BICKERSTAFFE

bickerstaffe, isaac (c. 1735-c. 1812), english dramatist, was born in ireland about 1735. at the age of eleven he was appointed a page to lord chesterfield, then lord lieutenant of ireland, and subsequently held a commission in the marines, but was dismissed the service under discreditable circumstances. he was the author of a large number of plays and burlesque farces interspersed with songs, produced between 1760 and 1771. the best-known are _maid of the mill_ (founded on richardson's _pamela_), _the padlock, he would if he could, love in a village, the hypocrite_ and _the captive_. in 1772 bickerstaffe, suspected of a capital offence, fled to the continent. the exact date of his death is unknown, but he is stated to have been still living in abject misery in 1812. a full account of his dramatic productions is given in _biographia dramatica_, edited by stephen jones (1812).