Cyril Harcourt

Cyril Harcourt (born Cyril Worsley Perkins on 30 December 1872 in Hendon, Middlesex; died 4 March 1924 in Menton, Alpes-Maritimes, France) was a writer and performer active on both the London and New York stages. Educated at Bedford School from 1881 to 1888, he initially intended to enter holy orders before qualifying as an engineer. He subsequently trained for the operatic stage and eventually became an actor who appeared in his own plays.

Harcourt's playwriting career began in London with The Axis, produced at the Criterion Theatre in July 1905. Two further plays followed at the same venue: The Reformer in 1907 and The Recompense in 1910. A Place in the Sun, staged at the Comedy Theatre in 1913, brought him greater recognition; in it he played a man of letters whose early poverty had left him embittered. His most prominent work, A Pair of Silk Stockings, premiered at the Criterion Theatre in 1914 and subsequently transferred to New York City. The play was adapted for the cinema three times by 1932. In May 1917, Wanted, A Husband, starring Gladys Cooper, was produced at the Playhouse Theatre. In the Night followed at the Kingsway Theatre in 1919, and Will You Kiss Me? was produced at the Comedy Theatre in 1920.

On Broadway, Harcourt was active as both a performer and book writer between 1914 and 1918. His Broadway credits include A Pair of Petticoats, A Lady's Name, A Place in the Sun, A Pair of Silk Stockings, and The Intruder. In 1918, he formed a management company with Norman Pritchard at the Comedy Theatre in New York City. Beyond the stage, Harcourt published two novels, The World's Daughter in 1913 and First Cousin to a Dream in 1914. He died in Menton, France, on 4 March 1924 at the age of 51.