Jessie Broughton

Jessie Broughton (29 March 1885 – 1938) was an English contralto and actress. She made her stage debut at the Apollo Theatre in London in 1903 and soon appeared in Véronique, Havana and A Waltz Dream in the West End. In 1910, she married, and with her husband she performed in London and toured Britain and abroad in variety and music hall, and made recordings, until the 1930s.

Broughton was born in Hackney, London, England, as Jessie Broughton Black, the daughter of Broughton Black, an actor who had performed with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. She used the stage name of Jessie Broughton and for recordings sometimes used the pseudonym Agnes Preston.

She was a voice pupil of Madame Oudin and also studied the piano.

In 1903 she was engaged by the theatre manager George Edwardes to appear at the Apollo Theatre in London's West End. Her first role there was in the musical The Girl from Kays in 1903, subsequently appearing at the same theatre in Madame Sherry. In 1904 she appeared again at the Apollo in the small role of Irma in Véronique. During the 1905–6 season she performed as a solo vocalist at the Empire Theatre. In 1908 she appeared as Zara in Havana at the Gaiety Theatre and, in the same year, she appeared as Friedrike in A Waltz Dream at the Hicks Theatre, touring with this production in 1909. She visited America in 1910 as well as appearing in music halls. She also made appearances at Daly's Theatre.

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