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Story: Humour

Charles Thatcher, 1855

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Charles Thatcher, 1855

This painting shows the inimitable Charles Thatcher, New Zealand's first nationally known humorist, in full cry. In between his several tours of New Zealand, Thatcher performed his comic songs at goldfields in Australia. Here, he is on stage in the Charlie Napier Hotel, Ballarat, in 1855.

Using this item

National Library of Australia

Reference: nla.pic-an2376957

by Samuel Thomas Gill

Permission of the National Library of Australia must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Caroline Harker, Humour – The origins of Kiwi humour, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/37520/charles-thatcher-1855 (accessed 16 June 2026).

Story by Caroline Harker, published 27 March 2012.