author
James Sheridan Knowles
1784–1862
An Irish dramatist and actor who became one of the best-known stage writers of the 19th century, he is especially remembered for lively, theatrical plays such as Virginius, The Hunchback, and William Tell. Later in life, he left the theater behind and turned to religious work and writing.
2 Audiobooks
The Love-chase
by James Sheridan Knowles
The Hunchback
by James Sheridan Knowles
About the author
Born in Cork in 1784, he was the son of a schoolmaster and lexicographer, James Knowles, and a relative of Richard Brinsley Sheridan. His family moved to London when he was young, and he showed literary promise early, first gaining notice as a teenager with a popular ballad.
He worked in several fields before finding lasting success in the theater, including time in the militia, medical study, and teaching. As a playwright and actor, he became widely known on the 19th-century stage, with major plays including Virginius, The Hunchback, The Wife, The Love Chase, and William Tell.
In the 1840s, he stepped away from theatrical life, became a Baptist preacher, and published religious works as well as fiction. He died in 1862, leaving behind a career that bridged performance, popular drama, and later spiritual writing.