{{Short description|British actor and director (1864–1944)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} [[File:Herbert Sparling Lady Slavey 1894.jpg|thumb|right|Herbert Sparling in ''The Lady Slavey'' (1894)]] '''Herbert Sparling''' (1864–1944) was a British comedy and musical theatre actor and director.
In 1889 Sparling was sued for breach of contract at Brompton County Court by the "dramatic author" Henry Plunkett Gratton (1808–1889), who alleged that in 1887 he and Sparling had made an agreement that Gratton would rewrite a drama for Sparling in return for which he would receive periodic payments from Sparling. When asked for the second payment Sparling made various excuses and quit his lodgings on The Strand. The outcome was that Gratton was awarded £10 for the work he had already done.<ref>Nell Darby, [https://books.google.com/books?id=P4QwDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT55 ''Life on the Victorian Stage: Theatrical Gossip''], ''Pen & Sword History'' (2017) – Google Books</ref>
Sparling appeared as Dudley Harcourt in ''My Sweetheart'' (1891) at the Vaudeville Theatre;<ref>Wearing, p. 84</ref> Luigi Di Volpa in F. C. Burnand's ''Private Enquiry'' (1891) at the Strand Theatre;<ref>J. P. Wearing, [https://books.google.com/books?id=nF8pAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA50 ''The London Stage 1890–1899: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel''], Rowman & Littlefield (2014) - Google Books, p. 50</ref> Lyngstrand in Ibsen's ''The Lady from the Sea'' (1891) at Terry's Theatre;<ref>Michael Egan (ed), [https://books.google.com/books?id=733jFjaRYjQC&pg=PA245 ''Henrik Ibsen: the Critical Heritage''], Routledge (1999) - Google Books, p. 245</ref><ref>Wearing, pg. 67</ref> Josiah Higgins in ''Morocco Bound'' (1893);<ref>[https://gsarchive.net/british/morocco/pics.html Sketches from ''Morocco Bound''] - ''The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News'', 29 April 1893</ref> Sir Wormwood Scrubs in Howard Talbot's comic opera ''Wapping Old Stairs'' (1894);<ref>"The London Theatres", ''The Era'', 24 February 1894, p. 9</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=815JAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA246 Review of ''Wapping Old Stairs''], ''Public Opinion'', Volumes 65-66, 23 February 1894, p. 246</ref> as Lord Lavender in ''The Lady Slavey'' (1894);<ref>Review of ''Lady Slavey'', ''The Sketch'' 28 November 1894, p. 4</ref><ref>[https://gsarchive.net/british/slavey/index.html Cast List for ''The Lady Slavey'' (1894)], British Musical Theatre website</ref> Detective in ''A Melodrama'' at the Trafalgar Theatre (1894);<ref>Wearing, p. 208</ref> in an American tour of ''A Little Ray of Sunshine'' (1899) which played at Chickering Hall in Boston and Wallack's Theatre in New York among other venues;<ref name=World/> William Piddock in ''22A, Curzon Street'' at the Garrick Theatre (1898):<ref>Wearing, p. 371</ref> Pomponius in ''A Greek Slave'' at the Herald Square Theatre in New York (1899); in ''Little Nell and the Marchioness'' at the Herald Square Theatre (1900); Lord Framlingham in ''Lady Madcap'' at the Prince of Wales Theatre (1904);<ref>[https://www.kent.ac.uk/library/specialcollections/theatre/r.php/29496/show.html ''Lady Madcap''], University of Kent Theatre Collection</ref><ref>Thomas S. Hischak. [https://books.google.com/books?id=oWLRDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA176 ''{{'}}The Mikado' to 'Matilda': British Musicals on the New York Stage''], Rowman & Littlefield (2020) – Google Books, p. 176</ref> Mr Tobin in ''Noah's Ark'' at the Waldorf Theatre (1906); and the Duke of Tysmoke in ''Nelly Neil'' at the Aldwych Theatre (1907).<ref>J. P. Wearing, [https://books.google.com/books?id=o5JWAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA325 ''The London Stage 1900-1909: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel''], Rowman & Littlefield (2014) – Google Books, p. 325</ref>
thumb|upright|as Josiah Higgins in ''Morocco Bound'' (1893) In July 1911 Sparling accompanied Marie George in a performance at Brighton Palace Pier, where: <blockquote>Marie George gives the audience twenty minutes of sparkling fun, and makes them regret very much the powers that be which prevent her continuing her part for double that period. She is delightful in her songs, "That’s a Cinch", and "Over again". She is most ably assisted by Mr. Herbert Sparling, whose make-up as a pianoforte turner and acting throughout is wonderfully clever.<ref>Brighton & Hove Society, Brighton, Sussex, Thursday, 12 July 1911, p. 4482b</ref></blockquote>
He was Marquis de Bouillaibaise in ''Baron Trenck'' at the Strand Theatre (1911);<ref name=Wearing>J. P. Wearing, [https://books.google.com/books?id=KMFnAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT197 ''The London Stage 1910–1919: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel''], Rowman & Littlefield (2014) – Google Books</ref> Percy Fitzwinney on tour in the musical comedy ''The Boy Scout'' (1912) with Marie George and C. Hayden Coffin, which he also directed;<ref>[http://www.leodis.net/playbills/item.asp?ri=200337_25851077# ''The Boy Scout''] at the Grand Theatre, Leeds (1912) - Leeds Play Bills</ref> Dickie Bramsgrove in the musical ''The Officers' Mess'' at St Martin's Theatre (1918) and after at the Prince's Theatre (1919).<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.overthefootlights.co.uk/London%20Musicals%201915-1919.pub.pdf |title=London Musicals 1915-1919 - Over the Footlights website |access-date=23 March 2020 |archive-date=19 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160419103936/http://www.overthefootlights.co.uk/London%20Musicals%201915-1919.pub.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> and Harkins in ''The Half Moon'' (1920) at the Liberty Theatre in New York.<ref name=World>[https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/HerbertSparling/ Broadway career of Herbert Sparling - Broadway World]</ref><ref>Dan Dietz, [https://books.google.com/books?id=LRmGDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA39 ''The Complete Book of 1920s Broadway Musicals''], Rowman & Littlefield (2019) – Google Books, p. 39</ref><ref>[https://www.playbill.com/person/herbert-sparling-vault-0000100275 Herbert Sparling in ''The Half Moon'' (1920)], ''Playbill''</ref>
In his later years he lived at 25 Portland Place in Brighton, Sussex, where he died in 1944 aged 80.<ref>[https://www.ancestry.co.uk/interactive/1518/47369_32021000952_2363-00319?pid=18228669&backurl=https://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv%3D1%26dbid%3D1518%26h%3D18228669%26tid%3D%26pid%3D%26usePUB%3Dtrue%26_phsrc%3Ddjv2973%26_phstart%3DsuccessSource&treeid=&personid=&hintid=&usePUB=true&_phsrc=djv2973&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&_ga=2.183859232.76931537.1584958215-1197399642.1515349816#?imageId=47369_32021000952_2363-00320 UK and Ireland, Incoming Passenger Lists], 1878-1960, Liverpool, England 1922 - Ancestry.com {{subscription required}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sparling, Herbert}} Category:1864 births Category:1944 deaths Category:English male musical theatre actors Category:19th-century English male actors Category:English male stage actors Category:20th-century English male actors