB & Co.; loose prints Garrick Club, London.
(e) whole-length standing, to front, Gertrude Elliott kneeling to left. Postcard, publ. J. Beagles & Co.; print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photographs by unidentified photographer, showing full stage set, two known poses:
(a) whole-length standing, attempting to kiss Gertrude Elliott to right. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd, no.3170A; print Emory U., Atlanta, GA (no further details).
(b) whole-length standing, embracing Gertrude Elliott to left. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd.; print National L. of Australia, PIC P828/LIG/9 LOC ALBUM 102420.

Bookmark, three-quarter-length detail, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd; two prints Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by unidentified photographer, half-length, half-profile to right, sightlessly embracing Gertrude Elliott to left. Repr. Pearson 1950, between pp.2–3.

Photographic spread depicting numerous scenes in the production at the New Theatre plus cover image, head-and-shoulders, profile to left. Repr. Play Pictorial, no.9, 1903, pp.327–54. The Play Pictorial sequence includes three images that were independently reproduced:
(a) from p.344: whole-length, seated behind desk, arms outspread; see Getty Images 2663079.
(b) from p.337: whole-length standing, to front, right hand holding toe of sock, other end held by Nina Boucicault, to left, table behind. Postcard; print Garrick Club, London, David Allen Album no.212.
(c) from p.347: whole-length standing, right hand holding wrist of Nina Boucicault standing to left, with dialogue in caption:

DICK – Say that again, is my picture gone? BESSIE – It was turps an’ – an’ the scissors. I – I was awful angry with you; about Mr Torpenhow. DICK – Don’t cry. I want to ask you something. It’s all gone, is it? BESSIE – You couldn’t see that it ’ad ever been a picture! DICK – And – that’s what I showed those men.

Postcard, publ. Raphael Tuck & Sons 1903; print NPG Ax45902.

Lords and Commons (as ‘The Earl of Caryl’)

1883
Design by unidentified artist, whole-length, profile to right, wearing riding outfit, holding whip and striding to right in drawing room; untraced. Repr. as wood engr. Graphic, 22 Dec. 1883, p.612, in double-page spread captioned ‘Plays at Some of the London Theatres’.

See also Brough, Toole, Tree.

Macbeth (as ‘Macbeth’)
Opened at Lyceum Theatre 17 Sept. 1898.

1898
Design by Fred Pegram, whole-length standing, with Mrs Patrick Campbell and others in banquet scene, seeing ghost of Banquo; untraced. Repr. Black & White, 1 Oct. 1898, p.425; print V&A, London, S.2470-2009.

Photographs

1898
Platinotypes by Adolph de Meyer, six known poses:
(a) NPG P217.
(b) half-length, looking to left, right hand to chest, wearing decorated cape and elaborate metalwork crown; V&A, London, S.143:150-2007. Repr. Sketch, 21 Sept. 1898, front cover; copy NPG x193450.
(c) whole-length standing, raising sword above head in right hand; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Repr. Sketch, 28 Sept. 1898, p.439; and [Theatre Royal] 1913.
(d) whole-length standing, looking fearfully over shoulder to left, wearing knee-length tunic and cloak, right hand holding daggers. Repr. Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.184.
(e) variant of (d), looking over shoulder to right. Repr. unidentified periodical; clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(f) whole-length, to front, profile to left, seated on throne, leaning to left, dressed as in (b); Garrick Club, London, PH0255.

Masks and Faces (as ‘Triplet’)

Film

1917
Film by Ideal Films, 91 minutes, directed by Fred Paul, released Mar. 1917; BFI identifier 37373.

The Merchant of Venice (as ‘Shylock’)

Photographs

c.1906–10
Photographs by Lizzie Caswall Smith, five known poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders close-up, right hand to chin; Getty Images 3364917.
(b) whole-length standing, profile to left, with Gertrude Elliott as Portia to left; Getty Images 3330473. Repr. Pearson 1950, between pp.2–3.
(c) head-and-shoulders close-up, profile to right, left hand to forehead; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(d) head-and-shoulders close-up, profile to left, wearing cap, right hand to beard; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(e) whole-length seated, to right, in front of desk; mounted print Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

One of these images repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913.

1913
Photograph by Daily Mirror Studios, three-quarter-length, to left, holding edge of parchment, Gertrude Elliott as Portia to left. Repr. ?Daily Mirror, unknown date, captioned ‘The Jew of Venice’; clipping, inscr. ‘Farewell Season / April 1913’, in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).

