Look back: The night actor Sir Henry Irving died in Bradford hotel

Sadly, it turned out to be setting for the most famous death in Bradford’s history - somebody who had no strong connection to the city, except when he died. It is also sadly the one event still associated with the Theatre Royal and Opera House on Manningham Lane, where he had just made his final appearance.

Sir Henry Irving, 67-years-old, the most famous actor-manager of his generation, the first knight of British theatre and the Sir Laurence Olivier of his day, suddenly died just before midnight on Friday October 13, 1905, within minutes of collapsing in the foyer of Bradford’s Midland Hotel.

Sir Henry Irving died shortly after leaving a Bradford theatre (Image: Image submitted)

Having just completed five of six nightly performances of classic plays on stage in the lead role, he had been taken that night from theatre to hotel by Hansom cab the half mile or so down Manor Row into the city centre.

It had been a highly successful week. On Tuesday Sir Henry had been feted by the Mayor at a civic lunch in his honour. On stage he had given a series of strong performances, as reported by the Bradford Daily Telegraph: ‘Sir Henry certainly gave a powerful performance of his old favourite role. His dressing for the part was remarkable, and calculated to excite the utmost repulsion in the beholder, cunning, vindictiveness, the passion for revenge were all developed, and at the fall of the curtain Sir Henry had achieved an artistic triumph.’ (Monday as Shylock, to be repeated Saturday)

‘Tennyson’s fine drama Becket appears twice in Sir Henry Irving’s programme this week. It is a favourite role of the actor’s. Last night’s was a satisfying performance. The Becket in the play is a commanding character, and the actor gives a subtle and illuminating interpretation. A word and a gesture convey the working of his mind.’ (Tuesday, repeated Friday)

‘This week’s programme...seeks both to show Sir Henry’s versatility and yet provide him with subtle studies of human character. Louis Xl is a fitting addition to Shylock and Becket...Sir Henry Irving portrays this extraordinarily bad old man with every power.’ (Wednesday)

‘After last night’s performance there certainly remains consolation in the fact that the famous actor is saying farewell to the stage whilst yet in the complete possession of his wonderful dramatic instinct and power.’ (Friday - his final performance). The play concluded with the final words spoken whilst on bended knee, ‘Into thy hands Oh Lord I commend my soul.’

Bradford Theatre Royal poster for Henry Irving's play (Image: Newsquest)

During Friday’s performance the actor seemed unwell but managed to get through. His business manager left him taking the cab the short distance to his hotel, but was summoned to be told that Irving had just died from a heart attack.

On Saturday evening his body was conveyed to the Great Northern station past silent respectful crowds to be subsequently buried in Westminster Abbey, and so the planned Saturday night performance of The Merchant of Venice could not go ahead with Irving playing Shylock for the second time that week.

One very interesting figure from this story is the manager who was with him that evening. This was Bram Stoker, much better known as the Irish author who wrote Dracula, set in the Yorkshire resort of Whitby which he first visited in 1890. He was Irving’s business manager and very close friend for some 30 years. Irving is always believed to have inspired the character of Dracula.

The two main buildings in the story of Irving’s death also have great interest for students of Bradford’s history.

The theatre where Irving performed for the final time, not to be confused with an earlier Theatre Royal on Duke Street (off Manor Row), originally opened with an 1,800 capacity as the Alexandra Theatre in 1864. It closed in 1921 and re-opened the same year as a cinema. The owners went bankrupt in 1965, but it was re-opened in 1967 under new ownership as the Irving Royal Cinema in tribute to the famous actor. However, that name only lasted some months before the cinema was again sold, this time to Classic Cinemas, leading to the new name of the Classic Royal Cinema.

This survived until 1974, after which the building became derelict before finally being demolished in 1990.

The hotel where Irving died was The Midland, still open today. It opened in 1890 to become Bradford’s most famous hotel, which attracted visiting A-list celebrities such as Paul Robeson, Laurel and Hardy, George Formby, The Beatles and almost every Prime Minister until Harold Wilson.

It is also known as the place where the most famous actor of his time died. Appropriately, a plaque at the hotel commemorates the death.

* Martin Greenwood’s book Every Day Bradford provides a story for each day of the year about people, places and events from Bradford’s history. It is available from Amazon, The Great British Bookshop (www.thegreatbritishbookshop.co.uk) and most bookshops and online book stores.