Francis Aickin

Who was Francis Aickin?

Francis Aickin, Irish actor, first appeared in London in 1765 as Dick Amlet in John Vanbrugh's The Confederacy at Drury Lane. He acted there, and at Covent Garden, until 1792. His repertory consisted of over eighty characters, and among his best parts were the Ghost in Hamlet and Jaques in As You Like It. His success in impassioned declamatory roles obtained for him the nickname of "Tyrant."

His younger brother James Aickin was playing leading parts in both comedy and tragedy at the Edinburgh theatre, when he gave offence to his public by his protest against the discharge of a fellow-actor. He therefore went to London, and from 1767 to 1800 was a member of the Drury Lane Company and for some years a deputy manager. He quarrelled with John Philip Kemble, with whom, in 1792, he fought a bloodless duel.