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Irish writer (1724–1769)
Samuel Derrick
Engraving by William Hibbart
Born 1724 Died 28 March 1767(1767-03-28) (aged 42–43)
Samuel Derrick (1724 – 28 March 1769) was an Irish author. He became known as a
hack writer in
London , where he gained wide literary connections.
Born in
Dublin , Derrick served an apprenticeship with a linen draper, and after that failed as an actor. He then turned to writing.
[1]
Derrick knew
Samuel Johnson , who had a soft spot for him, and he helped Johnson in researching
John Dryden 's life. He also knew
James Boswell in his early days in London.
[1] He was supported by
Tobias Smollett , who gave him employment as amanuensis and on
The Critical Review .
[2]
He is thought to have been the original compiler of
Harris's List of Covent Garden Ladies , an annual directory of London
prostitutes beginning in 1760.
[3]
[4]
Two years after the death of
Beau Nash in 1761, Derrick was appointed master of the ceremonies at
Bath . He was employed there, and in a similar position in
Tunbridge Wells , until his death on 28 March 1769. There was no lack of criticism, with
James Quin in particular (who had wanted the position in Bath) undermining Derrick.
[1]
[5]
[6]
Derrick published:
[1]
The Dramatic Censor , No. 1, 1752. This title was used again in 1770 by
Francis Gentleman .
[7]
Sylla , a dramatic entertainment, from the French of
Frederick II of Prussia , 1753.
A Voyage from the Moon , from the French of
Cyrano de Bergerac , 1753.
Memoirs of the Count de Beauval , from the French of
D'Argens , 1754.
The Third Satire of Juvenal , translated into English verse, 1755.
A View of the Stage , 1759, published under the name of
John Wilkes .
The Battle of Lora , a poem, from
Ossian , 1762.
Dryden's Works, with a Life and Notes , 1760, 4 vols.
A Poetical Dictionary , 1761, 4 vols.
[8]
A Collection of Voyages , 1762, 2 vols.
Letters written from Leverpoole, Chester, Corke , 1767, 2 vols. This gains a mention from a character in
Tobias Smollett 's epistolary novel The Expedition of Humphry Clinker .
[9]
A compilation entitled Derrick's Jests, or the Wit's Chronicle , was published soon after his death.
[1]
^
a
b
c
d
e
Stephen, Leslie , ed. (1888).
"Derrick, Samuel" .
Dictionary of National Biography . Vol. 14. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
^ John Brewer (2013).
The Pleasures of the Imagination: English Culture in the Eighteenth Century . Routledge. p. 136.
ISBN
978-0-415-65884-3 .
^ Rubenhold, Hallie The Covent Garden Ladies , (Tempus, 2005)
^ Parsons, Nicola; Dale, Amelia (2022). "Harris's List of Covent-Garden Ladies (1760–1794): New Copies and New Evidence regarding its History". The Library: Transactions of the Bibliographical Society . 23 (4): 476.
doi :
10.1093/library/fpac043 .
^ Eagles, R. D. E. "Derrick, Samuel".
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press.
doi :
10.1093/ref:odnb/7536 . (Subscription or
UK public library membership required.)
^ Andrew I. Dale (2 September 2003).
Most Honourable Remembrance: The Life and Work of Thomas Bayes . Springer. pp. 545 note 70.
ISBN
978-0-387-00499-0 .
^ Jay L. Halio; Lois Potter; Arthur F. Kinney (1999).
Shakespeare, Text and Theater: Essays in Honor of Jay L. Halio . University of Delaware Press. p. 295 note 2.
ISBN
978-0-87413-699-9 .
^
Brian Vickers (1995).
William Shakespeare: 1753–1765 . Psychology Press. p. 243.
ISBN
978-0-415-13407-1 .
^ Page 2 in the OUP World's Classics edition of 1984.
Attribution
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
public domain :
Stephen, Leslie , ed. (1888). "
Derrick, Samuel ".
Dictionary of National Biography . Vol. 14. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
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