Overview

Eric Jones Evans (1899 - 1989) was a medical practitioner, actor, playwright, and one of theatre's greatest enthusiasts. As a young man he qualified as a doctor and served as a Surgeon Probationer in the Navy during the First World War, after which he set up practice in Hampshire. His obsession with the theatre, however, remained and in 1919 he joined a repertory company at the Grand Theatre, Southampton. He maintained a medical practice in Fawley, near Southampton, and closed his surgery on matinee days to perform. In 1928 he formed his own company which he maintained until the outbreak of World War II. For this company he wrote and appeared in a number of his own melodramas, chiefly adapted from the novels of Dickens and George Eliot.

He subsequently formed his own touring company which specialised in Victorian melodrama and later developed a highly successful series of one man shows which toured throughout the country during the Second World War and up until the 1950’s. Among his friends were the actor-managers Sir John Martin-Harvey, Fred Terry and Julia Nielson, and also Bransby Williams, with whom he shared a passionate enthusiasm for Dickens.

What the collection holds

The Eric Jones Evans' personal archive contains material relating to his theatrical career as an actor and playwright, and his collections from the careers of actors Henry Irving (1838 - 1905), Bransby Williams (1870 - 1961) and Sir John Martin Harvey (1863 - 1944).

The collection includes correspondence, prompt books, scripts, music, costumes, press cuttings, photographs, programmes, posters and props. The bulk of the collection relates to Victorian melodrama, a genre which extended surprisingly far into the 20th century.

The online catalogue for this collection can be viewed here: 
EJE - Eric Jones Evans Personal Archive and Collection

Further information

The University of Bristol Theatre Collection is indebted to Dr Eric Jones Evans for his generosity in donating his collection and a financial bequest, which continues to support our work in conserving theatrical archives for future study and inspiration.

The University of Southampton holds a small collection of Jones Evans papers.