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THE DRURY LANE LODGE No.2127 was consecrated in the Grand Temple of Freemasons Hall on 25th January, 1886. The Warrant which had been granted on the 10th November, 1885 was personally signed by the then Grand Master, The Prince of Wales, who was later to become King Edward VII.
The prime mover involved in the foundation of the Lodge was Augustus Harris, who had started as an opera impresario at the Drury Lane Theatre in 1883, five years later he took over the lease of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. He had been initiated into Freemasonry into the Lodge St Clair No. 349 in Edinburgh and had received all three degrees in one evening. Following his initiation August Harris was touring with a concert party in Norway. During this time he encountered a number of problems and he was assisted in resolving these by a number of Norwegian freemasons. He never forgot their kindness and this incident led him to the founding of the Drury Lane Lodge.
There were thirteen founder members and amongst these were William Henry, Earl of Londesborough, Augustus Harris, Sir John Gorst, Henry Neville, Admiral Sir Edward Inglefield and Lt.Col Horatio Kitchener. As Augustus Harris had not served in the office Warden he was unable to become the first Worshipful Master and consequently the Earl of Londesborough occupied the chair at the first meeting. During the following years many well known actors were initiated into the Drury Lane Lodge, and whilst the Lodge has always been primarily for members of the acting profession Initiates and Joining Members have always been welcomed from other walks of life. The initiation of the late Capt. Robert Falcon Scott (Scott of the Antarctic) took place at the beginning of the last century and Scott was raised to the Third Degree in Christchurch, New Zealand whilst on a voyage, with the "Discovery" in 1904. Both Capt. Robert Falcon Scott and Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton were subsequently in the Navy Lodge No. 2612
One hundred and twenty years later the Drury Lane Lodge still continues to hold meetings four times a year, at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. The summons for the first Regular Meeting held on the 1st May, 1886 describes the venue as the Masonic Temple, Drury Lane Theatre. A drawing of that Temple is shown below . The photograph on the left is the the Grand Saloon Bar which we now currently lay out as our Temple for lodge meetings.
Details of the current existence of part of the old temple have only recently come to light. This followed the discovery of a booklet "The Craft, The Drama and Drury Lane", which was written in 1887 by A.M. Broadley, one of the Founders of the Lodge. The remaining copy of this booklet is held in the library at UGLE. Following investigations at the Theatre Royal it was found by chance in 2002, that the temple was originally where the kitchen and offices are now situated. The original ceiling of the temple is now visible above a suspended ceiling. The dome and lantern light can be clearly seen, together with the upper part of two of the pillars. At the moment it is not possible to say when the original temple ceased to be used for our meetings The Lodge meetings are held on the second Tuesday in February (Installation), March and April, with the October meeting being held on the third Tuesday of that month. All meetings are held during the afternoon and the members dine in the evening at the Concert Artists Association Club, Covent Garden. London Whilst membership of the Lodge is primarily for those from the theatrical profession, we also have members from a diversity of backgrounds.
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