"Blackie", as he was known to friends and colleagues, married fellow D'Oyly Carter Theresa Mary Hewett "Tessa" Snelson (1870–1939) in 1902; they were introduced to each other on the stage of the Savoy Theatre by W. S. Gilbert.The two became early members of the Gilbert and Sullivan Society in London, in which they both served on the Entertainment Committee, supervising 'dramatic recitals' for the Society in celebration of the operas' jubilees, including staging excerpts from "Utopia, Limited" and "The Gondoliers" for the Society's 1936 centenary celebration of the birth of W. S. Gilbert.