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The Sandow Family Circus Variety History – Part Three.
Top booking agencies and the top theatres Moss Empire and Stoll circuits
At this point I would like to chronicle the beginning of the Sandow family. My father came from what is quite a small family name – Bratby – currently there are only several hundred in England; though more of course in total across the world. Their origins were of stonemasons in Derbyshire and the village of Bretby shows a link. I had good fortune to have been supplied with the huge family tree by one most kind member of it Ronald, who lived in Derby. He had dedicated his life to developing this tree. A great effort (small section below).
Some members have found fame, one being the late John Bratby, a well known painter. Another great uncle – William- was one of the four founding Directors of the Blackpool Tower Company (see the tree above) who designed and built that famous circus building! Strange coincidences do occur. My wonderful mother:
Eugen Sandow – the famous strongman.
My thanks to the late John Turner who sent to me the following family date list.
‘Dick Sandow, travelled to Ireland initially with Buff Bill’s circus, as a strongman in 1912. In 1918 joined Duffy and McLean’s circus. Robert’s Fossett’s Grand Circus 1923. With John Duffy and Sons circus – Ireland 1925 (Fossett’s Grand Circus – 1926). Barry’s British Empire Circus was at Lyme Regis, in 1932. Bill matter, Dick Powell Strongman. Poole Brothers Circus as from 1941 to the last stand at Fleetwood 1945. Seasons in Ireland for 1947 – 1948. Appeared in the Garden Centre Skegness for 1949 – 1950. The family engaged by Sir Rober Fossett’s Circus at the Hull Fair October 1949.
My father was inspired by the famous strongman Eugen Sandow (please see link War Circus for excellent coverage there). Father was clearly a keep fit enthusiast and acrobat prior to enlisting in the 1914-1918 war. He later serves as RSM PT Instructor (after hospitalisation) and finished service at Catterick camp in Yorkshire. After leaving war service he worked hard at a strongman act himself and subtitled it ‘Britain’s Young Sandow,’ putting together a weightlifting act for the theatres. (Mother told me they worked the famous City Varieties Leeds Variety Music Hall in the 1920s presenting the two acts). Initially he had joined Lord George Sanger’s Circus in 1908 and must have been inspired to be a performer having met with the Zola brothers there and joined them, -I must assume- and their acrobatic troupe.
Here are wonderful Parade wagons of the old Sanger’s Circus in the Victorian period.
In 1912, having teamed with Jim Zola (of the later Zola brothers I was told) they performed a double hand balancing strength table act and toured Ireland that year with Buff Bills according to John Turner. Father did tell so many anecdotal stories of the period – some very funny! Not sure that he performed a strong man act at this time – John Turner could be wrong. Their acrobatic billing over there was ‘The American Swells.’ One story he told me was, that the circus actually had no seating! The public would simply stand around or bring their own chairs. The circus performed ‘one day stands’ with a 1’oclock daily parade through the township. Father said to the proprietor ‘In England we actually have seating and if you let me out of this daily parade I will make some for you.’ This he did – the old Vs and Bracket formula.
War Circus publication.
They both volunteered for World War 1 and my father became a Royal Artillery sergeant who became hospitalised following the Somme battle. He married my mother in 1917, he being aged 27 and she being 21. She told me that they had accommodation at Catterick and the German prisoners were engaged in building the camp laundry and (apparently) digging a tunnel to escape at the same time!
After leaving the services my parents performed their own double act – table adagio – that must have been good and successful because they toured the London Variety theatres during the early 1920s. Of course there were ‘vacant dates’ and my father would tour the many theatrical agent offices to enquire about possible bookings. He did this with Jim Zola before the war and told stories about meeting other acts and people doing the same thing and joining with them in coffee bars. One name he did mention was Charlie Chaplin prior to him going to America in 1913. They were all about the same age.
It may have been the love of horses as well as each other that brought my parents together for both were ‘fanatical’ about all things equestrian. Quite different from the two acts they were presenting upon the Variety stages.
Fossett’s Grand Circus – my parents toured for the seasons 1924 – 1926 excellent details in this published book.
Poster for Barry’s Circus 1929 along with a front page of father’s strongman ‘keep fit’ booklet on sale.
