• Name: Foote, Maria (Maria Stanhope, countess of Harrington)
• Gender: Female
• Birth Date: 27  July  1797
• Death Date: 27  December  1867
• Occupation: actress

Godwin noted Maria Foote's marriage but it is possible that some earlier Foote entries also refer to her (such as the 'Foote' who attended the first night of William Tell at Drury Lane in May 1825). Foote was a leading actress, with a somewhat colourful private life, who had sued a previous suitor for breach of contract when he refused to marry her, claiming that he had only discovered her previous liaison ( and the two children from it). She returned to the stage (having been awarded £3,000 damages) in 1825, and drew large audiences. She eventually married Charles Stanhope, 4th Earl of Harrington, in 1831 (hence Godwin's note) and retired from public life. The DNB suggests that 'unable to move in society, (she) lived in virtual seclusion.

It is possible that Godwin knew some of her family. There are references to Foote on 3 May 1802, and 20 August 1814. While the latter is the year that Maria comes to London and appears at Covent Garden, the former must be to another person. There is also a reference on 11 May 1825 to Footes at the theatre, which suggests some component of Maria's family, possibly including herself. Maria's father was Samuel T. Foote, a theatre manager who ran a theatre in Plymouth. Given Godwin's interest in the theatre it is possible he knew the father.

There is also an entry to J Foote on 1 May 1809, and this may refer to the same person as the two entries for Jesse Foote in 1819 and 1821. This may be a relative of Maria Foote, but none is noted in the DNB..

• DNB

This table lists the people this person is most frequently noted with in the diary.