[6] In 1846 Mrs Mary Warner, Samuel Phelps and scene painter T. L. Greenwood (1806–1879), took the lease of Sadler's Wells Theatre, dedicated to performance of First Folio Shakespeare, and Hoskins was one of their first recruits, specializing in comedy parts.
He went on to play "Modus" in Knowles's The Hunchback, "Gratiano", in The Merchant of Venice, "Guiderius" in Cymbeline, "Slender" in The Merry Wives of Windsor, and "Roderigo" in Othello.
[1] He had a small but possibly significant part in the history of English theatre, as elocution coach to a young actor named Brodribb who seemed to show great promise, and shortly before leaving for Australia gave him a letter of introduction to his friend Edward D. Davis, manager of the Lyceum Theatre, Sunderland, which became a small step on Henry Irving's path to lasting fame.
[12] (another advertisement had his first appearance on 28 July 1856 as "Colonel Jack Delaware" at the "English Opera House" (Royal Lyceum, Sydney) in the farce Fast Train!
[6] In January 1860 Hoskins announced the opening of the Theatre Royal, Ballarat a week hence, touting in Melbourne for actors and musicians to perform therein, offering "liberal treatment" to "stars".
[16] Hoskins died in Melbourne, and at a benefit performance held six months later at the Princess's Theatre for his widow and child,[17] a message and contribution of 100 guineas was received from Sir Henry Irving, whom he had befriended some thirty years earlier.