author
Theodore Edward Hook
1788–1841
A brilliant wit with a taste for mischief, this Regency-era writer became famous both for lively stage works and for the outrageous Berners Street hoax. His novels and satirical writing offered readers a sharp, entertaining look at fashionable English society.
4 Audiobooks
The Choice Humorous Works, Ludicrous Adventures, Bons Mots, Puns, and Hoaxes of Theodore Hook
by Theodore Edward Hook
Jack Brag, vol. 3 (of 3)
by Theodore Edward Hook
Jack Brag, vol. 2 (of 3)
by Theodore Edward Hook
Jack Brag, vol. 1 (of 3)
by Theodore Edward Hook
About the author
Born in London on September 22, 1788, Theodore Edward Hook grew up in a creative family: his father, James Hook, was a well-known composer. He showed literary and musical talent early, writing for comic operas while still young and quickly making a name for himself as a playwright.
Hook is remembered as a novelist, dramatist, and satirist, and as one of the early figures associated with the "silver-fork" novel, which portrayed high society for a broad reading public. He was also notorious for practical jokes, especially the Berners Street hoax of 1810, which helped make him a celebrity of his day.
His life was lively and troubled in equal measure. After a period in Mauritius as a government official, he returned to England under financial and legal strain, yet continued to write prolifically for newspapers, magazines, and books. He died in London on August 24, 1841, leaving behind a reputation for dazzling wit, social comedy, and scandal.