Henry Gattie (1774–1844) was a British actor and singer.

Early life

Gattie, was born near

Bath, Somerset Bath () is a city in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary area in the county of Somerset, England, known for and named after its Roman-built baths. At the 2021 Census, the population was 101,557. Bath is in the valley of the River Avon, ...

in 1774, and brought up to the trade of a wig-maker.

Career

Very early in life he acquired a liking for the theatre. At the age of nineteen he had become well known at some musical associations. His first appearances on the stage were in vocal characters, such as Frederick in ''No Song No Supper'', Valentine in ''The Farmer'', and Captain Macheath. On 7 November 1807 he came out at the Bath Theatre as Trot in Morton's comedy ''Town and Country'', and was next seen as Paul in ''Paul and Virginia'', but he soon settled down into playing as a general rule men, Frenchmen, and Irishmen. Having been introduced by W. Lovegrove, the comedian, to

Samuel James Arnold Samuel James Arnold (1774–1852) was an English dramatist and theatrical manager. Under his management the Lyceum Theatre, London became the English Opera House, and staged the first English productions of many operas, including in 1824 Carl M ...

, the proprietor of the Lyceum Theatre, Gattie made his first appearance in London on 14 July 1813, in a new comic opera entitled '' M.P., or the Blue Stocking'', in which he took the character of La Fosse,''Morning Post'', 15 July 1813, p. 3 and afterwards played Sir Harry Sycamore and other men characters and footmen's parts. From this house he migrated to the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dr ...

, where he was first seen, 6 October 1813, as Vortex in ''A Cure for the Heartache''. He remained at Drury Lane until his retirement in 1833, filling up his summer vacations at the

Haymarket Theatre The Theatre Royal Haymarket (also known as Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is a West End theatre on Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use. Samuel Foote ...

, the Lyceum and other houses. At Drury Lane, where he was in the receipt of seven pounds a week, he was frequently the substitute for

Joseph Shepherd Munden Joseph Shepherd Munden (1758 – 6 February 1832) was an English actor. He had a long provincial experience as actor and manager. His first London appearance was in 1790 at Covent Garden, where he mostly remained until 1811, becoming a lea ...

William Dowton William Dowton (1764–1851) was a British actor. Early life Dowton, the son of an innkeeper and grocer at Exeter, was born in that city on 25 April 1764. At an early age he worked with a marble cutter, but in 1780 was articled to an archite ...

Daniel Terry Daniel Terry (1780?–1829) was an English actor and playwright, known also as a close associate of Sir Walter Scott. Life He was born in Bath about 1780, and was educated at the Bath grammar school and subsequently at a private school at Wingf ...

and

Charles Mathews Charles Mathews (28 June 1776, London – 28 June 1835, Devonport) was an English theatre manager and comic actor, well known during his time for his gift of impersonation and skill at table entertainment. His play ''At Home'', in which he pla ...

, to none of whom, however, was he equal in talent. On 21 August 1815 he took the part of the justice of the village in ''The Maid and the Magpie'' at the Lyceum Theatre. His most celebrated and best-known impersonation was Monsieur Morbleu in

William Thomas Moncrieff William Thomas Moncrieff (24 August 1794 – 3 December 1857) commonly referred as W.T. Moncrieff was an English dramatist and author. Biography He was born in London, the son of a Strand tradesman named Thomas. The name Moncrieff he assumed for ...

's farce of ''Monsieur Tonson'', which was first played at Drury Lane on 20 September 1821. His acting in this piece was much commended by

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

, who had commanded its performance on the occasion of a royal bespeak soon after its first production. Another of his characters was Dr. Caius in ''

The Merry Wives of Windsor ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...

''.

Post career

After a career of twenty-six years as an actor he retired from the stage in 1833, and opened a cigar-shop at

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, which became the resort of many of the collegians, by whom his dry humour was much appreciated. He was married, but had no family. His death took place at

Reading, Berkshire Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, Southeast England, southeast England. Located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the rivers River Thames, Thames and River Kennet, Kennet, the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 mot ...

17 November 1844, in the seventieth year of his age.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gattie, Henry 1774 births 1844 deaths English male stage actors English male singers 19th-century English male actors