Robert "Romeo" Coates was an English eccentric, best remembered for his career as an amateur actor. He was known for a highly mistaken belief in his own thespian prowess, including dubious claims to be the best actor in Britain. Born in Antigua in the West Indies and educated in England, he began to appear in plays in Bath in 1809, and became notorious for his fondness for appearing in leading roles. His favourite role was Romeo in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, hence his widely used nickname. After professional theatrical producers failed to cast Coates in roles prominent enough to satisfy him, he used his family fortune to subsidise his own productions in which he was both the producer and the lead actor.
- Occupation
- actor, stage actor
- Citizenship
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
- Born
- 1772
