Born in Southport, Lancashire, William McFarland (1836-1898) came to Dundee in the mid-1860s with a production of a diorama at the Kinnaird Hall. Shortly after he was engaged by Sangers to run the circus building at East Dock Street.
This was just the start of a considerable career in Dundee and Aberdeen, where McFarland also managed several theatres over the next 30 years.