Barry’s Circus 1927 to 1932.
They commenced their Barry’s Circus tenting show in 1927. It is clear they wished to be self employed rather than working for others being that the Fossett’s larger combine were ‘family’. At the same time my mother preferred open spaces to the theatres and the lodging houses and this opinion remained even in my childhood so she may have instigated a tenting show. I still have the actual tour route booklet for the 1929 season with takings and expenses listed for each day.
Tour route book 1929. A rather basic set of accounts showing the takings for each location on the left and the expenses on the right. ‘G’ meaning ground – cost £1 each day.
Photos: During the season of 1929 my parents shipped the whole circus to the Isles of Scilly. Here we see a great photo of one old living wagon being loaded upon the boat.
This is a postcard of the actual ship used, the RSM Scillonian.
Upon the reverse of the card is a message from the circus that Advance Promotional agent William Mack posted to Penzance. His message on the card was; ”This is the boat, I had a good crossing. Very nice field. A hill climb for the Ford, should take it O.K.’ (William Mack was later to commence his own large circus family and show being called Hoffmans and currently Uncle Sams American Circus)!
Actually the story goes that things were not easy, first to arrive and then place and build up the circus and father told a visiting official that it might be unlikely the show could work that day – his reply, ‘But you must! People are coming from all the islands and it may be rough seas tomorrow!’ The result was that the show did open and run if very tired, to a packed tent.
I am not clear about events to the mid-1930s with a growing family but things seem to have gone well, certainly judging by this happy photograph that included George Sanger in the centre. The party must be there on a Sunday being that they are in Sunday best! My father is seen holding the tent stake.
193os photograph.
In 1935 they called the show ‘Richard Sandow’s Circus’ and later they changed the title to ‘Sandow and Sons’ and I have just this one photograph showing this frontage. This must have been the design until the outbreak of WW2, with the family working theatres during the winter periods. When the partnership was then arranged with the Chipperfield family for the 1941 season and beyond, they chose the title Poole’s.
The combined circus programme for 1943.
Here is one old poster copy of the Poole’s combined shows. Knowing my father’s humour the title might have meant ‘pooling things!’ Sandow Sisters would suggest the year as 1945.
The best of old circus.
I would like to list just some of the persons and acts engaged by my parents and Chipperfields during the 1930s and the 1940s;
Mr Mrs Tom and Elizabeth Fossett (equestrian acts – clown)
Author Clark (Ringmaster)
Albert Kean (animal presentation) latter Cody’s circus and Sangers.
Bert Richardson – comedy juggling
Ivanoff – Cossack riding
Derek Rossaire
Bernard’s dog act
Johnny Quinn – later with Sangers 1961
Johnny Swallow (Salt and Saucy – elephants)
Charlie Beckett
Author Bean
Yeltoni Trio (head to head balancing)
Charlene and Voke – revolving ladder
Bert Harrison – clown
Author Hanlin – flying trapeze
The Flying Medranos
Arturo Pondero – foot juggling
The Viponds – acrobats on horseback
Five Canadian Wonders
Zabeda – contortionist
The Amazing Gridneff’s (perch)
Joe Barry – animal trainer presenter
Micky Cavanagh
Butch Reynolds -fine oil painting artist
Matt Henderson
Flying Aces – gymnastics
Borris (hair swing)
Karl Dane – known for being the opening gong striker for J A Rank films.
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- During the winter of 1948/49 the family appeared at the Bingley Halls Birmingham in a circus promotion with wild animal acts supplied by the Chipperfields, and a humorous thing happened there. When the Chipperfields parted from us in 1945 Richard Chipperfield gave, as a gift, two very small lion cubs. As stated my father was not a wild animal man or trainer but he toured the two cubs the next tenting season just as a view for the public. They were small and he would look after them himself like babies as in giving them milk and rubbing their tummies for which they would lay on their backs every time. He probably did this for the public too. The cubs got bigger and bigger and would bounce around the wagon walls and my father feared they might escape. He worried about this and gave them back to Chipperfields. At the Bingley Halls these two lions were then part of the large lion act presented by Dick Chipperfield and my father was the ringmaster there standing at the cage door. The two lions would recognise him and lay on their backs like old times at the cage door! Dick Chipperfield asked father to stay away during the act because they would not work with him there.
