After early study in voice and organ, Cellier served as organist at All Saints' Church, Blackheath, and at Ulster Hall in Belfast. His true ambition was in the area of theatrical composition and he left his work as an organist to become the first musical director of the Court Theatre in London. He went on to many associations with theaters in Europe, Australia, and the U.S. One of his first works produced was Charity Begins at Home (1872) for the German Reeds' Gallery of Illustration entertainment. Nearly all of Cellier's compositions were for the stage and his most successful was Dorothy (1886), derived from the work Nell Gwynne. This musical comedy enjoyed tremendous popularity, with 931 performances in London alone. Cellier has been compared to Arthur Sullivan, although as G.B. Shaw said, Sullivan was spontaneously vivacious, but Cellier was only energetic. However, his works contain charming melodies and well-constructed vocal ensembles.