Mary Ann Costello (1747 – 10 March 1827) was an Irish

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

. Her son was the British prime minister

George Canning George Canning (11 April 17708 August 1827) was a British Tory statesman. He held various senior cabinet positions under numerous prime ministers, including two important terms as Foreign Secretary, finally becoming Prime Minister of the Unit ...

Life

Mary Ann Costello was born in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in 1747. Her father was a Connacht squire, Jordan Costello. She appears to have been orphaned at a young age, and was raised in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

by her maternal grandfather Col. Guydickens. She was lauded for her beauty, marrying

in 1768 as a love match. Early 1769 Costello gave birth to a daughter, Letitia, who died a few months later. On 22 April 1770, she had the couple's second child,

. By 1771, Costello was widowed and was pregnant again, with no financial support. Her third child, a son Thomas, also died in infancy. To support her young son she became an actress, debuting in ''Jane Shore'' at

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 ...

in November 1773. It was not a success, and Costello had to instead work in more provincial theatre in the west and north of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. She then began a six-year relationship with

Samuel Reddish Samuel Reddish (1735–1785) was a theatre manager and an actor in England. He made a reputation with Mossop's company in Smock Alley, Dublin in the seasons of 1761-2 and appeared at Drury Lane, London, 1767, where he remained during ten seasons ...

, having five children with him, including two sets of twins. She referred to herself as Mrs Reddish, but there is no evidence of their marriage. Her eldest son, George, was removed from her care and went to live with his uncle Stratford Canning. She did not see him for eight years. Costello married again in February 1783, to a silk mercer from

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

, Richard Hunn. The couple had five children, including another two sets of twins. Her acting career continued to attract ire, with a 12-year-old Canning being told she was unfit for respectable society. He continuously looked for ways to save his mother from poverty. In June 1791 he sent her 100 guineas, warning her that her acting could damage his future political career. Costello's marriage to Hunn ended in the 1790s, and she retired from acting. By this time Canning was an MP, and his half-brothers all clamoured for his help. Costello attempted to make money with an eye ointment, ''Collysium'', but it was a failure. She also wrote a novel, ''The Offspring of Fancy.'' Costello was kept at a distance from Canning while his career developed. She received an annual pension of £500 in 1803, and was able to live in greater comfort for the rest of her life. She was finally able to meet Canning's wife and children in 1804, four years after the couple had married. During the height of his career in the 1820s, Costello's past was used against Canning, with claims that her career and private life rendered him unsuitable for high political office. The whig, Lord Grey, declared that being the son of an actress disqualified Canning from serving as the British Prime Minister. A few months before Canning became Prime Minister, Costello died at

Henrietta Street, Bath Henrietta Street in the Bathwick area of Bath, Somerset, England was built around 1785 by Thomas Baldwin. Numbers 1 to 35 were built together in a terrace with a consistent style of 3 storey houses. They complement the surrounding Georgian buil ...

on 10 March 1827.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Costello, Mary Ann 1747 births 1827 deaths 18th-century Irish actresses 19th-century Irish actresses Irish emigrants to Kingdom of Great Britain Parents of prime ministers of the United Kingdom Canning family (political)