The Club (dining club)

[2] Initially, the Club would meet one evening per week at seven, at the Turk's Head Inn in Gerrard Street, Soho.

The introduction of the phrase to Britain was probably through Sir Joshua Reynolds who went to Italy for his higher training in Renaissance art and painting with the contemporary Italian masters.

Membership was then increased to 12; the new seats were filled by barrister Robert Chambers, and writers Thomas Percy and George Colman.

Of Johnson's goal, Percy claimed: It was intended the Club should consist of Such men, as that if only Two of them chanced to meet, they should be able to entertain each other without wanting the addition of more Company to pass the Evening agreeably.

Later member Charles Burney wrote that Johnson wanted a group "composed of the heads of every liberal and literary profession" and "have somebody to refer to in our doubts and discussions, by whose Science we might be enlightened."

[3] By 1783 the number had risen again to 35, including several Whig politicians, so that Johnson and other older members began to attend dinners less frequently.

Plaque marking the foundation of the Club
Samuel Johnson – Dictionary writer Boswell – Biographer Sir Joshua Reynolds – Host David Garrick – actor Edmund Burke – statesman Pasqual Paoli – Corsican patriot Charles Burney – music historian Thomas Warton – poet laureate Oliver Goldsmith – writer Joshua Reynolds' painting ''The Infant Academy'' (1782) Joshua Reynolds' painting ''Puck'' (1789) An unknown portrait servant – poss. Francis Barber Use button to enlarge or use hyperlinks
A literary party at Sir Joshua Reynolds's. The 1851 engraving after Doyle shows the friends of Reynolds—many of whom were members of "The Club"— use cursor to identify each person