Lichfield on the main routes from London to the north-west and Birmingham to the north-east. It also became a centre of great intellectual activity, being the home of many famous people including Samuel Johnson, David Garrick, Erasmus Darwin and Anna Seward; this prompted Johnson's remark that Lichfield was "a city of philosophers". In the 1720s Daniel Defoe described Lichfield as 'a fine, neat, well-built, and indifferent large city', the principal town in the region after Chester. During the late 18th and early 19th century much of the medieval city was rebuilt with the red-brick Georgian style buildings still to be seen
David Garrick (play) as an actor giving a performance. A scene from the play was painted by Edward Matthew Ward, a friend of Sothern's. The play was Robertson's first major commercial success and was frequently revived throughout the Victorian era and beyond. Several silent films were made based on "David Garrick", including versions in 1913 (starring Seymour Hicks and Ellaline Terriss), 1914 and 1916. A 1923 book, "Public Speaking Today", recommends it for performance by high school students alongside "The Importance of Being Earnest" and "The Rivals". In 1922, the play was adapted as a comic opera by Reginald Somerville and played at