Today, Gandey World Class Productions is one of the biggest producers of big top entertainment in the world. This charming, nostalgic documentary takes us back to its origins as a small family circus in the 1960s. Spot current MD Phillip Gandey when he was in short trousers!
Circus Mania
The Ultimate Book for Anyone who Dreamed of Running Away With The Circus. "A brilliant account of a vanishing art form." - Mail on Sunday
Friday, 19 February 2021
Friday, 22 January 2021
GERRY COTTLE'S CIRCUS 1976
A strongman who lifts an elephant, the world's oldest lion trainer, acrobats, clowns, wire walkers and a sign-writing fakir... it's all in this wonderful documentary, transporting us back to the heyday of Gerry Cottle's Circus in 1976, 'World Within A Ring.'
"I did what every boy wants to do. I ran away and joined the circus."
- Gerry Cottle (1945 - 2021) RIP
Thursday, 14 January 2021
GERRY COTTLE 1945 - 2021
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Gerry Cottle, Douglas McPherson, Dr Haze |
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Gerry Cottle at the Circus Mania book launch as reported in The Stage. |
For the story of Gerry Cottle's remarkable life in the circus, click here.
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...and in the updated edition of Circus Mania marking 250 years of the circus. |
Friday, 8 January 2021
15 Facts about Philip Astley, the Father of the Circus
Philip Astley, the father of the circus was born on 8 January, 279 years ago. Here are 15 facts about the man who first brought together equestrian displays, acrobats, strongmen and clowns in the circus ring.
1 Philip Astley was a cabinetmaker’s son from Newcastle-under-Lyme.
An illustration from Circus Mania |
3 He was a sergeant major in the Fifthteenth Light Dragoons.
4 Astley’s first displays of trick horse-riding were in the open air at Half Penny Hatch just south of Westminster Bridge in London.
5 His wife Patty provided musical accompaniment on a drum and also performed on horseback.
6 Their first performance was on Easter Monday, 4 April, 1768.
7 Astley’s circus performers included a strongman called Signor Colpi and a clown called Mr Merryman.
8 Astley established the still-standard diameter of the circus ring as 42-ft.
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Astley's later, grander amphitheatre |
10 Astley was invited to perform before King Louis XV of France in 1772.
11 He built France’s first purpose-built circus building, the Amphitheatre Anglais, in Paris.
12 He established circuses in 20 European cities.
13 Astley’s Amphitheatre is mentioned in books by Charles Dickens and Jane Austen.
14 His name is commemorated in the dance tunes Astley’s Ride, Astley’s Flag and Astley’s Hornpipe.
15 Astley died on 27 January 1814 and was buried in Pere Lachaise Cemetery, Paris.
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New Edition Out now! |
“A brilliant account of a vanishing art form.”
- Mail on Sunday.
Thursday, 24 December 2020
Tuesday, 24 November 2020
Big top pantomime from Planet Circus
It's behind you! But not this year's big top entertainment, as one of the UK's biggest circus companies pitches its tent for a big top pantomime this Christmas.
Planet Circus is putting on Cinderella in Lincolnshire from 11 December to 3 January.
Other yuletide entertainment includes a Christmas season at the Great Yarmouth Hippodrome while the Circus of Horrors kicks off its Revamped and Rockin' theatre tour at Wookey Hole January 8.
And the good news is that the social distancing and other safety measures that Britain's big tops have put in place since returning to the road this summer have proved effective.
According to official test and trace results, not a single transmission of Covid-19 has been attributed to a circus or theatre show this year.
Thursday, 5 November 2020
Remember, remember
This darkness will not last forever. There will some day come a Fifth of November — or another date, it doesn't matter — when fires will burn in a chain of brightness from Land's End to John O' Groats. The children will dance and leap about them as they did in the times before. They will take each other by the hand and watch the rockets breaking, and afterwards they will go home singing to the houses full of light...
P. L. Travers,
Monday, 13 July 2020
Uncle Sam's Great American Circus in Rhyl, from 29 July
As Britain's big tops spring up all over the UK once more, Uncle Sam's Great American Circus has announced that it will be trucking into Rhyl on 29 July.
Click here to see my pictures of Uncle Sam's trademark American trucks when the show visited Norwich.
Also look out for Circus Wonderland - which stars Britain's best-dressed clowns, Mr Popol and Kakehole - when they recommence their 2020 tour in sunny Shoreham 23 - 26 July.
Saturday, 11 July 2020
Wonder Circus announces summer season in Skegness
As circuses return to the road post-lockdown, the traditionally-slanted Wonder Circus has announced its summer season from 1 August to 6 September in the seaside town of Skegness.
Information line: 07719 877 422.
To read more about Wonder Circus ringmaster Jan Erik Brenner - also known as Mr Fips the clown - click here.
SEE ALSO:
Britain's first drive-in circus opens next week.
Click HERE for more.
And if you want to know what's like to live and work in the big top, read about it in the words of the clowns, trapeze artists, tiger trainers and showmen that I interviewed for Circus Mania - The Ultimate Book For Anyone Who Dreamed of Running Away with the Circus.
Click here to buy the 2nd edition from Amazon.
Friday, 10 July 2020
Gandeys Circus returns at Halloween
Following the announcement that outdoor theatre can open from 11 July, Gandeys Circus appears to be the first big top show to announce show dates, with a Halloween Spooktacular in the West Midlands from 21 October to 1 November.
Gandeys has been working with the government and Bourne Leisure, owners of Butlins holiday camps, to pilot an airflow system and other logistics to make circus safe in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
For bookings and showtimes, visit Gandeys Circus website.
Gandeys' director, third generation circus man Phillip Gandey, has a history of innovative productions including the Chinese State Circus, Spirit of the Horse and charity circus Circus Starr, which raises funds to entertain ill and disadvantaged children. For the full story of the remarkable Circus Starr, click here.
SEE ALSO:
Britain's first drive-in circus opens next week.
Click HERE for more.
And if you want to know what's like to live and work in the big top, read about it in the words of the clowns, trapeze artists, tiger trainers and showmen that I interviewed for Circus Mania - The Ultimate Book For Anyone Who Dreamed of Running Away with the Circus.
Click here to buy the 2nd edition from Amazon.