Martha Cranmer Oliver

Black Eyed Susan by F. C. Burnand, Oliver's greatest success Martha Cranmer Oliver (1834 – 20 December 1880), also known as Pattie Oliver or M. Oliver, was an English actress and theatre manager.

Beginning as a child actor near her home in Salisbury, Oliver was performing in London by age 13. She played in major theatre companies in the West End, including those of Madame Vestris and J. B. Buckstone. She was the leading comic actress at the Strand Theatre for several seasons in the late 1850s. She also played Mary Meredith in the hit play Our American Cousin at the Haymarket Theatre, among other engagements.

In March 1866, Oliver became manager of the New Royalty Theatre, often taking leading roles. In November 1866, she produced F. C. Burnand's burlesque on Black-eyed Susan. The piece was an enormous hit, playing for nearly 500 nights at the theatre, with Oliver starring in the title role. She was also known for helping members of her profession. She gave up management in 1870, acting in New York for a time with Lydia Thompson's troupe, but soon retired from the stage.

Early life and career Oliver was born at Salisbury, the daughter of Ann Oliver and John Cranmer Penson, an actor manager in Salisbury. Her sister was Frances Cranmer Oliver who married the actor Frederick Hastings Bullen. She first appeared on stage in Salisbury when only six years old. Here and at Southampton her performances of children's parts attracted attention, until in 1847 she made her London début at the Marylebone Theatre.

Her early success gained her an engagement with Madame Vestris at the Lyceum Theatre, London, which lasted from 1849 to 1855. In 1855 she went to Drury Lane, where she soon played Matilda in Married for Money, and, in 1856, Celia in As You Like It. In the same year, her performance of Helen in the Hunchback won such praise from the critics that J. B. Buckstone offered her an engagement at the Haymarket Theatre.

After this period, however, she was seldom seen on the stage. She was a very pleasing actress and singer, and a general favourite with the public. The Era described the "refined vivacity and sparkling brightness" of her portrayals, her kindness, and her popularity among members of the theatrical profession. She generously advised young, and supported aged and unfortunate, actors. Oliver married, by license at the registry office, Marylebone, on 26 December 1876, William Charles Phillips, auctioneer, aged 31, son of William Phillips, auctioneer, of Bond Street, London.

Death Oliver died of cancer at St. John's Wood, London, in 1880, aged 46.