Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Pope, Jane
POPE, Miss JANE (1742–1818), actress, born in 1742, was the daughter of William Pope, who kept a hairdresser's shop in Little Russell Street, Covent Garden, adjoining the Ben Jonson's Head, and was barber in ordinary and wig-maker to the actors at Drury Lane. Garrick on 3 Dec. 1756 brought out at Drury Lane his one-act entertainment ‘Lilliput,’ acted, as regarded all characters except Gulliver, by children. In this Miss Pope, then fourteen years of age, played Lalcon, Gulliver's housekeeper. Vanbrugh's ‘Confederacy’ was acted at the same house 27 Oct. 1759, when as Corinna Miss Pope, as ‘a young gentlewoman,’ made her first definite appearance. On 31 Dec. she was the original Dolly Snip in Garrick's ‘Harlequin's Invasion.’ She played admirably a part in which she was succeeded sixty years later by Madame Vestris (Mrs. Lucia Elizabeth Mathews [q. v.]). She took during the season Miss Biddy in ‘Miss in her Teens,’ Miss Prue in ‘Love for Love,’ Miss Notable in the ‘Lady's Last Stake,’ and Miss Jenny in the ‘Provoked Husband.’ Cherry in the ‘Beaux' Stratagem’ was allotted her next season, and she gained great applause as the original Polly Honeycombe in Colman's piece so named. Besides playing in 1761–2 Phædra in ‘Amphitryon,’ Sophy (an original part) in Colman's ‘Musical Lady,’ and Charlotte in the ‘Apprentice,’ she appeared, for her benefit, as Beatrice to the Benedick of Garrick in ‘Much Ado about Nothing.’ A full list of the very numerous characters in which she was seen is given by Genest. These are all comic, and were all given at Drury Lane, to the management of which house during her long stage life she remained faithful. A selection from these characters will suffice. Lucetta in the ‘Two Gentlemen of Verona,’ Widow Belmour in the ‘Way to keep him,’ Elvira in the ‘Spanish Fryar,’ Violante in the ‘Wonder,’ Phillis in the ‘Conscious Lovers,’ Olivia in the ‘Plain Dealer,’ Mrs. Oakly in the ‘Jealous Wife,’ Patch in the ‘Busybody,’ Lady Brumpton in the ‘Funeral,’ Lucy in the ‘Guardian,’ Margery in ‘Love in a Village,’ Catharine in ‘Catharine and Petruchio,’ Lætitia in the ‘Old Bachelor,’ Mrs. Page, Mrs. Frail in ‘Love for Love,’ Lucy Locket in the ‘Beggars' Opera,’ and Abigail in the ‘Drummer,’ are a few only of the parts in which, under Garrick's management or supervision, she kept up the traditions of the stage. Principal among her original parts were Lady Flutter in Mrs. Sheridan's ‘Discovery,’ 3 Feb. 1763; Emily in Colman's ‘Deuce is in Him,’ 4 Nov. 1763; Miss Sterling in the ‘Clandestine Marriage’ of Colman and Garrick,’ 20 Feb. 1766; Lucy in the ‘Country Girl,’ altered by Garrick from the ‘Country Wife,’ 25 Oct. 1766; Molly in Colman's ‘English Merchant,’ 21 Feb. 1767. In the ‘Jubilee’ of Garrick, 14 Oct. 1769, she danced in the pageant as Beatrice (she was an excellent dancer); Patty in Waldron's ‘Maid of Kent,’ 17 May 1773; Dorcas Zeal, the heroine in a revived version of the ‘Fair Quaker,’ 9 Nov. 1773; Lucy in Cumberland's ‘Choleric Man,’ 19 Dec. 1774; and Lady Minikin in Garrick's ‘Bon Ton,’ 18 March 1775.
