Glyn, Isabella

1823

1889

This actress was born Isabella Gearns in Edinburgh on 22 May 1823, the daughter of an architect. After some acting in amateur theatricals she went to Paris with her first husband, Edward Willis, to study acting. Using her mother’s maiden name of Glyn, she first performed professionally at Manchester as Constance in “King John” (G0266) and then was seen as Lady Macbeth and Hermione. She made her London debut on 26 January 1848 as Lady Macbeth at the Olympic. That September she appeared as Volumnia at Sadler’s Wells. She remained at that theatre until 1851, making a reputation in strong tragic figures, and on 26 December 1851 she appeared at Drury Lane as Bianca in “Fazio”. Isabella Glyn continued to play at various London theatres until 1869, after which time her appearances became less frequent and she was mainly occupied with Shakespearean recitals. She gave such readings in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1870. Her popularity diminished in the 1880s, and she died of cancer at her home, No 13, Mount Street, Grosvenor Square, on 18 May 1889. She had married her second husband, Eneas Sweetland Dallas at Edinburgh in December 1853. She was one of the last adherents of the Kemble school, with a commanding figure, large gestures and a powerful voice. (DNB, see also Burnim and Wilton, “The Richard Bebb Collection in the Garrick Club”, B0026-B0028).