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- It was at the Bingley Halls season that my sister Violet got engaged to James Cordwell, a showman who had some side booths and small fair rides. Unfortunately the marriage did not work out with a complete clash of cultures for he could not come to terms with ‘circus people getting up at 5 am and retiring early’ when ‘showmen get up late and stay up late!’ He actually called circus philosophy ‘potty!’ The life can be illogical whereas the fairs are really regimented to the square foot. Quite obviously neither were suited to the others lifestyle. Their only son Peter toured a comedy car act.
Closing circus years.
Clearly a large circus company for the tour of Ireland in 1948. The town shown was in South Wales for the Irish Sea crossing from Fishguard. Father chose to go there many times so he must have loved the country and its people.
When the family crisis passed after the leaving of brother Richard they toured the final season, 1949 or part of, with a much smaller show. I was then needfully pushed forward to work in our family trampoline act with a basic routine and also various clown bits and pieces with Edgar Cook and ‘Butch’ Reynolds, fine gentleman clowns of that day. Very clean and pleasing. Edgars first ‘entree’ for me aged nine was to wear the big-heads as walk arounds. No problem but being rather small one head did fall off one day and I did achieve my first big audience laugh! This did not make me happy, I was most embarrassed about it. I grew more confident after that and gradually produced a persona along with some very old well used simplistic gags like the Three Times Three, the jump over the whip, the Hanky Under the Hat, and the three sticks. Also patter gags like The Wise Man and the Fool, and ‘Do you Have a Ticket’ and the ‘Echo’ (Many such gags used and perfected by my Grandfather, see Harry (Funny Harry) Fossett).
When I was about ten years of age, in 1950, the family sold the structure, stopped tenting and no longer being self employed they concentrated more on summer season bookings, be it outdoor gala events or theatre and engaged circus. Several winter circus tours were promoted by the dear family friend and London agent Don Ross and a close relationship was formed. Work during the period seemed plentiful; I recall that bookings could be selected i.e., ‘shall we take this one or that one?’ Being no longer self employed they had to supply what the bookers wanted rather than what they may have felt more relaxed with, unlike tenting with its freedom of choice. I recall that my generous father came back from a business trip to London with three expensive fur coats for the ‘girls’ as he called them – one being my mother. One toy bought for me was an expensive miniature American military jeep (pedal) with the white star on it. I would place some ‘trailers’ to the back and tow them around.
The outdoor gala bookings were most prolific to the extent that the family would even engage other acts to supplement. I would provide basic clowning but on many occasions extra adult clowns were engaged like the Cook brothers, Tommy and Gordon. These were big fellows at the time and I was much smaller. Gordon said to me ‘you will always be a big success performing the Three Sticks!’ I gathered he was being sarcastic – both brothers were like that.
With the large theatres discipline was far more demanding and acts were time watched. Most theatres being closed throughout the day meant little or no practice or chance to improve or even to start, in any case I would spend the days in local schools. This was totally negative in me showing any performance development interest. The future then did look rather black for weekly Variety – as its future proved to be – with television coming forward fast.
The family also worked many pantomimes during the Christmas season with our pony troupe also pulling the Cinderella coach. The travel unit still consisted of two large vehicles and trailers with much equipment in trapeze, wire act, pony troupe, and dog act (as required) so still a large outfit to tour around. Obviously we could not engage staff (father would never consider a groom anyway after the terrible incident that lost my mother’s pride and joy (see below). So father, sister Margaret and myself would have to care for the animals, remembering that father was very picky about how they were looked after, he was like this anyway but encouraged further following a most sad occurrence that happened previously whilst with the Chipperfields. My mother was still performing her lady ballerina act on the single horse that she doted over. There were large horse tents and the joint show engaged staff that looked after the total including our family livestock. One particular day that was very warm, the staff were told to take the horses down to an adjacent small river for a cool wash. Everything was fine except one groom took my mother’s horse without her knowledge. The horse was not young and was not keen to engage a small sloping bank to the water’s edge. The groom must have pulled on the reins – in any case the horse slipped, fell over and this caused a heart attack and the horse died. My mother was totally shocked and anguished about this and subsequently never performed again.
