author
W. T. (William Thomas) Moncrieff
1794–1857
A fast-moving playwright of London’s popular stage, he helped turn early 19th-century melodrama into lively entertainment and scored a major hit with Tom and Jerry, or Life in London. His career stretched from circus-style spectacle to comic drama, and his work was a familiar part of theatergoing for years.
1 Audiobook
The True History of Tom & Jerry or, The Day and Night Scenes, of Life in London from the Start to the Finish!
by Charles Hindley, Pierce Egan, W. T. (William Thomas) Moncrieff
About the author
Born in London in 1794, he was originally named William Thomas Thomas and later adopted Moncrieff as his theatrical name. He began working in a solicitor’s office while still young, but writing for the stage drew him away from legal work and into the busy world of London entertainment.
His early successes included The Dandy Family at Astley’s and The Lear of Private Life, and he went on to write a large number of popular plays, songs, and adaptations. The best known was Tom and Jerry, or Life in London (1821), a stage version of Pierce Egan’s famous work, which became a standout hit and is often noted as the first play to reach a run of 100 performances.
Later in life his eyesight failed, and by 1843 he had become totally blind. Even so, he continued to write, contributing theatrical reminiscences and editing a collection of his dramatic works before his death at the Charterhouse in 1857.