Catalogue description Lord Chamberlain's Department: Records of Licensing of Entertainments and Theatres

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Details of LC 7
Reference: LC 7
Title: Lord Chamberlain's Department: Records of Licensing of Entertainments and Theatres
Description:

This series comprises warrants, contracts, patents, licences, inspection reports and plans relating to theatres. Also miscellaneous papers whose contents include grants to theatres, appointments of personnel, complaints of various sorts, playbills, surveys of buildings and works, and petitions.
Date: 1660-1901
Held by: The National Archives, Kew
Legal status: Public Record(s)
Language: English
Physical description: 89 files and volumes
Publication note:

A register of English Theatrical Documents, 1660-1737, compiled and edited by J Milhous and R D Hume, (Southern Illinois University Press, 1991), details some of this material.

Listed in detail in J Milhous and R D Hume, 'An annotated guide to the Theatrical Documents in PRO LC 7/1, 7/2 and 7/3', Theatre Notebook, no 35 (1981), 25-31, 77-87, 122-129. A copy of the article is available in the reading rooms at The National Archives, Kew.
Unpublished finding aids:

A partial index 'Lord Chamberlain Theatrical References' is available in the reading rooms at The National Archives, Kew.

Administrative / biographical background:

The Lord Chamberlain's involvement with entertainments and theatres had its origin in his responsibility for all court entertainment. His licensing role is clearly in evidence from the Restoration, but with no statutory authority until 1737. However, there were some theatres in Westminster (Covent Garden and Drury Lane) and the provinces which operated by letters patent, not Lord Chamberlain's licence.

The purpose of the act of 1737 (10 Geo II c 28) was, in fact, to control travelling actors considered to be rogues and vagabonds. Its result was to set up a system of control of both theatres and entertainments, with penalties for non-accordance. Any person acting in a play or causing a play to be performed, without either a letter patent or a licence from the Lord Chamberlain, or without having a legal settlement in the place of performance, was liable to a conviction as a vagabond.

A copy of all new plays was to be lodged with the Lord Chamberlain at least fourteen days before the first performance was due. He could ban any play, or part of a play. The censorship of plays applied equally to patented theatres. In order to carry out this duty the Lord Chamberlain appointed an examiner and deputy examiner of plays (from 1738).

The Lord Chamberlain's jurisdiction was to run in and around Westminster, and other places of royal residence (such as Windsor or Brighton), and it included entertainments in public houses; plays were not to be performed elsewhere, even in patented theatres. In 1788, Justices of the Peace were given some licensing powers for performances within their areas of jurisdiction (28 Geo III c 30); they had in fact done this previously, but with no legal authority.

By the Theatres Regulation Act of 1843 (6 & 7 Vict c 68) all previous legislation was repealed, and licensing of theatre managers was placed with the Lord Chamberlain (in and around London, Westminster, and places of royal residence) and Justices of the Peace, if letters patent did not pertain. Public houses were again included. A fee was payable to the Lord Chamberlain and Justices of the Peace for their licences. Rules were to be made for good regulation of theatres and licences could be rescinded for inappropriate behaviour, including in a patented theatre. All new plays were to be submitted seven days before performance was due, and a fee was payable for this.

The Lord Chamberlain's powers over the theatre were repealed in 1968.

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