pedro the clown

26/04/2024

YES, I am worried. Very worried indeed.
And, if you are wondering why, then just take a look at the First Division league table.
It's the final day of the season tomorrow, and we still don't know whether Lincoln City will get through to the play-offs yet or not.
It all comes down to tomorrow's game at 12.30 when City are at home to league champions Portsmouth.
Portsmouth and Derby County are both assured of promotion and it looks good for third place Bolton and Peterborough United (in fourth spot) to be in the play-offs.
Now, here is the big question. Two more of the high-flyers are also in with a chance. There are four teams that could. Barnsley are number five with 75 points, Lincoln are in sixth spot with 74 points, and just outside the play-offs (and only just) are Oxford United also with 74 and Blackpool with 73. And every one of them plays tomorrow and exactly at the same time!
A win for Lincoln will guarantee them a place in the play-offs. No worries.
But if we don't win, and the results go well for Oxford or Blackpool it just doesn't bear thinking about!
And apart from all that pressure, I don't want the final whistle to be delayed for any of the games at all, because I want to catch the bus into Lincoln so I can go to the April Fair!!!

29/09/2023

I've not been on to my facebook for a while now. So I was more than a little surprised to see how many additional followers have joined recently.
I am delighted to see so many new friends and followers, and my very grateful thanks.
The Pedro character was created by myself during the 1980s when I was appearing in a summer season show at the Embassy Centre in Skegness. I had started out as a juggler and rope-spinner in the late 1960s, but because there weren't very many of us in the cast at Skegness, I decided to create an extra 'face.'
But Pedro quickly took over and it wasn't long before I was doing more work as the clown than I was as a juggler.
Pedro retired at Christmas 2021, when I had done more than 2,000 performances as a circus-style entertainer. At the moment, I have no immediate plans to bring him back again - although, I suppose, we never know.
If you want to find out more, my first book "Hold the Front Page and Send in the Clowns" by me (Peter Brown) was published by Paul Mould Publishing in 2007 and there may still be copies on line somewhere.
Many thanks for your interest.

25/05/2023

Between January 1967 and December 2021, I did a total of 2,018 public appearances as a circus-style entertainer. Now, bearing in mind that I am talking about more than half-a-century of my life, you might be wondering how on earth I past my time! But, in fairness, I must point out that I did do other things as well including 57 years in newspapers!

Anyway, the reason for all this, is that today I am marking a milestone in my life. It's 25 years ago since Lynn and I first met, and it happened during one of my appearances as Pedro the Clown.
It was Spring Bank Holiday Monday May 25, 1998. and I was appearing at Elsham Hall Country Park. not far from Brigg, right through the weekend. It was one of my one-man shows and there were three performances a day, sometimes in a marquee and sometimes inside the nearby Barn Theatre.
Lynn was a Hull University student at the time, and had a part-time job in charge of the catering at the Barn Theatre.
She must have taken pity on a hard-working clown, because, a quarter-of-a-century later, we are married and still happily together.

05/04/2023

See story below.

05/04/2023

We have all got pictures at home like this - and this is mine. It was taken 70 years ago at Westgate Junior School in Lincoln, when our class gathered out on the back playground for this picture to mark the Coronation of the Queen..
Our headmaster (Mr Meldrum) is on the right and our teacher (Miss or Mrs Dixon) is on the left.
The old air raid shelter is back left; the Rectory wall on behind the group and the trees were in the old Wickham Gardens.
Most of the boys were in fancy dress. I remember my mum made me one in red, white and blue, and I was "a little boy from Holland honouring the Queen's Coronation." I was towards the end of the second row from the left, two in from the chimney sweep and next to the pirate!
I would just have turned eight years old at the time.
Oh, happy days!!!

10/02/2023

If Lincoln City Council goes ahead with its controversial plan to scrap the Christmas Market, I can't help thinking it would be a bit like Blackpool calling off its annual illuminations because they want to turn the tourists away, or the powers that be in Edinburgh abandoning their summer festival because they are frightened of attracting people in from all over the world!
I just don't get it. For the past four decades, I have never missed a Lincoln Christmas Market. And every year, I don't go merely once, I visit it on almost every one of the four days. So, yes, it has become a big part of my life.
It is something I am very proud of. And what's wrong with that.
If Lincoln wants to be a tourist city, then why on earth is it even thinking about taking away its biggest annual crowd-puller?
It was Britain's first Christmas Market and it became the blue print for all the others which now take place all over the country.
Surely the City Council won't scrap it and replace it with something which they hope will be far less successful! Where would be the sense in that???

