Most Haunted Theater
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane must be the most haunted theater in Britain, if not the world. It boasts quite a few other spectres, besides the famous Man in Grey.
There is the 'tall, thin and ugly' ghost who is thought to be actor Charles Macklin. Perhaps he feels remorse for, what the court decided, was 'accidentally' killing fellow actor Thomas Hallam in 1735, at the theatre during an argument over a wig. How the court determined that it was an accident, one can only speculate. The words Macklin is said to have shouted as he plunged his cane into Hallam's left eye and into his brain was, 'Goddamn you for a blackguard, scrub, rascal!'There are other ghosts to be found in this most haunted theater. The shade of Dano Leno, the great Victorian Music Hall comedian, has been see and heard many times. He liked the theatre and spent many successful seasons playing the 'Dame' in pantomime. Apparently, in death he still practices his famous clog dance, just as he did in life as the sound of clog dancing has been heard coming from empty dressing rooms. Actors have also felt his presence on stage and have smelt the distictive scent of lavender, which Dan Leno always wore. He tragically died early, at the age of just 43, in 1904.
Another music hall entertainer, the clown Joe Grimaldi, also puts in an appearance. It thought by some that his is presence that has been to to helpfully guide nervous actors to their correct position on the stage.And finally, Charles Kean the 19th century actor has been seen sitting in the front row and wearing clothes of that period. He vanishes when the lights go up.
