W. & D. Downey

W. & D. Downey were Victorian studio photographers operating in London from the 1860s to the 1910s.

William Downey (14 July 1829 in South Shields – 7 July 1915 in Kensington), who came to be known as the Queen's Photographer, was born in King Street in South Shields, a decade before commercial photography had become a reality. William, initially, was a carpenter and boatbuilder, but in about 1855 he set up a studio in South Shields with his brother Daniel and later established branches in Blyth, Morpeth and Newcastle. Their first Royal commission was to provide photographs for Queen Victoria of the Hartley Colliery Disaster in January 1862. Daniel Downey is his brother (1831 – 15 July 1881).

In 1863 they opened a studio on Eldon Square in Newcastle. The same year William set up a studio in the Houses of Parliament and produced portraits of every parliamentarian of the day. The resulting images' location is unknown to this day.

William moved to 57 & 61 Ebury Street in London in 1872 and opened another studio, his brother managing the Newcastle branch. The London studio enjoyed the patronage of Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales, taking photos at Balmoral and Frogmore during the 1860s. Its first Royal image was of the Princess of Wales at the York Agricultural Show in about 1865. The studio also produced the iconic carte-de-visite portrait of the Princess of Wales piggybacking Princess Louise. The studio received a Royal Warrant in 1879.

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