AustLit

There is some confusion over this play and one of its possible variant titles. In Gentleman George (q.v.), Eric Irvin indicates that throughout his career George Darrell would restage some plays under different titles, sometimes slightly changed (p215). According to Irvin (on page 185) The Crimson Thread was later called Convict Once, The Crimes of Chicago and From Scotland Yard. However, in the list of plays presented in the biography's appendix (including first production dates), Irvin mentions only The Crimes of Chicago and From Scotland Yard under The Crimson Thread section (217). Although he collates Convict Once (q.v.) and The Crimson Thread in the Convict Once section (further down the same page) Irvin provides a different premiere date for The Crimson Thread to that given above (1896 as opposed to 1894). To add to the confusion Irvin appears to treat both plays as unrelated when referring to Darrell's movements in 1886 (following his Sydney season at her Majesty's Theatre). Here Irvin writes :

A fortnight's run of The Sunny South was followed by thirteen performances of The Crimson Thread... He tried [Trilby] out first in Brisbane, playing Svengali himslef, but not until he had given the first performance of another of his not quite successful plays, Convict Once (192).