13/06/2026
The Dancing Marquess of Anglesey
Few figures in Welsh history are as fascinating, misunderstood, and ultimately tragic as Henry Paget, the 5th Marquess of Anglesey.
When he inherited the title and vast family fortune in 1898, Henry became one of the wealthiest men in Britain. Victorian society expected him to follow a well-worn path: manage his estates, fulfil his duties as a nobleman, and uphold the traditions of one of Wales' most prominent families.
But Henry was never destined to live a conventional life.
At a time when society demanded conformity, he was drawn to theatre, music, fashion and performance. Rather than seeing Plas Newydd simply as a country estate, he saw something more. Renaming it "Anglesey Castle", he transformed the estate chapel into the Gaiety Theatre, a 150-seat venue where imagination and creativity took centre stage.
There, Henry became the star of his own productions. Dressed in elaborate costumes adorned with jewels, silk and feathers, he appeared in pantomimes, musical revues, Shakespeare's Henry V and Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband. What began as private performances for invited guests eventually grew into public productions, and by 1901 the theatre had been fitted with electric stage lighting, bringing a level of spectacle rarely seen in North Wales at the time.
For Henry, theatre was far more than entertainment.
It was a way of expressing who he truly was.
For several years he toured Britain and Europe with his own theatre company, pouring his energy, imagination and fortune into the world he loved. While audiences were often captivated, many newspapers and social commentators treated him with ridicule. Victorian Britain had little patience for those who stepped outside the boundaries of what society considered acceptable, and Henry's flamboyant personality made him an easy target.
In January 1898, shortly before inheriting the title, the then Earl of Uxbridge married his first cousin, Lilian Florence Maud Chetwynd. Like many aristocratic marriages of the era, the union was expected to strengthen family ties and secure the future of the family line. However, the marriage would prove to be short-lived and unhappy.
His personal life was equally complicated. His marriage to Lilian eventually broke down, and divorce proceedings began in 1900. The marriage was later annulled, and it has long been believed that it was never consummated. Whatever the truth, it is clear that Henry lived much of his life at odds with the expectations placed upon him by family, society and his position.
With his marriage in ruins and criticism following him wherever he went, Henry increasingly retreated into the world of theatre and performance that had always brought him happiness.
But following his dream came at a tremendous cost.
By the time of his death, he had spent a fortune worth well over £200 million in today's money. Vast sums were poured into productions, costumes, jewellery, travel and entertainment. To many, it was an act of extraordinary extravagance. To others, it was the price paid by a man determined to live authentically in a world that offered him little freedom to do so.
Tragically, Henry died in Monte Carlo in 1905 following a long illness. He was only 29 years old. In a touching final chapter to a complicated relationship, his former wife Lilian was by his side when he passed away.
His body was returned to Anglesey and laid to rest at St Edwen's Church in Llanedwen.
Despite the ridicule he often endured in the national press, those who knew him appear to have seen a very different person. Reporting on his death, The Times noted that he remained well liked by the people of Bangor, many of whom were genuinely saddened by the news. Behind the headlines and gossip was a man remembered with warmth and affection by those whose lives he had touched.
The title passed to his cousin, Charles Henry Alexander Paget, who took a very different view of his predecessor's legacy. Much of Henry's personal archive was destroyed, including papers that may have shed further light on his life. The Gaiety Theatre, the centrepiece of his artistic vision, was converted back into a chapel. It was almost as if an attempt had been made to erase the world he had created.
Yet his story refused to disappear.
More than a century later, Henry Paget appears in many ways to have been ahead of his time. The Victorian world had little tolerance for those who lived differently, yet Henry refused to suppress the things that brought him joy. What many condemned during his lifetime is often viewed far more sympathetically today.
His extraordinary life is now being brought to a new audience through the film Madfabulous, which tells the story of a man who chose creativity over convention and self-expression over acceptance.
More than a century after his death, the Dancing Marquess remains one of Anglesey's most unforgettable figures. His fortune vanished, his theatre was dismantled, and many of his papers were destroyed. Yet his story endured. Not because of his wealth or his title, but because he had the courage to be himself in an age that expected him to be someone else.
