Margaret Hughes, better known for playing Desdemona in Shakespeare's tragedy Othello, isn't your average theatre actress.
Growing into a true celebrity during her lifetime and living an existence between arts and scandals, Margaret “Peg” Hughes made history as the first stage actress ever.
Her career began in London during an era of dramatic changes: the Stuart Restoration of King Charles II.
An enthusiastic theatre-goer himself, during this time the king lifted the infamous theatre ban (placed by the Puritan-led government on theatres across England in 1642) and allowed arts to flourish under his patronage.
Did you know?
In 1660, King Charles II granted Thomas Killigrew and Sir William Davenant the official privilege to form acting companies: Killigrew founded the King’s Company, in honour of the king. Davenant’s Duke’s Company takes its name because of the patronage of the king’s brother, then the Duke of York.
Born in London, Margaret ascended to prominence after her first performance when she was 30.
Most historians agree, today, that she was the first woman to act on stage when she played the role of Desdemona in Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice for The King's Company.
The event took place in a converted tennis court called the Vere Street Theatre, in London.
Consequently, Margaret is also the first woman to have performed the role of Desdemona, Othello's wife and one of the central characters in the tragedy.
She almost certainly played that same role in the performance of Othello that was documented by diarist Samuel Pepys on 6 February 1669.
Did you know that Shakespeare, the overall best-selling playwright of all time, also broke records by inventing words?
For example, the record for the first known use of the word assassin: the earliest known literary use of the word assassination in English, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, was in 1605's Macabeth.
Similarly, he set the record for the first-ever written use of the word "birding"!
The word (meaning ‘bird watching') appears in Scene 5, Act 3 of the play The Merry Wives of Windsor (1602).
Hughes's arrival on the English stage was revolutionary, but not without challenges.
Navigating the 17th-century theatrical landscape was no easy feat: although the introduction of female actresses was surprisingly well-received by the audience of the time, the profession still faced scepticism and moral scrutiny.
Female performers could be accused of promiscuity, and male actors didn't look forward to sharing profits and limelight with their lady colleagues.
The swift rise to fame of some actresses further fuelled a fiery competition.
However, despite the social pressures and the undeniable objectification that came with the role, Hughes and her colleagues proved that actresses could become influential figures – her colleague Nell Gwyn became the long-time lover of the King, and the actress Elizabeth Barry became famous for her performances and high profits.
While details about Hughes's personal life are scarce, gossip about her lovers adds another layer of intrigue to her personal story.
Her love life was often rumoured about, with diarist Samuel Pepys writing about her liaison with the famous dramatist Sir Charles Sedley.
She was also said to have been briefly involved with the King himself!
However, "Peg" was mostly known for her relationship with the influential army officer Prince Rupert of the Rhine: under the nobleman's patronage she achieved status and a place in one of the two best theatre companies of the time.
For Rupert, the acclaimed actress also left the stage around 1670.
The two never married, but Rupert recognized their daughter and showered both her and Margaret in jewels and money.
Margaret returned to the stage with the prestigious Duke’s Company for one busy year in 1676.
Although her life was dazzling and she lived in luxury, Margaret didn’t die rich: her misfortune was caused, mainly, by gambling.
Although she inherited a generous sum after Prince Rupert's death in 1682, Margaret gambled away her share and probably spent her old age dependent on her daughter.
A “mighty beauty,” in Pepy's words, she will still be remembered as one of the figures who forever changed the history of acting.
It’s thanks to women like Margaret that we can now celebrate records such as the longest career as an actress (broken by Dercy Goncalves with 86 years on stage) or the most in-demand actress.
Throughout the season 2022-2023, according to data-science firm Parrot Analytics, the Indian superstar Priyanka Chopra was the most in-demand actress in the world. Chopra can boast a global demand rating 33.6 times greater than that of the average actress.
But some things never change: today, just as at the time of the first female Desdemona, William Shakespeare remains astoundingly popular.
With a total of 1,774 writing credits in film and television productions (and counting), he is the most filmed author of all time.
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