William Brighty Rands (24 December 1823, Chelsea, Middlesex — 23 April 1882, East Dulwich, London) was a British writer and one of the major authors of nursery rhymes of the Victorian era. His pen names include Matthew Browne, Henry Holbeach, and T. Talker.[1]
William Brighty Rands | |
|---|---|
| Born | 24 December 1823 Chelsea, Middlesex, England |
| Died | 23 April 1882 (aged 58) East Dulwich, London, England |
| Pen name | Matthew Browne, Henry Holbeach, Tame Talker. |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Nationality | English |
| Period | 19th century |
| Genre | Children's Literature |
| Website | |
| www | |
Biography
editWilliam Brighty Rands was the son of George Rands, who ran a small shop. He received little formal education, but he educated himself primarily through reading secondhand books.[2]
Rands married Mary Ditton in 1846, and the couple had three children. They separated, and Rands began living with Hannah Rolls. Rands and Rolls had four children, and married in 1881 after the death of Ditton.[2]
In 1857, he started working as a reporter in the House of Commons for Messrs. Gurney & Co., and he became their reporter for the House of Commons that same year. He also contributed to the Illustrated Times, the Contemporary Review, Tait's Edinburgh Magazine, and the Pall Mall Gazette, among other newspapers. He wrote his literary works when Parliament was not sitting. In 1875, he resigned due to poor health. Three years later, he founded a newspaper for the City of London. Rands also preached at a Brixton Chapel, where he composed several hymns, some of which became popular.[2]
Selected works
editChildren's works
edit- Lilliput Levee (1864, 1867)
- Lilliput Lectures (1871)
- Lilliput Legends (1872)
Literary criticism
edit- (As Matthew Browne) Chaucer's England (1869)
References
edit- ^ "Representative Poetry Online". Representative Poetry Online. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b c Butts, Dennis (23 September 2004). "Rands, William Brighty [pseuds. Henry Holbeach, Matthew Browne] (1823–1882), parliamentary reporter and writer". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 1 (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/23126. ISBN 978-0-19-861412-8. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
External links
edit- W. B. Rands, a memorial site by David Rands
- Poems by William Brighty Rands
- [https://openlibrary.org/books/OL7099764M/Lilliput_lyrics Lilliput Lyrics, 1899 at the Open Library
- Works by or about William Brighty Rands at the Internet Archive
- Works by William Brighty Rands at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
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