Peg of Old Drury

Synopsis: Feature film based on the life of the eighteenth-century actress Peg Woffington. Born in Dublin, she came to London and became a famous actress under David Garrick’s guidance. She suffered from a weak heart and died at Drury Lane following a performance of As You Like It. Contains passages, in eighteenth century performance, from The Merchant of Venice, Richard III and As You Like It.
Language: English
Country: Great Britain
Medium: Film
Technical information: Black-and-white / Sound
Year of release: 1935
Duration: 75 mins; 6,750 feet

Director

Herbert Wilcox

Cinematographer

Screenplay

Music

Art Direction

Cast

Notes: Stuart Robertson, the brother of Anna Neagle, shot some footage on the set of ‘Peg’ which shows that scenes were also shot featuring Hardwicke in Hamlet (brief clips from the ghost scene and the graveyard scene) and King Lear. Neagle also apparently acted in the latter. Neither of these plays made it to the final cut. The Robertson footage is mute and is held by the BFI National Archive (master preservation material only (9/2007).
General: Based on the play Masks and Faces by Charles Reade and Tom Taylor.
User comments: The real Peg Woffington (c1714-1760) did collapse on stage at Drury Lane after a performance of As You Like It but lived some years after that. The BFI National Archive holds a copy of MASKS AND FACES (1917) based on the play with Irene Vanbrugh as Peg, but this does not feature the As You Like It episode.

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