Photograph by ?Daily Mirror Studios, whole-length standing, half-profile to left, right hand to beard, wearing large cap, with Portia standing to left holding parchment; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol, RS/081/0062.

Mice and Men (as ‘Mark Embury’)

1902
Pencil drawing, 236 x 313mm, by Eric Forbes-Robertson, showing scene from Act 3 with other actors; V&A, London, E.1028-1966.

Photographs

1902
Photographs by Window & Grove, wearing 18th-century costume, several poses, solo and with wife Gertrude Elliott. Postcards, publ. J. Beagles & Co.

Photographs by unidentified photographer, two known poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders, half-profile to left, wearing frilly jabot. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd; print Garrick Club, London, David Allen Postcard Album no.34.
(b) whole-length, profile to left, hands behind back, Gertrude Elliott in maid’s uniform to left, captioned ‘There’s a pin sticking in my back’. Postcard (no further details); print Garrick Club, London, David Allen Postcard Album no.111.

Much Ado about Nothing (as ‘Claudio’)

Self-portraits

1882–3
Oil on canvas, whole-length standing, in costume, in church interior scene, with other cast members; coll. Players Club, New York. Repr. Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.116.

Engr. publ. Dowdeswell and Dowdeswell; print NT, Smallhythe Place, Kent, 1118264.

See also Irving, Terry.

Photographs

1882
Photograph by London Stereoscopic & Photographic Co., whole-length standing, to front, wearing doublet and hose and cap; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913.

Photograph by Alexander Bassano, half-length, to front, wearing cape on left shoulder, cap off head; V&A, London, S.143:165-2007.

Nelson’s Enchantress (as ‘Captain Horatio Nelson’)
Opened at Avenue Theatre 11 Feb. 1897.

Photographs

1897
Photographs by W. & D. Downey, three-quarter-length standing, profile to left, embracing Mrs Patrick Campbell as Emma Hamilton, two known versions:
(a) Enthoven Coll., M. of London (no further details). Repr. Sketch, 3 Mar. 1897, front page (as halftone); and Peters 1984, between pp.150–51.
(b) Campbell in different pose. Coloured print, publ. 1899; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol, RS/062/0101.

The Notorious Mrs Ebbsmith (as ‘Lucas Cleeve’)
Opened at Garrick Theatre 13 Mar. 1895.

publ. 1895
Pen and ink drawing by Bernard Partridge, initialled, whole-length, profile to right, seated on kitchen range, wearing long checked cape, Mrs Patrick Campbell kneeling to right; untraced. Repr. Punch, 30 Mar. 1895, p.148; proof print V&A, London, S.3769-2013, inscr. ‘“The Notorious Mrs Ebbsmith” (Garrick) / Mr Forbes Robertson Mrs Patrick Campbell / proof for Punch 30 Mar 1895 / Bernard Partridge del’.

Othello (as ‘Othello’)

1902
Brush and ink with white, by Max Cowper, whole-length standing, with Gertrude Elliott as Desdemona in bed; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 35823. Repr. Black & White, 17 Dec. 1902, front cover.

Ink and white drawings by Samuel Begg, on sheet, 380 x 277mm, showing grouped vignettes inscribed with actors’ names depicting scenes from production at Lyric Theatre, London; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 3569. Repr. Graphic, 20 Dec. 1902, p.953.

Ink and white drawing by Thomas Walter Wilson, signed, inscr. on reverse ‘Othello at the Lyric Theatre’, half-length standing, profile to left, behind Gertrude Elliott as Desdemona, other figures around; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 36650. Repr. Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic News, 20 Dec. 1902, p.619, captioned ‘The Council Chamber, Venice’.

Design by Clement Flower, signed and dated, whole-length, to front, Desdemona in bed to left; untraced. Repr. Madame, 20 Dec. 1902, p.727, captioned ‘Othello at the Lyric Theatre’.

Ink and wash drawing by Henry Marriott Paget, initialled, whole-length, to front, right arm outstretched towards Desdemona on bed; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington DC, digital image 36268.

Ink and wash drawing by Charles Buchel, signed and dated, whole-length standing, profile to right, with other male characters; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 35766, where annotated ‘illustration for the Sphere’.

