Overview
Jeremy Collier
(1650—1726) anti-theatrical polemicist and bishop of the nonjuring Church of England
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(1650–1726),
became a non‐juring bishop in 1713. He is chiefly remembered for his Short View of the Immorality and Profaneness of the English Stage (1698), in which he attacked Dryden, Wycherley, Congreve, Vanbrugh, D'Urfey, and Otway, complaining particularly of profanity in stage dialogue and mockery of the clergy. The work created a great impact; Congreve and D'Urfey were prosecuted, Betterton and Mrs Bracegirdle were fined, and several of the poets replied, though not very effectively. Collier contributed towards the climate that produced the ‘reformed’ drama of C. Cibber and his successors. See also Restoration.
Subjects: Literature