05/10/2022

29/08/2022

SORRY ABOUT HAVING TO PRINT THE FOILLOWING PICTURE ON ITS SIDE, but I don't seem to have the ability to turn it the right way round without losing the top and the bottom bits!
In those far-off days before the internet, and we all know well in advance, where almost every British circus is going to be for days (or even several months) to come, one of the greatest pleasures for young circus fans like myself was to stumble across the posters for a travelling circus, quite by chance.
And, if it just happened to be a poster for a circus you had never even heard of, then it was an even bigger thrill! That's what happened to me in he late 1960s when I discovered this poster in Bardney - mid-way between Lincoln and Horncastle. In subsequent years, the Premier Circus became Yelding's which I featured on this page a few days ago when I marked the 50th anniversary of its first and only visit to the Lincolnshire Showground. Hope the poster brings back a few happy memories for fellow circus fans.

I

25/08/2022

It was never destined to become the biggest circus ever to visit Lincoln. But 50 years ago, this weekend, the Yelding family show became a part of the city's circus history.
Because it was on August 27, 1972, that it became the first travelling circus to be allowed to open on a Sunday in Lincoln for the first time ever.
The fondly-remembered Yeldings - Dolly and Andy and their son Bobby along with and their horses and ponies - brought their single-mast Big Top, capable of seating around 100 people, to the Lincolnshire County Showground.
It was the first circus ever to occupy a part of the site, just a couple of miles beyond the city boundary. And it was there - along with Gordon Sherratt and his family fair - as part of the Sturton & Stow District Motor Sports Grass Track Car Racing Gala.
I wasn't able to be there on the opening day, but I was certainly there on the Sunday when there were performances at 1.20, 3.30, 4.30 and 6.00 and I did my juggling act in every show.
I had met the family possibly a year or so previously when they had first enabled me to achieve my childhood ambition of appearing in a circus ring. Over the years, I was with them for some 30 performances.
They were great people and played a very important part in my working life which spanned more than 2,000 shows.
These days, Sunday shows are regularly held in Lincoln and all over the country as well, but the Yeldings were the first to open there.
The poster pictured below is typical of the ones used by the family at the time.

02/06/2022

.. AND NOW, THERE ARE SEVEN OF THEM!
From today, there are no longer six books in my long-running series of Chipwell tales. There's seven of them.
(Yes, I can almost hear the groans as I write those words!)
And - it gets even worse. Because, I have got to admit, this is the biggest one so far in the series. There are more than 100,000 words, not counting the inevitable Trivia Puzzle; a page of quotes from the story and an explanation of how the book came to finish up with its unusual title!
But it's not all bad news! The one saving grace I can offer, is that the cover price has remained unchanged. Just like all the others in the series, it is still £10 - exactly as it was when the first one appeared way back in 2016.
"How do you do it?" I hear you scream. (Or is it more a case of "Why do you do it?"). Yes. That could perhaps be more accurate!
Should you want to be among the very few to get hold of a copy of the book. Chipwell Boys' Sniff of Scandal, or any of the others in the series, then just click on the link below.
But beware: Your support could lead to yet another book in the series, in the not-too-distant future!
You have been warned!

https://www.lulu.com/en/gb/shop/peter-brown/chipwell-boys-sniff-of-scandal/paperback/product-4z766v.html?fbclid=IwAR2wd9VodDyYpKjlMWO6ysn6qe42lWc6FT2X3jFeFWz5friMrb5bvkb87To&page=1&pageSize=4

10/12/2021

It just occurred to me, that I must be one of the few people in Britain who has never ever been invited to a Christmas party in Downing Street!!!
Could it be because they had enough clowns there already???

Anyway, I have been asked to this evening's Christmas Market at Woodhall Spa, and I am looking forward to meeting friends old and new in front of Santa's Grotto from around 6pm.

And, just like everyone else, I shall be wearing a Covid mask.

