John Preston

From humble beginnings in a small village near Hull, John started to pursue his love of acting after his parents moved to London.
Quickly becoming established as an actor on the provincial touring circuits he went on to form a number of his own touring companies. He produced plays throughout the United Kingdom and eventually became one of the most well-known and successful actor-managers in the country.
Not content with just acting and managing John also became a prolific playwright, writing dozens of popular melodramas under a pen name over the years. Performed all over the country, they were also produced under licence overseas.
His personal life was in many ways as colourful as some of the plots from his melodramas. Throughout his life he became involved with a string of actresses, each one younger than the last!
By the early 1900’s, his life represented a true rags to riches story as his businesses generated very substantial earnings. However, as the golden age of the theatre came to an end his career entered a gradual and inevitable decline. One ill-advised attempt to generate some additional income towards the end of his life turned out to have severe consequences for him.
Like so many Victorian and Edwardian actors and managers, John’s life ended in impoverished obscurity. It was a sad finale for a man who had, over many years, brought so much enjoyment to huge numbers of people throughout the country.