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A Rich Tapestry of Cultures

There are many different Traveller communities that live in the United Kingdom, though it is important to approach the question of identity with care and respect. It is important for individuals to self-ascribe.

Roma, Gypsies and Travellers of Irish Heritage are all recognised ethnic minority communities and will have the protection of the Race Relation Act 1976 and the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

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Story from Traveller Post

Roll Up, Roll Up!

By Valda Eagle, the Ringmistress

This article is taken from the second issue of the Travellers Post published by the Gypsy Roma Traveller Achievement Service.

I have worked with the animals riding the elephants, presenting the horses, showing the snakes and helping to look after the other animals like the camels, llamas, lions and tigers especially the young cubs.

My name is Valda and my husband’s name is Peter, we have three children, two sons and a daughter. Gavin who is 24, Ashley who is 20 and Leanne who is 17 years. They were all born into the circus. I joined the circus at a young age and met and married my husband who was the circus manager.

The wedding was televised and in all the local papers. We were working in Bradford at the time, we had the wedding in the morning then back to the Big Top for the two evening shows and then partied afterwards.

The children were born in different parts of the country. They were all christened at a month old. It is normal for the christenings to take place in the circus ring among family friends and the animals, normally this takes place on a Sunday after the performance and the general public are invited to stay and join us for the christening.

I was in the circus for many years. I did various things including fire eating, stood at the knife board, bed of nails, rolling globe, aerial ladder, ringmistress and whatever else I had to do. The children used to do the Circus Parade. At the beginning of a performance they would dress up as clowns, ballerinas on horseback and indians.

It depended on what aspect of the circus they were interested in and this is their way of gaining experience in front of the public.

We left the travelling circus to try and give the family an education. Gavin had not been to school until he was 10 years old, none of them could read or write. It wasn’t because they didn’t want to, but the schools would refuse to take them while we were travelling. This is why I got in touch with the Travellers Education who helped us to find schools and gave us full support. Having come from a family that cannot read or write I knew how important it was for them to learn.

Items I put out to display when talking to schools.

Gavin went onto college then university gaining his degree in printing. Ashley went to college and now has his own business and Leanne is still at college studying law, health and social studies. I go into schools and colleges to give talks. I take in display items, costumes, photos and props depending on what age group they are. At the moment I’m helping to write a book on Horse and Gypsy Fairs in England and abroad, because I come from a Gypsy background they asked me if I would like to be involved. I’ve always gone to Appleby Horse Fair with my family, my father always had horses and used them for work and play. When we settled down in Hartlepool we had 3 horses, 1 donkey, a llama, a pet puma and a dog. Animals have always been part of me and my family’s life.

Next year we are doing booklets on Circus, Gypsy and Fairground life, these are to be given out at schools and anywhere where Travellers meet. The work that we do now involves a lot of travelling around the country so we still get lots of opportunities to meet up with family and friends whether they are from the Circus, Gypsy or Fairground; its great to get together.

A Brief History

It is said that Circus started 100’s of years ago when royalty was entertained by jugglers and contortionists. There was also a lot of animal entertainment with horses, lions, tigers and bears. The first touring circus was Philip Astley’s circus which started in London 1770, he was a one time sergeant major in the 15th light dragoons who had great equestrian expertise.

The American circus Barnum and Bailey ‘Greatest Show on Earth’ was founded in 1907 and is still going strong today.

Family Life on the Circus

Like most Travellers, Circus families are large and tend to live and work together, the older generation teaching the younger ones all they will need to know for circus life.

Circus folk tend to marry within their own community although it has been known for a flattie, gorgio or someone from the settled community to marry into the circus community and adapt and live quite happily. Divorce is quite rare; marriage is for life and divorce can bring shame on a family.

In the circus getting married is a big affair, it’s about showing the other families your wealth and status. In the circus community everything is big and glitzy just like the circus itself.

If someone dies people come from far and wide to pay their last respects. It is a sad time but the show must go on, and you are taught at a young age that no matter how much you hurt inside you must go into the ring and smile. Circus has its own language but the younger generation use it less so now, probably because of a better education.

Years ago circus people were classed as thieves and freaks but most of them are now highly educated and are well capable of standing up and dealing with any situation, thanks to the Traveller Education and computers.

Having an education is not just for the young ones, there are a lot of courses that the circus men and women go on, it can be HGV, welding, signwriting, computing, business management and much more. This has brought Circus to what it is today, a multi-million pound business.

On the circus each family member has their jobs to do. Everyone works and shares the tasks, this helps with the smooth running of the show both inside the Big Top and out. During the day the men tend to the lorries, seating and Big Top, and the women look after the children, make costumes, work in the booking office and look after the homes. At Show Time everyone works in the Big Top, whether you’re working in the ring or in the canteen selling candy floss, every job is important. What people don’t realise is the amount of strength and stamina you need to live this life. Most shows do 2 performances a day, 7 days a week, sometimes doing two grounds a week and that includes ‘build up’ and ‘pull down.’

“Everyone in the circus has to have a love of animals and respect them. You cannot teach a wild animal through pain, it will turn on you, there has to be respect and understanding of the animal for it to work with you like training a puppy.”

Circus families are like all Travelling folk in that they collect nice ornaments; the bigger the better. They like flashy cars and jewellery and tend to dress a bit over the top, the women like long hair and all girls have their ears pierced at a young age. Most of the homes that they live in are large with pull out sides and are very extravagant. You need a mortgage to buy one.

Touring On The Circus

The Circus travels for 10 months of the year, 7 days a week, usually doing 1 week stands. In the winter it usually pulls into the circus farm, this is when new acts are formed, the lorries will be re-painted, new animals are bought and all repairs are carried out and new Big Tops are made.

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Traveller Post

Read copies of Traveller Post, the magazine for Travellers Everywhere produced by the Gypsy Roma Traveller Achievement Service in Leeds.

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