21/09/2021

Looking forward to meeting old friends and new at one of my favourite venues in Lincolnshire this Christmas. More details soon.

10/11/2020

beth 👾 () has created a short video on TikTok with music original sound. | had to be done (except not really 🙃) 🤡🤡 | wanna cheat on me? this is my dad | he will haunt your nightmares | jk he's adorable | ...

29/10/2020

Very sorry to hear today of the death of Bobby Ball at the age of 76.

Back in September 1971, when Cannon & Ball were still "The Harper Brothers" we appeared in the same show - competing against one another!

It was all very early on in their career.

In the days before "Britain's Got Talent," one of the best ways for an unknown artiste to find fame and fortune, was to take a holiday at Butlin's and enter the weekly talent competition.

There would be auditions, and if the judges liked what they say, you would appear in the weekly heat. Every week, the winners would be invited back to a finale at the end of the season for the next heat.

If you were among the lucky winners at this stage, you would then go on to a regional final. And you would be against the winners from other Butlin camps.

It was at this point, that you would take on the best of the best, and the next step would be a place in the grand final at the London Palladium.

I remember, at Butlin's Pwllheli, the competitors included the unknown Cannon & Ball, comedian Les Dennis (who later became famous as host to the Family Fortunes TV show,) comedian Mike Lancaster and many other would-be stars.

As I remember, none of us went through to the grand final - but it didn't seem to do their careers any harm! One of the things I remember about that night, was appearing in front of a packed audience of 2,400 people at the Gaiety Theatre in Pwllheli.

As an unknown juggler - who, at the time, had never really done a lot more than amateur village pantomimes, it must have been one of the most terrifying nights of my life!

I was lucky enough to see Cannon & Ball quite a few times over the next 49 years, including in pantomime at Lincoln Theatre Royal, and I always thought they were great.

25/10/2020

For generations to come, pub quizzes for miles around are going to be asking the question "When was the only time in history when Metheringham Feast DIDN'T take place on or around the Star & Garter Field?"

And, all being well, I will be among the first to put up my hand and proudly say "It was October 2020. And I know... Because I was there!"

Yes, a little piece of local history was made in Lincolnshire this weekend when the traditional Metheringham Feast - which goes back for longer than anyone can remember - took place on a different ground. Apart from once - some 30 years ago, when the event had to move the pub car park because the adjoining field was flooded - the fair has ALWAYS been held on the Star & Garter Paddock .

And most of us thought it always would be. But that was before Coronavirus came into our lives.

This year, Pat Phillips' Fair moved right out of the heart of the village and onto the Car Boot sales site on the other side of the Fen Lane railway bridge. Yes, it is walkable from the village centre, but on these dark evenings, most people prefer to drive there, so it's lucky there is plenty of free parking.

The weather was far from ideal when I was there yesterday, in my role as Pedro the Clown. There was a strong wind blowing; across the Fens; it was decidedly chilly and there was a constant threat of rain - which luckily didn't arrive until after I had left at 4pm.

The event was what we all now think of as "Covid - free." Face coverings were everywhere; visitors were signing-in as they arrived and people were remembering to keep well apart. (And, because of yesterday's weather) it wasn't particularly hard to do!

There were prominent reminders of the Covid restrictions, as everyone arrived.

And, for the first time anywhere, Pedro kept the lower half of his face covered, and I became "The Masked Clown!" By the way, that's not as easy to do as you might think when it's difficult to make people hear what you are saying!

If you haven't been to Metheringham Feast fair this year - and you really ought to go because it may never again return to the Car Boot site - it's open tomorrow and Tuesday evening, when all rides will be £1.

Let's hope everything will be back to normal again next year.

24/10/2020

Hope to see everyone at Metheringham Feast Fair this afternoon on the Car Boot Site Fen Lane. I'll be there between 2 and 4pm. And don't forget the fair is open again this evening and on Monday and Tuesday as well.

03/09/2020

Daughters Karen and Beth have been doing quite a lot of photo shoots during the summer, and I particularly wanted to include these on Pedro's Facebook, because they show Beth on her first-ever indoor photo session with her fire-breathing.

I reckon they are pretty impressive shots - even though I didn't take them myself!!!

