Just to the left of the gates to the Covenanters Prison are this pair of memorials to a family of Theatre impresarios, Henry Siddon on the right and his brother in law, William Henry Murray on the left. Henry was an actor who first found fame on the stage in London, before relocating to Edinburgh to take over management of The Theatre Royal at the east end of Princes Street (now the General Post office buildings). His brother in law, William, took over running the Theatre Royal after Henry died in 1815, and did an excellent job.
Both men were close to Walter Scott who brought George IV to Edinburgh in 1822. William created the settings at various venues, contrived the “revived ancient dresses” and arranged the “traditional” pageants for which George IV’s visit is much remembered to this day. William was particularly acclaimed for his success in transforming the Assembly Rooms in George Street into a theatrical palace for the Peers’ Grand Ball, an event that was pivotal in making the tartan kilt, which had until then been thought of by Edinburgh Gentry as the primitive dress of the rougher sorts in the lawless Highlands, into the national dress of the whole of Scotland. The King’s last and least formal public appearance during his visit to Edinburgh was at a theatre performance of Scott’s Rob Roy adapted and produced by Murray.
