Frederick Robson
in 'Uncle Zachary'

The British comedian, stage actor and ballad singer Frederick Robson (1821-1864) is seen here dressed as the eponymous hero of Uncle Zachary, a 'serio-comic drama' first performed at the Royal Olympic Theatre in March 1860.

Born Thomas Robson Brownhill at Margate in 1821, he began his theatrical career as Frederick Robson in 1844 after serving some time as an apprentice to a London engraver. His greatest triumphs were won after 1853 on the boards of the Olympic Theatre. According to the Nuttall Encyclopaedia (1907), ‘Robson combined in a high degree all the gifts of a low comedian with a rare power of rising to the grave and the pathetic.’