Photographs

1901–2
Photographs by W. & D. Downey, two known poses:
(a) whole-length standing, to front, looking to right, wearing metal breastplate and metal cuisses from hip to knee, right hand on dagger in belt. Repr. Tatler, 2 Oct. 1901, p.26.
(b) whole-length seated, looking to right, wearing long tunic, no armour or turban. Repr. Black & White Budget, 20 Dec. 1902, front cover, captioned ‘Mr Forbes Robertson as “Othello” at the Lyric Theatre’; and [Theatre Royal] 1913.

Photographs by Lizzie Caswall Smith, three known poses:
(a) half-length, profile to left, standing, wearing turban and armour; prints colls Getty Images 2633648, slightly cropped from foot; and V&A, London, S.143:172-2007, head-and-shoulders detail, attributed to W. & D. Downey. Repr. Forbes-Robertson 1925, facing p.220.
(b) three-quarter-length standing, to front, sword across waist; Repr. Sketch, 17 Dec, 1902, front cover.
(c) three-quarter-length standing, to front, right hand on sword hilt; Emory U., Atlanta, GA (no further details).

The Parvenue (as ‘Claude Glynne’)

Photographs

1882
Photograph by W. & D. Downey, whole-length standing, profile to right, wearing jacket and plus-fours, Marion Terry standing to right; V&A, London, S.133:617-2007.

The Passing of the Third Floor Back (as ‘The Stranger’)

Possible self-portrait

1911
Design attributed to Forbes-Robertson, whole-length standing, wearing pin-stripe suit and ulster cape, hands outspread, with signature and date below, large full-body portrait surrounded by smaller sketches of the other characters arranged in pairs or small groups with dialogue balloons and captions, together with signatures of actors lower right (Molly Pearson, Kate Carlyon, Lena Delphine, Mrs Mary Annerley) and lower left (Allen Thomas, David Powell, Montague Rutherfurd, Alexander Cassy, A.G. Poulton.); untraced.

Print, 255 x 355mm, by unidentified artist/engraver; V&A, London, S.996-1982.

Paintings, drawings, sculptures and prints

c.1908
Pencil and body-colour drawings by Eric Forbes-Robertson, showing scenes depicting Johnston in costume (no further details); V&A, London, E.1843-1966, inscr. on reverse ‘The coming of the Stranger’, and E.1844-1966, where play mis-identified as The Stranger by August von Kotzebue. Forbes-Robertson is not known to have acted in Kotzebue’s drama, but his performance as the unnamed lodger in The Passing of the Third Floor Back (1908–13) by Jerome K. Jerome was widely praised.

c.1912–20
Caricatures by Alfred J. Frueh, four known poses:
(a) ink and white drawing, 473 x 270mm; NPG, Washington, DC, S/NPG.93.238.
(b) linocut, 316 x 191mm, publ. Lieber & Lewis; NPG, Washington, DC, S/NPG.93.511.16.
(c) linocut, 316 x 190mm, publ. Lieber & Lewis, no further details; NPG, Washington, DC, S/NPG.84.229.21.
(c) colour linocut, 358 x 255mm, signed in block, half-length, profile to right, hands resting on chairback (or holding hat); L. of Congress, LC-USZC4-7616. Exh. Theatre Caricatures by Al Frueh, Theatre M., London, 1990 (2, ill.). Repr. Frueh c.1922, pl.20.

1917
Miniature by Dorothy Agnes Gibbs; untraced. Exh. RA 1917 (1137); and RSPP 1919 (141).

Photographs and film

1908
Photographs by Foulsham & Banfield, two known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length, to front, wearing ulster cape. Repr. Play Pictorial, 1908 (no further details), captioned ‘The Stranger’; clipping in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) three-quarter-length standing, to front, hands behind back. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd.

Photographs by unidentified photographer, two known poses:

(a) whole-length standing, looking to left, Haidée Wright standing to left, Gertrude Elliott standing to right. Repr. Mander & Mitchenson 1957, pl.425.
(b) whole-length, wearing ulster cape, standing in door opening, looking to Gertrude Elliott wearing parlour-maid costume to left. Repr. Pearson 1950, between pp.2–3.

