The actor and theater manager James Winston (1773?-1843) became the proprietor of the Richmond (Surrey) Theatre in 1799 under the name of James Neville. In 1805, as James Winston, he purchased an interest in the Haymarket Theatre in London. From 1819 to 1927 he was acting manager of the Drury Lane Theater on behalf of the actor/manager and lessee, Robert William Elliston.