Boss of Billingsgate, The

"Boss of Billingsgate" (1603)

John Day, Richard Hathway, and one or more "felowe poetes"

Historical Records

Payments to Playwrights (Henslowe's Diary)

F. 109 (Greg I.173)

Lent vnto Jube the 1 of marche 1602 to geue vnto} John daye & hathwaye in earneste of a playe} [called] the bosse of bellengesgate the some of …} xxxx s

Lent the 7 of marche 1602 in parte of paymente} for the playe called the bosse of bellensgate vnto} John daye & hathwaye the some of } xxxxs

F.109^v (Greg, I.174)

pd the 12 of marche 1602 for the company} vnto John daye & his felowe poetes in fulle} payment for his playe called the bossce of} belleingesgate the some of …} xxxxs

Theatrical Provenance

The Admiral's men bought the play in March 1603, just as the playhouses were to be closed to observe the death of Queen Elizabeth; the company could not have known then that the playhouses would remain closed most of 1603 and into 1604 because of outbreaks of the plague. There is no evidence to indicate whether The Boss of Billingsgate entered, then remained in the company's active repertory over this stretch of time.

Probable Genre(s)

Neither Harbage nor Wiggins hazards a guess.

Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues

Information welcome.

Critical Commentary

Wiggins, pointing out that the title refers to a fountain, opines that the narrative could have addressed the origin of the fountain ("as a legacy from Mayor Richard Whittington") or told "a number of interlocking stories" related to the fountain and its geographical location (#1396). He considers without much enthusiasm the identification of Wentworth Smith as one of the unnamed poets.

For What It's Worth

John Lydgate wrote a whimsical ballad called "The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate" (1521). In the poem, the speaker asks the indulgence of the auditors to help the bridal couple "bye their weddynge gere," which they cannot themselves do because "they be bothe naked/ & not worth an halfpenny knife." As if the celebrant, the speaker asks if anyone knows any impediment to the marriage. He identifies the bride as "the bosse at Byllyngesgate of beauty so fayre" and the groom as "London Stone/ curtes and gente."

Works Cited

Map of Early Modern London. "The Marriage of London Stone and the Boss of Billingsgate." (MoEML)

Site created and maintained by Christopher Matusiak, updated 7 March 2011; updated further by Roslyn L. Knutson on 11 April 2016.