Emery was born in Sunderland to a family of touring actors. He was early on the stage, and by 1798 was playing country men like Frank Oatland in Thomas Morton's A Cure for the Heartache. He also played Farmer Ashfield at the Haymarket Theatre in London, where his mother appeared in 1802 in Morton's celebrated play Speed the Plough. Morton was from County Durham himself, and it is intriguing to note that during a long and successful career as a comic actor, Emery's star turn was that of Tyke in Morton's School of Reform.
Emery was a talented painter too, and returned to the North East from time to time to paint local coastal views, including Tynemouth Castle and Sunderland lighthouse. He also produced seascapes, portraits and animal studies. In all he exhibited nineteen paintings at the royal Academy between 1801 and 1817. Unfortunately he 'drank to excess and was never so happy as when in the society of jockeys and pugilists.' Leigh Hunt gave Emery high praise and Hazlitt said of his acting: 'It is impossible to praise it sufficiently because there is never any opportunity of finding fault with it.'