Bonnell Thornton (1725–1768) was an English poet, essayist, and critic.
He was educated at Westminster School, and at Christ Church, Oxford, where he graduated B.A.
[1] In 1752 Thornton founded the Drury Lane Journal, a satirical periodical which, among other things, lampooned other journals such as Johnson's Rambler, The Gentleman's Magazine and The London Magazine.
From 1754 to 1756 he published, with George Colman, a six-page weekly serial, The Connoisseur, which, although criticised by Dr. Johnson for lack of substance, ran to 140 issues.
Thornton was also a member of the Nonsense Club of Old Westminster men with George Colman, William Cowper, Charles Churchill and Robert Lloyd.