Platinotypes by Lizzie Caswall Smith, two known poses:
(a) half-length, to front, wearing ulster cape, hands clasped on handle of cane; NPG x29103.
(b) half-length, half-profile to left, wearing ulster cape, hands clasped on handle of cane; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details), inscr. ‘Mr Forbes Robertson as The Stranger in Passing of Third Floor Back’.

1918
Film by First National Pictures, 66 minutes, directed by Herbert Brenon, released May 1918; BFI identifier 253725.

The Profligate (as ‘Dunstan Renshaw’)

Photographs

1889
Photograph by Herbert Rose Barraud, three-quarter-length vignette standing, hands behind back, Kate Rorke to left; prints colls NPG x197306; and V&A, London, S.139:600-2007.

See NPG Portrait Set ‘Terence Pepper gift: photographs, prints and drawings, 1808–2008’.

Another image, perhaps also by Barraud, three-quarter-length seated, looking to right, Kate Rorke standing to right; V&A, London, S.139:611-2007. Repr. Duncan 1964, pl.19d.

Romeo and Juliet (as ‘Romeo’)
Lyceum Theatre production opened 21 Sept. 1895.

1881
Pen and ink drawing by Matt Stretch, signed and dated Apr. 1881, whole-length standing, profile to left, wearing renaissance costume and curly wig, about to draw sword; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 36529. Costume accords with photographs by J.P. Mayall (see below, ‘Photographs, 1881’).

Engraving by unidentified artist, possibly Matt Stretch, bust-length, profile to left, wearing skull-cap over curly wig, looking down at right hand holding small bottle; V&A, London, S.784-2013, captioned ‘Mr Forbes-Robertson / as “Romeo”’.

c.1895
Pen and ink drawing, 300 x 200mm, by Fred Pegram, inscr. lower left, whole-length standing arms outstretched, profile perdu to left, with Mrs Patrick Campbell as Juliet on balcony; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 34807.

Ink sketch by Fred Pegram, whole-length, profile to right, standing leaning over seated Mercutio to centre; Folger Shakespeare L., Washington DC, digital image 1253.

Pencil drawing, 194 x 313mm, by Eric Forbes-Robertson, half-length; V&A, London, E.2093-1966.

Photographs

1881
Photographs attributed to J.P. Mayall, wearing curly-hair wig and skullcap, four known poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders vignette, profile to left; V&A, London, S.143:157-2007.
(b) whole-length vignette, standing, profile to left, wearing striped hose, holding rapier in right hand; V&A, London, S.143:156-2007.
(c) half-length, half-profile to left, leaning against balustrade, right hand to heart; V&A, London, S.143:159-2007.
(d) head-and-shoulders, to front, apparently without cap. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co. Ltd.

reg. 1895
Carbon prints by William Edward Downey, seven poses reg. for copyright 1895 Nov. 4, with Mrs Patrick Campbell as Juliet lying on bier, including:
(a) half-length profile to left, leaning forward, right hand extended slightly above Juliet’s head. Carbon print publ. The Theatre, n.s.4, vol.xxvii, 1 Jan. 1896; prints colls NPG Ax28882 (credited to W. & D. Downey); Garrick Club, London, Athole Stewart album, no.81 and Photograph box C; and Folger Shakespeare L., Washington, DC, digital image 21803. Repr. Whyte 1898, between pp.172 & 173; Pearson 1950, between pp.2–3; and Peters 1984, between pp.150–51.
(b) variant pose, right hand slightly higher than (a), head slightly lower; V&A, London, S.143:181-2007.
(c) variant image showing Juliet whole-length recumbent, Romeo’s right arm resting on her pillow; prints colls Getty Images 3301502; and Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division, New York PL, image ID 99838, cropped to show Juliet three-quarter-length.
(d) variant image, Juliet whole-length, Romeo standing further right than (c), right arm extended above her head, flower swags on bier: National Archives (COPY 1/422/321). Repr. Whyte 1898, between pp.172–3; and Mander & Mitchenson 1957, pl.372.
(e) whole-length recumbent, Forbes-Robertson crouched low, right hand not visible: National Archives (COPY 1/422/318).

Print by A. Marion & Co. after Downey, with added candle at left; V&A, London, S.2329-2009. Repr. Dent 1961, facing p.113 (detail).

Bromide prints by Hayman Seleg Mendelssohn, two known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length standing, profile to right, holding glove in left hand. Photogravure, publ. Virtue & Co.; NPG x17965. Repr. Sketch, 16 Oct. 1895, p.633.
(b) bust-length, profile to right, looking up. Postcard, publ. Rotary Photographic Co.; NPG x14283.

