Andy Blake; or, the Irish Diamond

Abstract

This scholarly edition of Andy Blake includes an introduction arguing for its claim to be Dion Boucicault’s first Irish drama. It also emphasises Agnes Robertson’s part in developing Boucicault’s comic heroes, while playing a boy. Consideration of the French source text reveals a connection with a revolutionary figure, the gamin de Paris, and demonstrates how Boucicault’s adaptation added a backdrop of British military imperialism.