Special Collections

Sold between 27 July & 24 February 2022

5 parts

.

The Sir David Kirch Collection of Skit Notes

Sir David Kirch

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Lot

№ 52

.

27 July 2023

Hammer Price:
£60

Bank of Dundreary, a Scottish advertising note in the style of a Bank of England £5 for the play Brother Sam at the Princes Theatre, Glasgow, 1 April 1863, serial number 2840, signature of Mrs Edmund Glover, with a vignette showing the character Lord Dundreary in place of Britannia at top left, laid down on paper, very good, rare
Outing unlisted £70-£90

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Sir David Kirch Collection of Skit Notes.

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The ‘bank’ name comes from the most popular character of the play ‘Brother Sam’. Lord Dundreary was a caricature of an English aristocrat, and was a national phenomenon for several years, even coining phrases such as ‘Dundrearyisms’, and his distinctive whiskers became known as "Dundrearies". The original production in London in 1861 ran for 400 consecutive performances.
The Princes Theatre Royal was amongst the largest and most successful in Victorian Glasgow. Built in 1849, it was run by Mr Edmund Glover until his death in 1860, whereupon his wife took over, selling it in 1863. This note details what may have been one of the final performances there.