John Gay

He never married. He was very close to his friends and patrons Alexander Pope, John Arbuthnot, and William Congreve. These friends always supported him through the highs and lows of life.

He earned good money from his writings during his lifetime. However, he made some misguided investments in South Sea Stock and lost most of his wealth. This shock affected his health and he became ill.

He was given a home during his last years by one of his fans and patron - the Duke of Queensberry. He died in 1732 at the age of 47.

He was born into an ancient Devonshire family in England as the youngest son of William Gay and his wife. He was orphaned at an early age and was raised by his maternal uncle, the Reverend John Hanmer.

He received his primary education from his town’s free grammar school under Robert Luck who was a minor poet with some published works in English and Latin.

After school he was apprenticed to a silk mercer in London. However he hated the job and came back home to his uncle in Barnstaple.

He moved to London again in 1707 to work as secretary to the dramatist Aaron Hill. Hill introduced him to London’s literary circles where he met and befriended famous writers like Alexander Pope, Joseph Addison, and William Congreve.

Gay had a deep love for literature and began his career as a poet and ballad-lyric writer. He had a quirky sense of humour and a talent for writing satirical and ironic pieces. His first published poem was a parody, ‘Wine’.

His friends helped him in producing ‘The British Apollo’ a question-and-answer journal. He also contributed to the pamphlet, ‘The Present State of Wit’, a survey of contemporary periodical publications in 1711.

He worked as a steward in the household of the Duchess of Monmouth from 1712 to 1714 which left him with enough time to write. His first play was ‘The Mohawks’ which was never produced. His second play, ‘The Wife of Bath’, was produced at Drury Lane, a prominent theatre, in 1713.

The ballad opera ‘The Beggar’s Opera’ ran for 62 performances at the Inn Fields Theatre—the longest run for any play in theatre history at that time. The play was revived in 1920 and had an astounding run of 1,463 performances at the Lyric Theatre.