Florence Eliza Collingbourne (January 1880 – 8 July 1946) was a British actress, singer and stage beauty known for her appearances in

Edwardian musical comedies Edwardian musical comedy was a form of British musical theatre that extended beyond the reign of King Edward VII in both directions, beginning in the early 1890s, when the Gilbert and Sullivan operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of the A ...

. One of

George Edwardes George Joseph Edwardes (né Edwards; 8 October 1855 – 4 October 1915) was an English theatre manager and producer of Irish ancestry who brought a new era in musical theatre to the British stage and beyond. Edwardes started out in theatre ma ...

Gaiety Girls Gaiety Girls were the chorus girls in Edwardian musical comedies, beginning in the 1890s at the Gaiety Theatre, London, in the shows produced by George Edwardes. The popularity of this genre of musical theatre depended, in part, on the beautifu ...

, she took over the title role in ''

San Toy ''San Toy, or The Emperor's Own'' is a "Chinese" musical comedy in two acts, first performed at Daly's Theatre, London, on 21 October 1899, and ran for 768 performances (edging out the same composer's '' The Geisha'' as the second longest run f ...

''Wearing (1890s), p. 427 and originated the role of Nancy Staunton in ''

The Toreador ''The Toreador'' is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts by James T. Tanner and Harry Nicholls, with lyrics by Adrian Ross and Percy Greenbank and music by Ivan Caryll and Lionel Monckton. It opened at the Gaiety Theatre in London, mana ...

''.

Life and career

Collingbourne was born in

Camberwell Camberwell () is a district of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles and a common of which Goose Green is a remnant. This e ...

in London in 1880, the daughter of Maria Eleanor ''née'' Witham (1858–1888) and Henry Ashdown Collingbourne (1859-), a printer's labourer. Her mother died when she was 8 years old, following which she was raised by her aunt and uncle.Brief biography of Florence Collingbourne
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National Portrait Gallery, London The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...

She was living alone in Camberwell in 1901. Her stage appearances include a series of

produced by

, such as ''

A Greek Slave ''A Greek Slave'' is a musical comedy in two acts, first performed on 8 June 1898 at Daly's Theatre in London, produced by George Edwardes and ran for 349 performances. The score was composed by Sidney Jones with additional songs by Lionel Monckto ...

'' at

Daly's Theatre Daly's Theatre was a theatre in the City of Westminster. It was located at 2 Cranbourn Street, just off Leicester Square. It opened on 27 June 1893, and was demolished in 1937. The theatre was built for and named after the American impresar ...

(1898) and Gladys Stourton in ''

A Gaiety Girl ''A Gaiety Girl'' is an English Edwardian musical comedy, musical comedy in two acts by a team of musical comedy neophytes: Owen Hall (book, on an outline by James T. Tanner), Harry Greenbank (lyrics) and Sidney Jones (composer), Sidney Jones (mu ...

'' at the Gaiety Theatre (1899). 'Miss Florence Collingbourne in ''A Gaiety Girl'' (1899) - ''

The Sketch ''The Sketch'' was a British illustrated weekly journal. It ran for 2,989 issues between 1 February 1893 and 17 June 1959. It was published by the Illustrated London News Company and was primarily a society magazine with regular features on roy ...

'', 9 August 1899, p. 115 She originated the small role of Yung Shi (and later took over the title role) in ''

'' at Daly's (1899–1900), Girl in ''The Wicked Uncle'' at the Gaiety (1900) and Nancy Staunton in ''

'' at the Gaiety (1901–1902).Thomas S. Hischak
''The Mikado to Matilda: British Musicals on the New York Stage''
Rowman & Littlefield (2020) - Google Books p. 276 She left the production to marry Laurence Margetson (1874–1928), a hosiery manufacturer, with whom she had three children: William Laurence Margetson (1902–1992); Colleen Mary Margetson (1908–1995), and the novelist and writer Stella Margetson (1912–1992). After her marriage she retired from acting. In 1906 she briefly came out of retirement to appear in a farewell benefit for

Emily Soldene Emily Soldene (30 September 1838 – 8 April 1912) was an English singer, actress, director, theatre manager, novelist and journalist of the late Victorian era and the Edwardian period. She was one of the most famous singers of comic opera in t ...

at the

Palace Theatre, London The Palace Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster in London. Its red-brick facade dominates the west side of Cambridge Circus behind a small plaza near the intersection of Shaftesbury Avenue and Charing Cross Road. The Palace ...

with

Seymour Hicks Sir Edward Seymour Hicks (30 January 1871 – 6 April 1949), better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, actor-manager and producer. He became known, early in his career, for writing, starring in and p ...

and

Rutland Barrington Rutland Barrington (15 January 1853 – 31 May 1922) was an English singer, actor, comedian and Edwardian musical comedy star. Best remembered for originating the lyric baritone roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas from 1877 to 1896, his p ...

among others where she sang 'L'Ete' by Madame Chaminade.Programme for 'The Emily Soldene Farewell Matinee' at the Palace Theatre, London, 13 November 1906 In her later years she lived at The Holdynge, Aldwick Avenue in

Bognor Regis Bognor Regis (), sometimes simply known as Bognor (), is a town and seaside resort in West Sussex on the south coast of England, south-west of London, west of Brighton, south-east of Chichester and east of Portsmouth. Other nearby towns ...

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

. Collingbourne died aged 66 at the District Hospital in

Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England, about south of London. It is in Mole Valley District and the council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs roughly east–west, parallel to the Pipp Br ...

in Surrey in 1946. In her will she left £27,306 7s 9d to her children.England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995 for Florence Margetson: 1946
- Ancestry.com

References

Sources

* Wearing, J. P. ''The London Stage 1890–1899: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel'', Rowman & Littlefield (2013) *Wearing, J. P. ''The London Stage 1900–1909: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel'', Rowman & Littlefield (2014)

External links

Photographic portraits of Florence Collingbourne
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Collingbourne, Florence 1880 births 1946 deaths People from Camberwell British actresses English stage actresses English women singers