George Etherege

Sir George Etherege was an English diplomat and founder of the Restoration-era comedy of manners. His first comedy, The Comical Revenge; or, Love in a Tub, premiered at Lincoln’s Inn Fields Theatre in 1664. It was an immediate success and gave Etherege an entrée into fashionable society, where he became close friends with literary names, such as Sir Charles Sedley and Lord Rochester. He was nicknamed "gentle George" and "easy Etheredge" by his contemporaries. However his second play, She wou’d if she cou’d (1668), was not a success, reportedly due to a poor production.

From 1668 to 1671 Etherege served as secretary to the English ambassador in Turkey but, upon his return, he wrote the prologue for the opening of the new Dorset Garden Theatre. It was there that his last comedy, The Man of Mode; or, Sir Fopling Flutter, was produced to great critical acclaim in 1676. However, shortly after he lost his fortune to gambling. George Etherege was knighted in 1680. Following the Glorious Revolution, Etherege remained loyal to James II and joined him in exile in Paris. He died there in 1692.