John Cunningham (poet)

John Cunningham (1729, Dublin – 1773, Newcastle upon Tyne), whose parents came from Scotland, was an Irish pastoral poet and dramatist, who gained in his time some popularity. He started to write in the age of twelve, and at the age of 17 he wrote the play Love in a Mist. He was also an actor in Dublin and Edinburgh.

Cunningham died on 18 September 1773 at Newcastle upon Tyne and was buried at St John the Baptist; his table monument still exists today (2010).