Surname: Collins Forename(s): John b. 1742. d. 2 May 1808. Nationality: English. VIAF.
Actor, playwright, essayist, and poet. Know colloquially as “Brush Collins” later
in his career. Born in Bath and baptized on 24 September 1742. Performed in Bath,
Dublin, Belfast, Birmingham, and London. Married Ann Shellard on 24 January 1768.
Author of King Charles I (1775), The Brush (1790) (for which he received his nickname), and Scripscrapologia (1804), a collection of his poems and songs. Co-owner and contributor of poems and
essays to the Birmingham Chronicle. Biographical information: ODNB. (CC)