Photographs by unidentified photographer, three-quarter-length, wearing brocade doublet, gauntlets, chain necklace and pale-coloured stole, three known poses:
(a) three-quarter-length, left hand resting on balustrade, stole looped over right arm; V&A, London, S.143:148-2007.
(b) three-quarter-length, stole over left shoulder, left hand on dagger. Photogravure; Getty Images 113633169.
(c) bust-length vignette, looking up to right. Postcard; print Garrick Club, London, Dorothy Burr Album no.50.

The Sacrament of Judas (as ‘Jacques Bernez’)

Photographs

1901
Photograph by Alfred Ellis & Walery, whole-length standing, turning towards camera, wearing historical costume. Repr. [Players] 1903; see MEPL, London, 10088445 (coloured print).

Photograph by Daily Mirror Studios, half-length, to front, leaning forward; Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Repr. Play Pictorial, no.129, 1913, p.117.

Photographs by Reginald Fellowes Wilson, reg. for copyright 1901 Aug. 30, two known poses:
(a) head-and-shoulders, half-profile to left, wearing cape with doffed hood: National Archives (COPY 1/452/303). Repr. unidentified periodical; clipping, inscr. ‘1901’, in Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details).
(b) whole-length standing, arms folded, wearing large theatrical hat: National Archives (COPY 1/452/302).

Twelfth Night (as ‘The Priest’)

Photographs

1927
Photograph by Daily Sketch, ‘Clan Matinee: Sir Johnstone Forbes-Robertson presents himself, his Family, Relations and Friends in “Twelfth Night”’, whole-length seated, with 11 other actors in a charity performance at St James’s Theatre, 17 May 1927. Repr. Daily Sketch, 18 May 1927.

A Winter’s Tale (as ‘Leontes’)

1887
Design by Percy Tarrant, ‘The Court Scene in A Winter’s Tale’, half-length seated on throne, profile to right; untraced. Engr. by J.M. Johnstone repr. MA, vol.11, 1888, p.336, captioned ‘Drawn from the scene of Walter Hann by Percy Tarrant, engraved by J.M. Johnstone’.

Photographs

1887
Photographs by Henry Herschel Hay Cameron, three known poses:
(a) whole-length standing, to right, looking to camera, wearing spiked crown, necklaces and dark, toga-like robe.

Engr. by R. Taylor after Cameron; loose print Harvard Theatre Coll., Houghton L., Harvard U (no further details). Ref. Hall 1930–34, vol.2, p.50; repr. MA, vol.11, 1888, p.334, captioned ‘As Leontes in “The Winter’s Tale” [sic] in the dress designed by himself. From a photograph for the Magazine of Art by H.H. Cameron’.

(b) attributed to Cameron & Smith, bust-length, profile to left, eyes closed. Photogravure; prints colls V&A, London, S.519-2010; Harvard Theatre Coll., Houghton L., Harvard U., attributed to Swan Electric Engraving Co.; and Mander & Mitchenson Coll., U. of Bristol (no further details). Ref. Hall 1930–34, vol.2, p.50.
(c) attributed to Cameron Studio, half-length to front, right arm bare from shoulder across waist, wearing hooded garment; U. of Illinois L., F695j-08. Repr. [Theatre Royal] 1913.

Various roles

Photographs

publ. 1913
Twenty-eight photographs in various roles, repr. Play Pictorial, no.129, souvenir issue marking ‘Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson’s Farewell to the Stage’, 1913.

Unidentified part or play

1884
Drawing by Edwin Austin Abbey, head, in illustration to unidentified Shakespeare play for Harper’s Magazine; untraced. Ref. Forbes-Robertson 1925, p.140, where he records sitting to Abbey ‘for a head in a black and white illustration’.

1927
Etching by Joseph Simpson, half-length, as ‘The Mummer’; untraced. Exh. Jeremy Cooper, 1980 (51, ill. on cat. cover).


Footnotes

1) Information via email from B. Largent to NPG 2006 (NoS).
2) A second design, inscr. ‘Caesar Act II’ and also indexed as Forbes-Robertson playing Caesar, is in fact a costume design for Mark Antony in the same production at the Savoy Theatre.


Dr Jan Marsh