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With John putting some wonderful details of the past on his thread "It Happened", it has reminded me of the Flat area to the side of the old Salisbury Pub.

Does anyone remember a small circus going there, apart from the fairs?

Brian

brianblaenboy wrote:With John putting some wonderful details of the past on his thread "It Happened", it has reminded me of the Flat area to the side of the old Salisbury Pub.

Does anyone remember a small circus going there, apart from the fairs?

Brian

Yes, but it was mainly fairs, and of course the biggest bonfire of Nov 5th! Why on earth we used to say house to house "anything for the salvage?" everyone knew it was for the bonfire

In our V shaped valley, there was very little flat land - anywhere.
No wonder that the "banana" tip was replaced by pristine lawned playing fields!

Yes I remember a circus on the flat. The fair that returned every year was Scarrott's.

Many thanks Evandale, I was pretty sure one had been there, but as no-one commented, thought I may have been wrong. Would I be right there was a dare-devil type motorbike thing at some point?

Was it Bertram Mills Circus?
I remember going to a circus on the 'flats' a number of times as a kid.
I don't think the motorbike was a part of the circus, I think it was with the fairground.
The rider went around inside a cage - there was also one at Barry Island fair doing the same thing.
As far as motorbikes in other venues, what about the big sports/gymkhana days up the park.
I remember Sid Davies rigging up his motorbike and sidecar so that he drove it from inside the sidecar. It looked like there was a runaway bike and sidecar on the field - well, the red-ash surface.
There would be everything there from kazoo bands, marching bands, tug o wars, all kinds of foot races, three legged races, everyone was involved nad it was just for enjoyment.
Simple pleasures well remembered.

Thought about that motor bike last night - is was not in a cage it was in a big cylinder construction with a viewing platorm around the top, and it was called The Wall of Death.

Well done Gary, Health and Safety today has stopped so much. I was telling some-one about sliding down the mountain in the snow on a sheet of cardboard, they thought I'd come from another planet!!!

I Remember the wall of death act. The rider did all sorts of acts after setting his bike to a fixed throttle like hand stands and piggy back while whizzing round the cylinder at about 20mph great stuff. Never seen it since

Here's a similar act, but less daring - (no piggy back or handstands)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNM9GFV9adg

I seem to remember going to the circus and the fair down on the 'flat'.

During my search of census forms for 1901, I came across the entry for 'vans near Salisbury Hotel' showing a list of 4 showmen - 3 from one family with all the rest of the family there as well plus an entry for a 'Professional menagerie exhibit proprietor' with 7 workers including 2 ostlers. The head of the showman family was a William Kinder.

Sheila