Written by admin on 15 November, 2009 – 10:17 am -
Born in a small town near Leeds in 1864, Phil May was orphaned at the age of only nine. He did manage to find work but wasn't reliable and eventually ended up begging. But he obviously had artistic talent and soon found that he could earn money by selling his pictures of the stage celebrities of the day.
He moved to London at the age of 14 and spent some time living rough before he was able to find employment as a designer to a theatrical costumier. He also drew posters and cartoons and worked for the St Stephens Review. May moved to Australia in order to improve his health and worked for the Sydney Bulletin producing many many drawings.
Moving back to London in 1892 via Rome and Paris, May resumed his career with the St Stephens Review. Like Tom Browne he was a founder member of the London Sketch Club and produced a lot of his postcard work for Tucks. In another parallel with Browne, he also died prematurely, in 1903. He had been a heavy drinker and it is reported that due to the wasting disease that killed him, he weighed only 5 stone when he died.
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