Event Comment: [Mainpiece in place of The Old Batchelor, announced on playbill of 24 Feb.] Paid the Guardians of the Duke of Bedford rent to Michaelmas 1778, land tax deducted, #160 16s. 4d. Receipts: #128 16s. 6d. (88.5.0; 38.11.0; 2.0.6)

Event Comment: [Mainpiece: The Carnival here and in all subsequent performances called A Carnival Masquerade.] Paid the Duke of Bedford's Rent on Acct. #200. Receipts: #145 6s. 6d. (114/0/0; 31/3/6; 0/3/0)

Event Comment: Benefit for Hull. Public Advertiser, 12 Apr.: Tickets to be had of Hull at his house in Duke's Court, near Dean's Yard, Westminster

Event Comment: Paid the Duke of Bedford 1/2 Yrs Rent #171 12s. 10d. Receipts: #203 11s. 6d. (166/12/0; 35/3/6; 1/16/0)

Event Comment: Benefit for Suett and R. Palmer. Morning Herald, 25 Apr.: Tickets to be had of Suett at Richardson's, Stationer, Orange-street, Bloomsbury; of R. Palmer, No. 9, Duke-street, Bloomsbury. Receipts: #307 5s. (65/3/0; 21/6/6; 5/17/6; tickets: 214/18/0) (charge: #105 19s. 7d.)

Event Comment: Benefit for Chapman and Williames. Morning Chronicle, 2 May: Tickets to be had of Chapman, No. 5, Prince's-street, Drury-Lane; of Williames, No. 2, Duke's Court, Bow-street. Receipts: #283 6s. (59/4/0; 16/11/6; 0/18/6; tickets: 206/12/0) (charge: #109 5s. 7d.)

Event Comment: Benefit for Hull. Mainpiece: A New Alteration [by Thomas Hull], from Shakespeare and Shadwell. With characteristic Habits, Scenes and Decorations. [Mrs Duill is identified in Lyons, Collectanea.] Public Advertiser, 2 May: Tickets to be had of Hull, Duke's Court, near Dean's-yard, Westminster. Receipts: #80 10s. (77/5; 3/5; tickets: none listed) (charge: #105)

Event Comment: Paid the Duke of Bedford One Year and 9 Mos. Rent for the Theatre, the House in Bow Street, and the House in the passage #336 17s. 6d. Receipts: #180 (176.16; 3.4)

Event Comment: Benefit for Hull. World, 17 Apr.: Tickets to be had of Hull, Duke's Court, near Dean's Yard, Westminster. Receipts: #209 11s. (124.11; 3.8; tickets: 81.12)

Event Comment: Benefit for Williames and Bates. Public Advertiser, 9 May: Tickets to be had of Williames, No. 2, Duke's-court, Bow-street; of Bates, No. 12, Little Russel-street, Covent Garden. Receipts: #193 18s. 6d. (20.6.0; 10.8.0; 1.3.6; tickets: 162.1.0) (charge: #109 5s. 3d.)

Event Comment: Mainpiece [C 5, by the Hon. Henry Seymour Conway, adapted from Les Dehors Trompeurs; ou, L'Homme du Jour, by Louis de Boissy; incidental music by Michael Kelly. Prologue by the author. Epilogue by John Burgoyne (see text)]: 1st time at a public theatre. With new Scenes and Dresses. [This was 1st acted on 31 May 1788 at the private theatre in the town house of the Duke of Richmond, which was situated on what is now Richmond Terrace, Whitehall. It was demolished in 1819.] Diary, 16 June 1789: This Day is published False Appearances (1s. 6d.). Receipts: #138 3s. (114.15.0; 22.5.6; 1.2.6)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: Not acted these 3 years [not acted since 23 Sept. 1785. Afterpiece in place of The Deserter, advertised on playbill of 14 Nov.]. Paid the Duke of Bedford one Year's Rent #192 10s. Receipts: #226 9s. 6d. (222.0.0; 4.9.6)

Event Comment: Paid Duke of Bedford 1 Yrs. Rent #343 5s. 1d. Afterpiece [1st time; F 2, by Edward Morris. Author of Prologue unknown]: With new Dresses and Decorations. Public Advertiser, 8 Apr. 1790: This Morning is published The Adventurers (1s.). Receipts: #260 8s. (226.5.0; 31.16.0; 2.4.6; ticket not come in: 0.2.6)

Event Comment: Gazetteer, 20 Sept.: [On Saturday morning] official notice was given from the Lord Chamberlain's Office to shut the Theatres [because of the death of the Duke of Cumberland, brother of George III]

Event Comment: Benefit for Palmer. Mr Palmer most respectfully informs the Publick, the Lord Chamberlain having given Permission, Mr Colman having liberally granted the use of the Theatre, and his Brethren kindly consented to perform, that [there] will be presented...[as above. This benefit had originally been arranged for 20 Sept., but because of the death of the Duke of Cumberland, the theatre on that night was dark.] Tickets to be had of Palmer, No. 3, London Road, St. George's Fields; and of Rice, at the Theatre, where Places for the Boxes may be taken

