Beddoes, Thomas Lovell (1803-1849)

English poet and dramatist. His unfinished revenge drama Death's Jest Book, begun 1825 and frequently revised, was published 1850. Many of his lyrical poems, such as ‘If there were dreams to sell’, are justly admired.

Beddoes was born in Bristol, and educated at Oxford. From 1824 he lived a wandering life abroad, chiefly in Germany and Switzerland, but his revolutionary views prevented his remaining long in one place. He committed suicide in Basel.

His poetic drama The Bride's Tragedy 1822 is modelled on John Webster and Cyril Tourneur, and his verse echoes that of the Jacobean dramatists.