DIBDIN, THOMAS JOHN English dramatist and song-writer, son of Charles Dibdin, the song-writer, the composer of "Tom Bowling," was born on March 21, 1771.
He was apprenticed to his maternal uncle, a London upholsterer, and later to William Rawlins, afterwards sheriff of London, from whose service he ran away to join a company of country players. He returned to London in 1795, having married two years before; and in the winter of 1798-99 his Jew and the Doctor was produced at Covent Garden. His 7o comedies, operas and farces brought immense popularity to the writer and immense profits to the theatres. It is stated that the pantomime of Mother Goose (1807 ) produced over f 20,000 for the management at Covent Garden theatre, and The High-mettled Racer, adapted as a pantomime from his father's play, f 18,000 at Astley's. Dibdin was prompter and pantomime writer at Drury Lane until 1816, when he took the Surrey theatre. This venture proved disastrous. After this he was manager of the Haymarket, but without his old success, and his last years were passed in comparative poverty. In 1827 he published two volumes of Reminiscences. Of his songs "The Oak Table" and "The Snug Little Island" are well known. He died in London on Sept. 16, 1841.
See Reminiscences of Thomas Dibdin (1827) ; and E. R. Dibdin The Dibdins (1888) .