The Boswells: The Story of a South African Circus
By Charles Ricketts
Excerpted with the author’s permission from The Boswells: The story of a South African Circus
©2003 Charles Ricketts
The origins of the Circus are lost in the mists of time, and whether it evolved from the
gladiatorial spectacles of Ancient Rome, or from the more refined Greek gymnasium, is largely a
matter of conjecture.
What is certain, however, is that Phillip Astley, an ex-Sergeant Major of the British Army
conceived the circus more or less as we know it today. The year was 1768 and the place was
London. He laid out a circular arena on a piece of wasteland in Lambeth between Blackfriars
and Westminster bridges in an area known as Halfpenny Hatch. Here he established a riding
school and gave demonstrations of trick riding.
At this time too, it was determined that the distinguishing feature of the circus, the ring, should
be 42 feet (13m) in diameter. It is thought that Astley discovered that this was the best size to
obtain the optimum benefit from the centrifugal force generated when standing on the back of a
horse running in a circle.
To these displays of trick riding, he later added gymnastics and clowning and so formulated the
beginnings of the modern circus. One of his protégés was George Hughes, who became a rider
of great distinction, and through his pupils, was instrumental in the rapid spread of the Circus
throughout Europe and the Americas.
What follows is the story of a circus family – one whose origins go back to the time of Astley
and the early days of the Circus in England. The Boswells, as will be seen, have evolved from
the great English circus families. Fate decreed that they transport their talents to a new continent
and country, and their early days here afford a fascinating glimpse of the development of South
Africa through the last century.
Born in Halifx, West Yorkshire on January 4 th 1826, James Boswell must have had early training
in circus and theatrical skills, but where and by whom he was taught remain unknown. By the
time he was 17 years old (1843), he had taken his talents to Astley’s Amphitheatre in London
where he worked as a clown.
This is the man they have come to see, the most popular Shakespearean clown of his day, and the
toast of Paris. For five years he has been delighting Parisian audiences with his English
monologues, interspersed with jokes told in the most atrocious French. While understanding
very little of what the clown is saying, the Parisians take him to their hearts.
But wait! This man is not only a celebrated clown. He is also a renowned equilibrist and animal
trainer. Later in the programme he is back in the ring with his breakaway ladder performance. A
long ladder is planted in the centre of the ring, and he climbs it, steadily removing the rungs as
he goes. Discarding the last rung and one of the uprights, he proceeds to do a head balance on
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the top of the single pole. He shouts to the orchestra for “Music, music” as he completes each
trick. His dogs run into the ring, cavorting all about him, and fireworks are let off as the climax
to his performance.
James married Rebecca, one of the daughters of the Cooke circus dynasty. James and Rebecca
had three children, two sons and a daughter: James Clements (J.C.) and Harry and Ellen Clara,
known as Nellie. They were all expert in horsemanship.
Nellie was famous in Hengler’s Circus for nearly two decades. She performed dashing character
acts appearing as a Scottish fish wife with a creel of herrings, changing to the ‘Jolly young
waterman’ and ‘Highland Laddie’ while on the back of the galloping horse. “You made your
changes on horseback”, she explained in a “World’s Fair” interview in 1935. “I reappeared to
dance the Highland Fling in the centre of the ring if I got an encore – and I always did.”
Nellie married Fred Cattle, known as “comical Cattle”. Their eldest son, William, became adept
on unsupported ladders, and as “du Calion” toured all over the world, including the Schlesinger
circuit in South Africa.
The sons of James, J.C. and Harry, who were both very talented horsemen, appeared in many
circuses in Britain and on the Continent. They both specialized in bareback juggling. Harry was
with Hengler’s in 1865/7, and J.C. toured in France in the 1870s, with Bell and Hutchinson’s
Great American Circus in 1874, and also with Hengler’s in 1880. He went on to become
Equestrian Director of Oscar’s International Circus and was with them in 1881 when his first
son, James Henry Boswell (Jim) was born.
The Boswells’ first circus of their own opened on Saturday 21st January 1882 in the circus
building in West Hartlepool, Yorkshire:
“Lovers of equestrianism have heartily welcomed the re-opening
of the Lynn Street Circus by that wonderful equestrian, J.C.
Boswell, who has gathered around him a company of such strength
and ability as have never previously occupied this building. With
Mr. Boswell’s individual talent our readers are already familiar,
but, extraordinary as were the feats he performed when we first
made his acquaintance, we cannot but admit that time has
perfected that which we had previously imagined to be perfection.
His final feat of jumping from the ground over the back of a horse
sixteen hands high is in itself worth a visit to the circus to see.
(“South Durham & Cleveland Mercury” – 28th January 1882)
The emphasis was very much on equestrian acts in the early Boswell programmes, as was the
case in most circuses of the time. Clowns and traditional circus acts were used to make up the
balance of the programme, which usually concluded with some kind of spectacle.
