Person    | Male  Born 20/12/1860  Died 31/10/1904

Dan Leno

Categories: Theatre

Actor and comedian. Born George Wild Galvin at 6 Eve Place, St Pancras. He first appeared on stage as a child with his parents, and in time became the star of the act. As a solo artist, he became increasingly popular during the late 1880s and 1890s, when he was one of the highest-paid comedians in the world. At the peak of his career, he performed for King Edward VII at Sandringham, and became known as "The King's Jester". However he began to drink heavily after performances, and by 1901 he had become an alcoholic. He declined physically and mentally and also suffered from increasing deafness. His death was certified as ‘general paralysis of the insane’, which at that time was a euphemism for tertiary syphilis.

Credit for this entry to: Alan Patient of www.plaquesoflondon.co.uk

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Dan Leno

Commemorated ati

Dan Leno

Dan Leno, 1860 - 1904, music-hall comedian, lived here, 1898 - 1901. London C...

Read More

Other Subjects

Frankie Howerd

Frankie Howerd

Comedian and actor. Born Francis Alick Howard in York. He started entertaining whilst serving in the army in WW2 during which time he changed the spelling of his surname, 'to be different'. After a...

Person, Cinema, Theatre, TV & Radio

1 memorial
Charles Coborn

Charles Coborn

Music hall entertainer and songwriter. Born Colin Whitton McCallum at 25 Sydney Square, Mile End. Best known for the songs 'Two Lovely Black Eyes' and 'The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo'.  ...

Person, Music / songs, Theatre

1 memorial
Lord Richard Attenborough, CBE

Lord Richard Attenborough, CBE

Actor, director, producer. Born Cambridge. Older brother of TV wildlife presenter Sir David. Died, aged 90 years, on 24 August 2014.

Person, Benefactor, Cinema, Seriously Famous, Theatre

1 memorial
Eric Sykes

Eric Sykes

Scriptwriter and actor. Born in Oldham, Lancashire. As a writer, he worked with Spike Milligan on the early scripts for the Goon Shows. He wrote for many of the major comedians of the day, includin...

Person, Cinema, Humour, Theatre, TV & Radio

1 memorial
Peggy Ashcroft

Peggy Ashcroft

Actor. Born Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft in Croydon.

Person, Cinema, Theatre, TV & Radio

1 memorial