20/08/2020

I had never realised what an important part the Embassy Centre at Skegness played in my life until I heard today that its future is threatened by the coronovirus pandemic.

I am sure it will survive, although like so many other theatres, the coming years are going to be extremely difficult.

I can well remember the Embassy Ballroom, which existed on the site until its demolition to make way for the new theatre. I think I once appeared in a talent show in the ballroom when we actually sang! Yes, our family really did. But it was a comedy song.

I watched the new Embassy Theatre materialise on the site, and thanks to our old friend Paul Kane and his fellow magicians, we appeared in one of the first shows to take place there. (That was the one when our acrobatic daughter Karen was the first artiste to injure herself during a show there - but luckily it wasn't a serious injury.)

El Petanos and Pedro the Clown appeared during two consecutive summer seasons there with Circus Showtime and later Circus Funtime. I have happy memories of reporting on many shows at the venue, in my work for The Stage newspaper and for the Lincolnshire Echo.

It was, of course, the birthplace of Pedro the Clown, who was created and made his first public appearance at the theatre, during one of our summer seasons.

And who could forget those memorable evenings watching a succession of Ken Dodd shows and people like Basil Brush and The Chuckle Brothers who over the years became something of a family tradition for us.

A copy of one of our summer season shows can be seen below.

26/06/2020

Fabulous present from Beth and Karen!! Glad to see all the circus family doing their acts: Lynn fire breathing, Beth diabolo, Karen acrobatics, me juggling and even Tigger!

18/06/2020

It's a long while since we have been able to do any pictures of our Beth going through her firebreathing, but she's home from university from now until September and conditions were excellent tonight for these shots. Hope we didn't alarm any neighbours!

Social distancing, of course!

14/06/2020

Sorry I haven't been on Facebook for a while, but because of the long-running virus pandemic, there isn't a lot going on in the world of live entertainment these days! Everything I was booked for this year, has been cancelled, and if I am honest, I am beginning to start having doubts about Christmas! I just hope that things will get back to normal soon.

Meanwhile, I am writing every day on my Peter Brown page. At the end of March, I started putting together a series of daily puzzle pictures - aimed mainly at showmen, fairground enthusiasts and anyone else who is missing the sights and sounds of the nation's fairgrounds this year.

The first one appeared on March 31, and since then I have been doing them at the rate of one a day. They have just topped the 75-mark and I am still turning them out. If nothing else, they are helping to keep me sane during the pandemic!

If you are into fairgrounds, you might find something of interest in the series, please take a look at the pictures.

Meanwhile, continue to Stay Safe....

26/04/2020

Just in case you are wondering why I haven't updated the Pedro the clown page in recent weeks, it is because there has been absolutely nothing happening on the entertainment scene.
And it's all because of what wretched Coronavirus Pandemic.
Along with every other entertainer and everyone else involved in the leisure and entertainment market, I have found that everything has been cancelled or postponed for ages.
I haven't appeared in public since last year's Christmas season came to an end.
And, just like everyone else, I have no idea when things are likely to get back to normal again.
Hopefully it won't be too long.
Meanwhile, stay safe and good luck...

19/03/2020

Very sorry to hear that Carrington Rally won't be taking place this year. Yes, it's the latest of Lincolnshire's big annual events to fall foul of the Coronavirus.
As Pedro the Clown, I have enjoyed appearing in the tented theatre there for the past goodness-knows-how-many years along with my old friends Magical Mark Watson and Richard Anderson.
And I have a feeling that there will be a lot more events that won't be taking place in and around Lincolnshire this summer as well!

10/03/2020

What happy memories came flooding back to me today when I happened to listen to an item on BBC Radio Lincolnshire.
It was Melvyn Prior's programme when he interviewed one of the people in line for this year's Make A Difference Award.
And I quickly realised it was a man who I had appeared with on stage, many, many years ago.
Now aged 90, Ron Bradford still lives in Thorpe-on-the-Hill, where he continues to play a major role in the life of the village.
It must have been in the late 1960s when we first met, in the days when I appeared from time to time with the North Hykeham Amateur Dramatic Society.
I was certainly on the stage of the Embassy Centre in Skegness with him several times during the summer of 1989 with Circus Showtime.
He wasn't just a very good magician but a perfect gentleman on and off stage.
I hope he does really well in the awards.