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2025 Week 51: Musical #52Ancestorsin52Weeks

When I'm looking at census records I find it useful to look at other records on the page other than those of the family I'm searching for. One day in September I was checking out census records for my 4 x great grandfather James Somerville. I know he was a medical doctor and that he studied at the University of Edinburgh and that he came to live in Cambusnethan Parish in Lanarkshire. I have his marriage, his children, but no death locally. Nor can I find that of his wife, Janet Telfer. It made sense therefore to check further afield, so I was looking over 1841 census details of three James Somervilles in other parts of Scotland, when something - or should I say - someone else caught my eye in the census for Drumelzie in Peeblesshire.

Further up the page, lodging with a farmer was a man named Charles Mackay, aged 50 who was a ... comedian by trade! Really??? A comedian in 1841? I'd never come across such a thing before. Maybe the person giving the census responses was being a bit of a comedian themself and the poor census taker just wrote it down!

Source: Scotlands People 1841 Census of Scotland

However, this being all quite weird - and dare I say funny - I shared what I'd found with my daughter Katie and my husband, Martin. Katie's response echoed mine " Was there such a thing in 1841??" whereas Martin took it more seriously and did a bit of googling.
Source: https://www.northern-scot.co.uk/_media/img/7PY3756TU7L4MT8ZYF50.jpg

And there he was! Charles Mackay (1814-1889) was a popular 19th century comedian and actor, famous for his performances in the role of Baillie Nicol from Sir Walter Scott's 'Rob Roy'. He even toured with a show called the "The Real Mackay".  Maybe he was lodging with the farmer while 'on tour'?? Or hiding out from the 1841 paparazzi! :)

There is even a biographical novel written about him by one of his descendants, Helen Graham who talks about this on YouTube The Real Mackay  Seemingly Mackay’s comic genius and impact earned him admiration from Sir Walter Scott himself, who wrote letters praising his performance, attended his shows, and publicly toasted him. Mackay's legacy also lives on in the phrase “the real Mackay”, the likely origin of the now global expression “the real McCoy.” 

It might be a bit of a stretch writing about Charles Mackay under the heading 'Musical' but he would have been performing in music halls and theatres all round the country.  I found out that he had got offered a contract to act in Drury Lane in London, but preferred to stay in Edinburgh. He also acted in plays where he might have sung a song or two. In any case, this chance 'meeting' of me and Charles Mackay deserved a place in my blog, even although he has no place in my family tree.

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