Peggy Pryde (born 19 July 1867 (baptised as Letitia Matilda on 14 May 1876 in Lambeth, London, England) – 17 May 1943 in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia) was a British

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...

performer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She appeared in the early

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

talking film A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed befor ...

'' Fellers'' in 1930.

Biography

Pryde was one of three children born to the popular

artiste Jenny Hill and John Wilson Woodley (died 8 January 1890), an acrobat who used the

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Jean Pasta and who later abandoned his wife and young family. Her first professional appearance was at the Mechanics' Music Hall in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

in 1877. The same year she went to

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

and played the General in a stage version of '' Gulliver’s Travels'' at the Theatre Royal. She made her London music hall debut at

Gatti Gatti is an Italian name. Notable people with the surname include: *Alessandra Mirka Gatti, Italian Eurobeat singer * Annibale Gatti, Italian 19th-century fresco painter *Armand Gatti (1924–2017), French playwright *Arturo Gatti, Italian-Canadia ...

's "Gatti's-in-the-Road" on

Westminster Bridge Road Westminster Bridge Road is a road in London, England. It runs on an east–west axis and passes through the boroughs of Lambeth and Southwark. Between 1740 and 1746, the Commissioners of Westminster Bridge bought land from the Archbishop of ...

. From 1878 to 1879 she appeared with

Wilson Barrett Wilson Barrett (born William Henry Barrett; 18 February 1846 – 22 July 1904) was an English manager, actor, and playwright. With his company, Barrett is credited with attracting the largest crowds of English theatregoers ever because of his suc ...

at the Grand Theatre in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. The next two years were spent at the Theatre Royal in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. Pryde appeared in all the leading halls in London and throughout Britain. She was also a favourite in

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

, appearing at venues throughout Britain for some years. In December 1896 she appeared in a revival of the

Edwardian musical comedy 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 ...

The Gay Parisienne ''The Gay Parisienne'' is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts with a libretto by George Dance (dramatist), George Dance. It premiered at the Opera House in Northampton, England, in October 1894, with music by Ernest Rousden.Adams, William Dav ...

'' with W.H. Denny and

Ada Reeve Ada Reeve (born Adelaide Mary Reeves, 3 March 1874 – 5 October 1966) was an English actress of both stage and film. Reeve began to perform in pantomime and music hall as a child. She gained fame in Edwardian musical comedies in the 1890s. R ...

at the

Duke of York's Theatre The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster, London. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre until her death in 1935. Designed by th ...

.''The Referee'' - Sydney, Australia - 18 May 1898 From 1890 to 1892 she toured the United States:

''"Peggy Pryde would probably not have become famous in the variety "perfesh" if she had not been the daughter of that veteran and high priced music hall singer, Jennie Hill. Miss Pryde is pert, vivacious, sprightly and piquant. Her forte is serio-comic business, and she has made a great success of it. She is English, and while she was in New York Jennie Hill, "The Vital Spark," objected to her having her billed as her daughter, but Miss Pryde has now reached that point where she does not require anybody's reflected glory. She is earning money very fast, and is saving it too."''

She married Maurice De Frece, a well-known theatrical agent. In May 1898 Pryde made her

n debut for

Harry Rickards Harry Rickards (4 December 1843 – 13 October 1911), born Henry Benjamin Leete, was an English-born baritone, comedian and theatre owner, most active in vaudeville and stage, first in his native England and then Australia after emigrating in 1 ...

, touring for six months, which required her to delay other engagements: "My Australian and South African engagements having already been made of course I was unable to accept. My season in Africa was a big success and I was re engaged for an extra month the first time I believe such a compliment had been paid to any artist. Indeed at the present time I should be appearing at Syndicate Halls, but they kindly postponed to allow me to play this engagement here." In 1901 she appeared at the Mile End Empire on the same bill as

Dan Leno George Wild Galvin (20 December 1860 – 31 October 1904), better known by the stage name Dan Leno, was a leading English music hall comedian and musical theatre actor during the late Victorian era. He was best known, aside from his music hall ...

and

Fred Terry Fred Terry (9 November 1863 – 17 April 1933) was an English actor and theatrical manager. After establishing his reputation in London and in the provinces for a decade, he joined the company of Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree where he remained for f ...

. In October 1905 she appeared at Hurtig & Seamon's New (Burlesque) Theater in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. She moved permanently to

with her second husband George Pearson in 1911. She appeared in a number of venues in Australia into the early 1930s. Pryde appeared in various Australian films, including the 1925 film ''

Painted Daughters ''Painted Daughters'' is a 1925 Australian silent film directed F. Stuart-Whyte. Only part of it survives today. Plot Mary Elliott and Courtland Nixon are dancing partners in a stage show called ''Florodora''. Mary leaves Courtland and marries ...

''. She appeared in Australia's first

'' Fellers'' (1930) and also in ''

Showgirl's Luck ''Showgirl's Luck'' is a 1931 Australian musical film, musical directed by Norman Dawn. It was the first Australian full talking film.Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, ''Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production'', Melbourne: Oxf ...

'' (1931), and ''

Two Minutes Silence ''Two Minutes Silence'' is a 1933 Australian melodrama set during World War I based on Les Haylen's anti-war play. It was the fourth and last feature film by the Sydney-based McDonagh sisters, Paulette, Isobel and Phyllis, who called it "by far ...

'' (1933).Pryde
on the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

She died on 17 May 1943 in a private hospital in

and was survived by her husband and her son, Tony.

Select filmography

*''

'' (1925) *'' Fellers'' (1930) *''

'' (1931) *''

'' (1933)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pryde, Peggy 1869 births 1943 deaths Music hall performers English stage actresses English film actresses Australian film actresses Actresses from London English emigrants to Australia 19th-century English actresses 20th-century English actresses 20th-century Australian actresses