William O'Brien (c.1740–1815) was an Irish actor and playwright.

Career

William O'Brien was probably born in

County Clare County Clare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern part of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council ...

in about 1740 to a family which claimed a distant connection to the Viscounts Clare. His father was a

fencing Fencing is a combat sport that features sword fighting. It consists of three primary disciplines: Foil (fencing), foil, épée, and Sabre (fencing), sabre (also spelled ''saber''), each with its own blade and set of rules. Most competitive fe ...

master in Dublin.

David Garrick David Garrick (19 February 1716 – 20 January 1779) was an English actor, playwright, Actor-manager, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of European theatrical practice throughout the 18th century, and was a pupil a ...

brought O'Brien over to London from Dublin in 1758 to join his actor's company at

Drury Lane Drury Lane is a street on the boundary between the Covent Garden and Holborn areas of London, running between Aldwych and High Holborn. The northern part is in the borough of London Borough of Camden, Camden and the southern part in the City o ...

. O'Brien was successful in a number of roles, particularly Shakespeare and contemporary comedies. He eloped with Lady Susannah "Susan" Fox-Strangways, eldest daughter of

Stephen Fox Sir Stephen Fox (27 March 1627 – 28 October 1716) of Farley in Wiltshire, of Redlynch Park in Somerset, of Chiswick, Middlesex and of Whitehall, was a royal administrator and courtier to King Charles II, and a politician, who rose from h ...

, the first

Earl of Ilchester Earl of Ilchester is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1756 for Stephen Fox, 1st Baron Ilchester, who had previously represented Shaftesbury in Parliament. He had already been created Baron Ilchester, of Ilchester in t ...

, whom he had met when they both performed in amateur theatricals at

Holland House Holland House, originally known as Cope Castle, was an early Jacobean architecture, Jacobean country house in Kensington, London, situated in a country estate that is now Holland Park. It was built in 1605 by the diplomat Sir Walter Cope. The b ...

. Their marriage, which took place on 7 April 1764 at St. Paul's, Covent Garden, was disapproved of by Lady Susan's family. Following the marriage, O'Brien retired from the stage. The couple were forced for a time to travel to North America, because of the social scandal caused by their elopement. They set sail for New York in September 1764. Although neither husband nor wife were happy there, they travelled widely, sailing up the Hudson, travelling west to Niagara Falls, and then north to Quebec where O'Brien briefly served as a barrack master. In 1768, he was gazetted Secretary and Provost-Master-General of the Bermudas. On their return to England in 1770, the O'Briens lived for a time in London where O'Brien entered a brief but unsuccessful career as a playwright. He was the author of two plays, ''Cross-Purposes'' (1772) and ''The Duel'' (1773). The diarist

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 ( N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of the English writer Samuel Johnson, '' Life of Samuel ...

described O'Brien as "a lively little fellow, but priggish" and "quite the fine man about town". Lady Susan Fox-Strangways

The O'Briens later moved to live at a Strangways family property, Stinsford House, in

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

. The couple had no children. O'Brien served as Receiver-General of Dorset until shortly before his death in 1815. O'Brien and Lady Susan were buried together at the church of St Michael's at

Stinsford Stinsford is a village and civil parish in southwest Dorset, England, about east of Dorchester. The parish includes the settlements of Higher and Lower Bockhampton. The name Stinsford may derive from , Old English for a limited area of pasture ...

In popular culture

Nicholas Irons portrayed O'Brien in the 1999 TV miniseries ''

Aristocrats Aristocracy (; ) is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. Across Europe, the aristocracy exercised immense economic, political, and social influence. In Western Christian co ...

''.

Bibliography

*
Cross purposes: a farce of two acts, as it is performed at the Theatre-Royal in Covent-Garden
' (1772). *
The Duel
' (1773).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:OBrien, William 1740s births 18th-century Irish male actors Irish male stage actors 1815 deaths Irish emigrants to Kingdom of Great Britain Actors from County Clare