Nellie Farren (1848-1904)
Last updated: 25.04.24
p_farrenn.jpgAccording to the Internet source given below, Ellen "Nellie" Farren was an English actress and singer born in Lancashire to a theatrical family.
She is chiefly remembered for her roles as the "principal boy" in musical burlesques at the Gaiety Theatre. She began acting as a child making her professional adult debut in 1864 by joining the company at London's Olympic Theatre. There she performed in Shakespearean dramas, contemporary comedies,and musical burlesques. She performed at the Gaiety Theatre from 1868 to 1892 in male and principal boy roles in musical burlesque
Farren created the roles for Gilbert and Sullivan, Dion Boucicault, Anthony Trollope and Charles Dickens among others. In the 1880s, she created roles in Gaiety burlesques with musical scores by Meyer Lutz, often written by Fred Leslie. Some of her most famous of these later roles were the title characters in Little Jack Sheppard and Ruy Blas and the Blasé Roué.
An attack of rheumatic fever in 1891 forced to retire from the stage in 1892. A widely attended benefit gala for her at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in 1898. raised the astonishing sum of £7,000 (equivalent to £786,000 in 2019) for her retirement.
She died in London
Websites:
url15.gif Nellie Farren Biography by wikipedia.org.  

This list is derived from information provided by Monologues.co.uk which went down sometime in 2023.
The loss of this valuable resource is very sad and a mystery.
     Title Attribution Remarks
       
  One of ''The Boys'' Maurice Scott (music)
Fred J. Barnes (words)
R.P. Weston (words)
George Formby Sr. (perf.)
Joe Elvin (perf.)
Nellie Farren (perf.)
Lionel MacKinder (perf.)
 
The peformer is featured on 5 sheet music/recording covers. It does not claim to be complete and represents only the number of items located.
     Title Composer Attribution Items
         
perf15.jpg Nancy Fancied a Soldier (1881) Gus Leach E Mosedale (words)
Robert Reece (words)
perf15.jpg Continong (1894), The Meyer Lutz Henry J Byron (words)
perf15.jpg I'm a Jolly Little Chap All Round (1887) Robert Martin
perf15.jpg It's Nice (1878) John Read Richard Childs (words)
perf15.jpg One of ''The Boys'' (1907) Maurice Scott Fred J. Barnes (words)
R.P. Weston (words)