In 1883 and 1884, Boswell’s Circus played throughout the summer seasons in Blackpool, in a
building adjoining the famous Tower Circus:
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“Mr. Boswell, the head and front of the company, is a very prince
among circus riders. To say that he can do almost anything on
horseback, or with a horse, is only stating the simple truth. His
performances on a bare backed steed are astonishing. As a
juggler on horseback he is a wonderful fellow, and in other
departments he commends himself to the popular taste.”
(“Blackpool Herald” – 13th July 1883)
The pattern developed of playing the bigger towns and cities like Doncaster, Manchester, Wigan,
Hanley, etc. during the winter months in circus buildings, and then tenting through the summer
season, mainly to small towns and villages with one-day stands. Although canvas tents had been
used by circuses for some years, many shows made use of wooden structures that were quickly
run up (and in many cases, just as quickly burnt down). Many of the larger towns had permanent
brick and stucco amphitheatres that could be hired.
Boswell’s Circus, under the directorship of J.C. Boswell, had a famous season in Oxford in 1889.
What was intended as a three-week stay proved so popular that they continued for seventeen
weeks, using as a basis their family acts, and engaging new acts as they went along to ensure
weekly programme changes for their enthusiastic patrons. By 1890, he had erected in Oxford a
permanent wooden building with a canvas dome, and this was used each time they visited the
city, and rented to other organizations when not required by them. J.C. Boswell presented his
circus there for a short season in 1890, for fifteen weeks in 1891, and then appeared again in
1893, this time under the directorship of his brother, Henry Luigi Boswell
Big production numbers were a feature of the circus in those days, and were often very costly
undertakings. During their 1890 Oxford season, the Boswells presented spectacles like
“Cinderella” (featuring Jim Boswell, aged 8, as Prince Charming and over a hundred specially
trained Oxford children), “Carnival on the Ice”, “Dick Turpin”, “Bonnie Scotland” and “The
Brigands of Calabrin.” Sketches like “Mr. and Mrs. Brown’s first visit to the Circus” and the
“the Bear and the Sentinel” were also presented. Free admission was given to many charitable
institutions such as asylums, workhouses and infirmaries during the season.
Having seen the potential for stages performances, the family put their own show together, called
Boswell’s Stage Circus, which they presented on the theatre stages throughout the United
Kingdom. The Boswells perfected and patented a model circus ring with a diameter of 30 feet
(9m) that was laid on the stages. In addition to their own contributions in the form of clowning,
acrobatics and their animals, they engaged other artistes to supplement their programme.
It was while they were presenting Boswell’s Stage Circus that they were seen by Madame Fillis,
a distant relative of theirs, who was in London on the lookout for acts for her circus in South
Africa. She signed them up for a period of six months. So the Boswell family left their
homeland to seek their fortune in a new country.
J.C. Boswell, his five sons, plus the wives of sons Walter and Jim, six ponies, a donkey and dogs
sailed for South Africa and lande at Cape Town on 19 December 1911. On 23rd December they
reached Johannesburg, the new gold rush town, which was rapidly becoming a city, to join
Madame Fillis’ Great Continental Circus.
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Fillis’ was not the first real South African circus. Several enterprising people had started small
riding schools in the Cape, and developed them into small circuses that toured locally. The first
of any great distinction and substance to arrive from overseas was that of Richard Bell, which
toured the Cape during the late nineteenth century. When old man Bell died in Kimberley in
October 1881, Frank Fillis, who had been one of the performers, took over some of the
equipment, and built up his own show over the next few years.
Frank Fillis had toured the country for over thirty years by the time the Boswells arrived. He had
taken trips to the Far East before the Anglo-Boer War, and to England on the liner “Goth” with a
spectacle entitled “Savage South Africa”. For this he took with him two Boer families, two
hundred Swazis, Basuto and Zulus, together with Basuto ponies, buck, and lions, tigers and
elephants.
Fillis’ Circus had held a virtual monopoly of traveling entertainments in South Africa, but
occasional visits had been made by foreign shows. As far back as 1868, the Olympic Circus of
Signor F.M. Santana had played at Potchefstroom, the capital of the Transvaal, and then
undertaken a tour of the outlying country districts. It wasn’t much of a show, but boasted a
talking horse, a bare back rider and a tiny brass band. In contrast the circus of Frank Fillis was a
very grand and fashionable affair.
When the Boswells joined Fillis’ circus in 1911, the Union of South Africa had only recently
been proclaimed. For her 1911 Christmas fare, Madame Fillis offered her new English company
to the public”. About a week later, the newspaper (“The Star” – 4 January 1912) reported:
“…the great Boswell Troupe have established themselves
favourites. The troupe of six performing Shetland ponies are
described by press and public alike to be the most wonderful ever
seen in South Africa.”
However Madame Fillis’ Circs struck hard times on its tour of the country during the early part
of 1912. When the Durban season opened in July 1912, there was stiff competition in the shape
of William Pagel who opened on the same night, and on the much better known Cartwright’s
Flats site.
Finding themselves stranded without work, the Boswells started looking round for employment.
