A PLAY about the life of suffragette Edith Rigby, whose name became infamously connected to a fire at Lord Leverhulme’s house in Bolton, is set to take to the stage at this year’s International Edinburgh Festival.

Entitled Woman of Fire, the play explores her extraordinary life as a “woman of firsts”.

Born in Preston, Edith Rigby became associated with the fire at Roynton Cottage, one of the luxurious homes of Bolton’s ‘soap baronet’ William Lever, on Tuesday, July 8, 1913, which was said to be the result of an attack by suffragist arsonists.

Although claiming that it was she who had set fire, the proceedings leading up to her statement cast serious doubts on the reliability of her vague version of events.

Claire Moore, co-founder of Certain Curtain Theatre, who will play the remarkable lead role, said: “The story of Edith Rigby remains largely unsung.

“She is best known for burning down Lord Leverhulme’s house in Rivington.

“But she was a woman of ‘firsts’.

“She was the first woman, in Preston, to ride a bicycle — in bloomers — much to the horror of onlookers, even her vicar who feared for her very soul.

“She founded Preston’s first branch of ‘The Women’s Social and Political Union’ and a branch of The Women’s Institute.

“She was one of the first members of the Independent Labour Party — from which she was later expelled.”

Just before her 21st birthday in 1893, Edith married Dr Charles Rigby, and they set up home at number 28 Winckley Square, Preston.

Tall, golden-haired and blue-eyed, she soon acquired a reputation as a rebel and an activist.

By instinct a socialist, Edith was an early member of the emerging Independent Labour Party (ILP), a vigorous camp-aigner for the underprivileged and an advocate for improved working conditions in Lancashire’s cotton mills.

In 1906, she became secretary of the Preston, St Anne’s and District branch of the Women’s Social and Political Union, a splinter group of the relatively moderate National Society for Women’s Suffrage. The WSPU was formed in 1903 in Manchester by Emmeline and Christabel Pankhurst.

Edith’s attachment to the particularly militant group that surrounded Christabel led to several clashes with the authorities and ultimately to her arrest and imprisonment.

Claire added: “The Edinburgh Fringe Festival during August is an ideal place to showcase this new play — Woman on Fire and gain media and industry attention for our work and our social history.”

Now there is an appeal to make sure the life of this extraordinary woman is told.

Claire said: “I’m looking for support to help cover the basic costs of taking a show to Edinburgh. Venue hire, publicity, travel etc. We operate without any funding whatsoever so every penny counts.”

She added: “I hope readers agree that Edith’s is a story worth sharing and I do hope people will help make it happen!

“We plan on having a preview performance for supporters in Lancashire before we set off for Edinburgh.

“We’d love any relatives of Edith to get in touch — Edith’s niece, Phoebe Hesketh was women’s editor of the Bolton Evening News for three years and she had three children, so I’m hoping there are family members still in the Bolton area. I’d love to invite them to see the play.”

Phoebe lived in Rivington, and was woman’s page editor of the Bolton Evening News during the Second World War.

She died in 2005.

Claire’s GoFundMe page can be found - https://www.gofundme.com/edithrigby