Annie Horniman was born at Surrey Mount,
Forest Hill, London, in 1860, the elder child of
Frederick John Horniman and his first wife Rebekah née Emslie. Her father was a tea merchant and the founder of the
Horniman Museum; her grandfather was
John Horniman who founded the family tea business of Horniman and Company. Annie and her younger brother Emslie were educated privately at their home. Her father was opposed to the theatre, which he considered sinful, but their German governess took Annie and Emslie secretly to a performance of
The Merchant of Venice at
The Crystal Palace when Annie was aged 14. Annie's father allowed her to enter the
Slade School of Fine Art in 1882. Here she discovered that her talent in art was limited but she developed other interests, particularly in the theatre and opera. She took great pleasure in
Wagner's
Ring cycle and in
Ibsen's plays. She cycled in London and twice over the
Alps, smoked in public and explored alternative religions. ==Theatre founder and manager==