Robert Dighton - D9306
'Derby & Joan or the platonic lovers, a farce' (Elizabeth, Countess of Derby; Edward Smith Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby)
by and published by Robert Dighton
published 6 November 1795
NPG D9306
Portraits in Profile: the Dighton Family
Robert Dighton
1751-1814
NPG D9306
Edward, 12th Earl of Derby
, 1752-1834
and
Elizabeth Farren, the future Countess of Derby
, 1759?-1829
Published 1795
Elizabeth Farren was one of the great comic actresses of the
age. Her liaison with the Earl of Derby, begun by 1785, was the
subject of many satires. The Earl's wife, Elizabeth Hamilton,
died in March 1797; in May of the same year he and Elizabeth
Farren were married and she retired from the stage.
The play bill reads 'Much ado about Nothing / Maid of the Oaks', referring to a play entitled 'Maid of Oaks' written by John Burgoyne (1722-1792) for Lord Derby's first marriage in 1774. The Oaks, Surrey was the family seat.