Event Comment: Among the Instrumental Performers are Messrs Ashley and Sons, Patria, Sarjant, Billington, Mahon, Boyce, Mountain, J. Mahon, the Leanders, Ware, Kaye, Rawlings, Sharp, Lyon, &c. &c. &c. Double Drums by J. Ashley. The Whole under the Direction of Harrison and Ashley. No Money to be returned. Places for the Boxes to be had of Brandon at the Theatre. Boxes 5s. Pit 3s. 1st Gallery 2s. Upper Gallery 1s. The Doors to be opened at 5:30. To begin at 6:30 [same throughout oratorio season]. Books of the Performances, with the Names of the Performers to their respective Songs, to be had at the Theatre, Price Six-pence. And to prevent imposition in the Streets, the Manager's Books are printed with the following Words at the bottom of each Title Page: "Printed by H. Macleish, Duke's-Court, Drury-Lane.

Event Comment: Benefit for Pacchierotti. Tickets to be had of Pacchierotti, No. 17, Duke-street, Manchester-square. A new Grand Serious Opera (1st time [i.e. in 2 acts; originally performed in 3 acts at Milan, 1778, and at king's, 22 Jan. 1780]); the music by Bertoni. [World announces the ballets for this night as La Fille Mal Gardee and Le Siege de Cythere.

Event Comment: 3rd piece [1st time; F 2, by Charles Stuart, "from the Spanish"; on 2 Sept. reduced to 1 act. Prologue by the author (see text)]. "The Piece, we understand, was originally founded on some topics that have of late engrossed the conversation of much of the fashionable world...The Lord Chamberlain thought [it] too delicate a nature to appear with the allusions and title it then bore, She would be a Duchess. The consequence was that the offensive bits were expunged and the piece re-christened...It would be unfair to make any observations...in the mutilated stage it was presented" (Public Advertiser, 15 Aug.). "Some part of the plot was supposed to allude to the late occurrences in the family of General John? Gunning, who was indulged with the privilege of erasing [from the MS] that which he disliked, and who reduced it to its present feeble and unconnected form" (Gazetteer, 15 Aug.). [The reference in the original title is to the simultaneous flirtation of Miss Elizabeth Gunning, the General's daughter, with the eldest sons of the Dukes of Marlborough and Argyll (see dnb, under Susannah Gunning). She would be a Duchess: in Larpent MS 915.

Event Comment: Paid the Duke of Bedford one years Rent #192 10s. The Doors to be opened at 5:15. To begin at 6:15 [see 26 Apr. 1792]. Receipts: #237 2s. 6d. (235.9.6; 1.13.0)

Event Comment: 2nd piece [1st time; INT 1, author unknown. Not in Larpent MS; not published]: An Occasional Interlude of Singing and Dancing. With new Dresses and Decorations. [This was written as a compliment to the Duchess of York, daughter of the King of Prussia; on 29 Sept. 1791 she had married the Duke of York (see European Magazine, Dec. 1791, p. 459) "It was a pretty, slight compliment, touched up by Byrne, St.Amand, Incledon and Mrs Mountain, with a couple of airs and the Pas Russe a little lamed. Byrne carried his arm in a scarf [see 29 Oct.], and Incledon and Mountain their parts in their hands" (Oracle, 22 Nov.). 3rd piece in place of Oscar and Malvina, advertised on playbill of 19 Nov.] Receipts: #221 4s. (208.16; 12.8)

Event Comment: Oratorio: Written by Milton. Set to Music by Handel. Among the instrumental performers are Messrs Ashley andSons, Patria, Sarjant, Billington, Mahon, Boyce, Mountain, Howard, Lavenu, Simpson, Gwilliam, Purney, Munro, Leander, Kaye, Sharp, Lyon, &c. Double Drums by J. Ashley. The whole under the direction of Harrison and Ashley. At Play-house Prices. No money to be returned. Places for the Boxes to be had of Brandon at the Theatre. The Doors to be opened at 5:30. To begin precisely at 6:30 [same throughout oratorio season]. Boxes 5s. Pit 3s. Gallery 2s. Upper Gallery 1s. Books of the Performance, with the names of the performers to their respective songs, price 6d., may be had at the Theatre, and to prevent imposition in the streets, the Manager's books are printed with the following words at the bottom of each title-page, "Printed by H. Macleish, Duke's court, Drury-Lane.

Event Comment: By Permission of the Lord Chamberlain. Benefit for Sims. Mainpiece: As altered from Wycherley by David Garrick, Esq. The Doors to be opened at 5:30. To begin at 6:30. Tickets to be had of Sims, the Theatrical Register, Wrekin Tavern, Broad-court, Long-acre; at the Blue Post Coffee-house, Charlotte-street, Rathbone-place; the Tun, Goodge-street, Middlesex Hospital; the Green Man, Union-street, Middlesex Hospital; the Wheat Sheaf, Rathbone-place; of Price, at the Coach and Horses, Holborn; at the Duke of Clarence Coffee-house, Haymarket; Spencer's, Two Blue Posts, Southampton-buildings; and of Rice at the Theatre