A History Of Liverpool Thespians - Charles Wyndham

Charles Wyndham was born Charles Culverwell in Liverpool on the 23rd of March 1837, the second son of Major Richard Culverwell and his wife, Mary Ann. He had one brother, who did not survive childhood, and three sisters. Initially he seemed destined to follow his father into the medical profession, although his father does not appear to have possessed a British medical qualification, or had any connection with the army, in the directories he was variously described as a watchmaker, hotelier, and victualler. Charles went to boarding-schools in England, Scotland, Germany and France and it was in Scotland that he acquired the taste for amateur theatricals, and in Paris frequented the Comedie-Francaise and the Theatre du Palais-Royal. The former was known for its classical style and the latter had a long tradition of farce; both were a formative influence on his acting. He qualified as MRCS in 1857 and started practicing as a surgeon before his hankerings for the theatre overwhelmed him. In 1860 he married Emma Silberrad, a member of a German family that was both aristocratic and affluent. Making his professional stage debut at the Royalty Theatre in February 1862, although it was not an initial success he began to attract excellent reviews. Still undecided between a theatrical and medical career he spent the next two years working as a surgeon during the Civil War in America.

In 1865 he returned to England to once again pursue his acting career in a leading role in a play he had written, 'My Lady's Guardian', which opened at the Theatre Royal, Manchester. The local correspondent of The Era was moderately complimentary about the play and said that Wyndham "possesses innate talent as a light comedian". When he took the production to Liverpool the same paper described him as "one of the most accomplished actors we have seen for a long time". Confirming his West End credentials with appearances alongside Henry Irving in 'Idalia' and Ellen Terry in 'Double Marriage' and 'Still Waters Run Deep' at the St James' Theatre, London, over the subsequent decade he established himself as one of the country's leading actors, becoming better known for his roles in popular comedies and melodramas than for his occasional forays into Shakespeare. In 1868 he made his first venture into management, when he took the Princess's Theatre to present a season of three plays, but the undertaking was not successful. He returned to the US and appeared at Wallack's Theatre in 1869, playing Charles Surface in 'The School for Scandal', a role he made particularly his own. After several more New York productions, and having established a reputation as a light comedian, he started an American touring company of his own, opening with 'The Lancers' in Washington DC in March 1871. He continued to tour all over the US until 1873, with a repertory of 20 plays, mostly comedies, before returning to England.

With Mary Moore in 'She Stoops To Conquer' (1890)

In 1876 he completed his transformation into West End bastion when he took over the running of the Criterion Theatre, Brighton after appearing there in December 1875. Over the next 23 years he oversaw a long succession of plays at the theatre, unabashedly casting himself as the lead in many of them. Successful plays during this period included 'The Liars', 'The Case Of Rebellious Susan' and T. W. Robertson's 'David Garrick', the play which earned him his greatest acclaim as an actor. 'David Garrick' also starred Mary Moore and in 1897 Charles separated from his wife and his partner for the rest of his life was Mary Moore, widow of James Albery. Mary had become Wyndham's leading lady, in 1885, and his business partner in 1896. In 1899 Wyndham and Moore left the Criterion to open the new Wyndham’s theatre. After opening with a revival 'David Garrick', the Wyndham’s soon forged its own reputation with 'Mrs Dane’s Defence' (also starring Charles and Mary), which ran for 209 performances. In the 1902 Coronation Honours Charles received a knighthood.

Playing 'David Garrick'

By now he had developed a taste for opening new theatres and in 1903 he and Mary Moore opened the New Theatre (now the Noël Coward Theatre). In the same year, he and his company appeared before Edward VII and his court at Windsor Castle in 'David Garrick' and this was followed by a second command performance at Windsor, in 1907 when Charles played John Mildmay in Taylor's 'Still Waters Run Deep'. For the next decade the couple were to star in numerous productions at the venue until, with Charle's memory failing rapidly and Mary suffering ill-health, he retired in 1913 after a final run of 'David Garrick' and Mary did the same within a year. It was during this final period of his career that he became the inaugural President of the Society of West End Theatre when it was founded in 1908. In 1916 his estranged wife died, and he married Mary Moore and the pair retired to York Terrace overlooking Hyde Park, taking props and furniture from the set of David Garrick to their new home. Charles died from pneumonia following influenza on the 12th of January 1919 at the age of 81 at his house in York Terrace, Regent's Park, London. He was survived by his second wife and a son (Howard Wyndham, who was also a theatre manager) and a daughter from his first marriage. He was buried on the 16th of January at Hampstead Cemetery, and a memorial service was held at St Martin-in-the-Fields.

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