Florrie Lewis

Florence “Florrie” Ada Lewis born 1899, the daughter of Ann and William Lewis who ran the Soldiers institute in Woolwich, where they put on theatrical acts for the amusement of the residents.

Florrie Lewis was taken under the wing of Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree the Shakespearean actor and manager of Her Majesty’s Theatre who in addition to performing Shakespeare also produced seasons of popular variety productions of which Pinkie and the Fairies was one. Pinkie and the Fairies was a “Fairy play in 3 acts” by H. Graham Robertson & Frederick Norton. In this she played the part of The Fairy Queen.

These photographs were taken in 1910 when Florrie was eleven years old.

Following the unexpected death of her father William in 1916 Florrie was unable to continue her stage career, she married Ernest Clayton in 1918 and lived in Woolwich until they divorced in 1929, she married Frank Douglas Sargent in 1930 and sadly died in 1974.

[Many thanks to the person who supplied this information and persuaded me the lady in the pictures was not my grandmother, Florence White!]