In the season of 1775–6 she was, for pecuniary reasons, not engaged, this being the only season in which, between her first regular engagement and her retirement, she was absent from the boards. She went to Ireland, made persistent advances to Garrick, and, at the intercession of Kitty Clive, was reinstated. She reappeared, 3 Oct. 1776, as Miss Sterling in the ‘Fair Penitent,’ and, after playing Mrs. Frail in ‘Love for Love’ and Muslin in the ‘Way to keep him,’ was, 8 May 1777, Mrs. Candour in the immortal first performance of the ‘School for Scandal.’ She had by this time grown stout, and was accordingly the subject of some banter. Her success was, however, unquestioned, and for some years subsequently the name of Mrs. Candour clung to her. She lived, it may here be recorded, to play the part for her benefit, 22 May 1805, when she was the only one of the original cast still left on the stage. Many important parts were now assigned her: Ruth in the ‘Committee,’ Lady Fanciful in the ‘Provoked Wife,’ and Lady Lurewell in the ‘Constant Couple,’ and, on 29 Oct. 1779, she created a second of Sheridan's popular characters, being the original Tilburina in the ‘Critic.’ If the original parts subsequently assigned her were of little interest, the fault was not hers. The best among them, if there is any best in the matter, are Phillis in the ‘Generous Impostor,’ 22 Nov. 1780, by Thomas Lewis O'Beirne [q. v.], subsequently bishop of Meath; Lady Betty Wormwood in ‘Reparation,’ 14 Feb. 1784; Phœbe Latimer in Cumberland's ‘Natural Son,’ 22 Dec.; Miss Alscrip in Burgoyne's ‘Heiress,’ 14 Jan. 1786; Mrs. Modely in Holcroft's ‘Seduction,’ 12 March 1787; Diary in ‘Better late than never,’ by Reynolds and Andrews, 17 Nov. 1790; while, with the Drury Lane company at the Haymarket, she was the original Mrs. Larron in Richardson's ‘Fugitive,’ 20 April 1792. Returning to Drury Lane, she made her first reappearance in her great part of Audrey. She was the first Lady Plinlimmon in Jerningham's ‘Welch Heiress,’ 17 April 1795; Lady Taunton in Holcroft's ‘Man of Ten Thousand,’ 23 Jan. 1796. Next season she was successful in Mrs. Malaprop, of which she was not the original exponent. In 1801–2 she played for the first time the Duenna, and essayed, at the command of George III, what was perhaps her greatest rôle, Mrs. Heidelberg in the ‘Clandestine Marriage.’ The king having expressed a wish to see it the previous season, she had studied the part in the summer. A very great number of important characters belong to her entire career, the most remarkable performance of her closing years being Lady Lambert in the ‘Hypocrite.’ Her last original part was Dowager Lady Morelove in Miss Lee's ‘Assignation,’ 28 Jan. 1807. Upon her retirement she chose for her benefit and last appearance, 26 May 1808, Deborah Dowlas, in the ‘Heir-at-Law,’ a choice that incurred some condemnation. She spoke, in the character of Audrey, a farewell address which was not regarded as very happy. After her retirement she quitted the house in Great Queen Street where she had long resided, two doors from the Freemasons' Tavern, and went to Newman Street. She then removed to 25, and afterwards to 17, St. Michael's Place, Brompton, and died there 30 July 1818.
Miss Pope's forte was in soubrettes, principally of the pert order, her greatest parts being Corinna, Dolly Scrap, Polly Honeycombe, Olivia in the ‘Plain Dealer,’ Phillis, Patch, Mrs. Doggerell, Foible, Flippanta, Lappet, Kitty in ‘High Life below Stairs,’ Mrs. Frail, Muslin, Mrs. Candour, Tilburina, Audrey, Lady Dove, and Mrs. Heidelberg. Many of these parts she played at sixty with the sprightliness of sixteen. Churchill praised her warmly in the ‘Rosciad:’
With all the merry vigour of sixteen,
Among the merry troop conspicuous seen,
See lively Pope advance in jig and trip,
Corinna, Cherry, Honeycomb, and Snip.
Not without art, and yet to nature true,
She charms the town with humour ever new.
Cheer'd by her presence, we the less deplore
The fatal time when Clive shall be no more.
Charles Lamb describes her as ‘a gentlewoman ever, with Churchill's compliment still burnishing upon her gay honeycomb lips,’ and also as ‘the perfect gentlewoman as distinguished from the fine lady of comedy.’ Hazlitt calls her ‘the very picture of a duenna, a maiden lady, or antiquated dowager,’ and Leigh Hunt ‘an actress of the highest order for dry humour.’ Oulton declared her without a rival in duennas, and the author of the ‘Green Room,’ in 1790, declares that the question for criticism is not where she is deficient, but where she most excels; and while hesitating as to her general equality with Mrs. Clive, and disputing her value in farce, the same writer attributes her excellence to natural genius, and holds her up as an example ‘how infinitely a comedian can please without the least tincture of grimace or buffoonery, or the slightest opposition to nature.’ Her features were naturally, he says, neither good nor flexible.
A careful and worthy woman, Miss Pope lived and died respected, and the stage presents few characters so attractive. Besides keeping her father, whom she induced to retire from his occupation, she put by money enough to enable her to retire as soon as she perceived a failure of memory. She conceived a romantic attachment to Charles Holland (1768–1849?) [q. v.] the comedian, with whom she had a misunderstanding. She was also engaged to John Pearce (1727–1797), a stockbroker, but broke off the engagement when Pearce made her retirement from the stage a condition of marriage. She entertained a kindly feeling for Pearce, who died unmarried in 1797 (Sir E. R. Pearce, Family Records, pp. 22, 63). She made at her first appearance, and retained to the end, the friendship of ‘Kitty’ Clive, to whom she erected a monument in Twickenham churchyard. With the single exception of ‘Gentleman’ Smith, she was the last survivor of Garrick's company. The stage presents few characters so attractive as this estimable woman and excellent actress.
Her picture, by Roberts, as Mrs. Ford in the ‘Merry Wives of Windsor,’ is in the Mathews collection in the Garrick Club, which includes a second picture by the same artist. A half-length engraving, by Robert Laurie [q. v.], is mentioned in Smith's ‘Catalogue.’ Miss Pope extracted out of Mrs. Sheridan's ‘Discovery’ a farce called ‘The Young Couple,’ in which, for her benefit, she appeared on 21 April 1767, presumably as Lady Flutter. It was not printed.
[Genest's Account of the English Stage; Biographia Dramatica; Manager's Notebook; Dibdin's History of the Stage; Garrick Correspondence; Memoirs of James Smith by Horace Smith; Clarke Russell's Representative Actors; Wheatley and Cunningham's London Past and Present.]