Taking advantage of their years of stage experience in England, J.C. Boswell approached the
management of the Hall by the Sea, then Durban’s largest and most popular music hall. Edgar
Hyman owned the Hall and arranged that the family would appear before the interval on the
Monday evening by way of an audition, and without salary. Hyman was doubtful that the act
would have any success, but to his surprise it brought the house down:
“Boswell’s Stage Circus proved to be one of the best circus
performances seen on a stage, and the work of the cleverly drilled
ponies and dogs – which was a somewhat novel inclusion in a
variety performance – has ensured the turn a warm reception for
the remainder of the week.” (“Natal Mercury – 10 July 1912)
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Shortly thereafter, J.C.’s grandson and Jim’s first son, Jack, was born in Pietermaritzburg in
September 1912. It was here, too, that the Boswells had a round table discussion about their
future. They had seen the great possibilities that existed for entertaining a growing and
unsophisticated population that was starved for entertainment. They decided that they wanted to
stay in South Africa and launch their own circus. J.C. Boswell left for England to purchase a
tent and some additional ponies.
When J.C. Boswell returned, he hired a piece of waste land at Vrededorp, a Johannesburg
suburb, and the whole family got down to work measuring and cutting poles, and constructing
seating and a stage to accommodate their 30-foot circus ring. Some artistes were engaged and
when all was in readiness, the fledgling circus opened its doors to the public in Vrededorp. It had
been decided from the outset that the railway would be used wherever possible to transport the
show, and the ox-wagons would be hired as needed to carry the equipment between stations and
circus grounds, and also to transport the entire circus in areas where there was still no railway.
The circus personnel were housed in a standard railway saloon coach. The show was to be called
“Boswell’s Royal Hippodrome and Circus Company.”
The Boswell Brothers themselves made up the lion’s share of the programme. Jim, Walter and
Alf did their tumbling act; Walter and Alf were knockabout clowns, initially under the names of
Comical Walter and Silly Willy, and Jim leaped from a springboard over ten ponies to land on a
mattress. They also showed their ponies, donkey and dogs.
The band that had been employed proved extremely unreliable and was soon discharged. They
then engaged a troupe of seven German musicians whom they found destitute and penniless on
the Johannesburg streets. They were very grateful to have the work and turned out to be very
dependable and loyal. They took up their positions every evening at the front of the circus to
play the crowd in, and as well as playing for the show, they assisted with the erection and
dismantling of the stage and seating. This band was a real asset to the circus.
The first Boswell Big Top was in reality no more than large marquee. It had four centre king
poles in line, and measured 100 x 50 feet (30x15 m), and probably seated no more than 300
people. There were no quarter poles to support the canvas between the king poles and the side
poles. The seating was very simple consisting of stringers with five rows of planks laid across,
and some chairs.
Jim Boswell was the manager, ringmaster, tentmaster, and generally ran the circus, while his
wife, May, controlled the box office and finances. Syd was made the tour manager and handled
the advance publicity ahead of the show. Walter handled the lighting, which started off as
carbide lamps, but they soon change to Delco batteries and electric lights. Still later, one of the
towing tractors drove an electric generator, but portable carbide lamps were still used for loading
at night. Alf took charge of the animals, and was responsible for the menagerie when that came
into being.
They spent the first couple of years of tenting, getting the feel of the country, and what the tastes
of their public were likely to be. The Afrikaner people who made up the bulk of their audiences
in the country districts, were ultra-conservative, and not always certain that the circus was a
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biblically acceptable form of entertainment. Black-garbed church elders could sometimes be seen
peering into the tent, but not willing to enter for fear of being seen by members of their
congregation.
The first newspaper review of the Boswell Circus is from a Bloemfontein newspaper:
“of the many attractions during Show Week, Boswell’s Royal
Hippodrome should attract a large contingent, especially of the
younger generation. The performance last night fell little short of
what the company claims for it being new, original, and right away
from the beaten track. The Hippodrome not being run on the lines
of an ordinary circus makes the bill of fare suited to all palates.
Ormonde Penstone as a conjuror’ is a master of his art, and never
fails to astound the audience in his clever tricks. His sketch of St.
Paul’s Cathedral by and certainly exceed anything of a similar
nature. “King Edward”, a performing pony, displays remarkable
skill in galloping on the revolving table at a breakneck speed. The
rest of the programme is marked by variety and talent in
abundance, but space forbids any lengthy description.” (“the
Friend” – 31 March 1913)
The advent of the 1914 Great War on 28th June was a severe blow. The circus was showing on a
Friday and Saturday at Beaconsfield, near Kimberley, soon after war was declared. On Friday, a
policeman called with disquieting news. “Boswell,” he said, “I’m taking your band”. This
placed the circus is something of a predicament. They had not considered their band members to
be enemy aliens who would have to be interned for the duration of hostilities, and it came as a
shock to lose them. The authorities relented to the extent of allowing the band to play out the
Friday and Saturday shows, with Jim Boswell having to take personal responsibility for them.
On Sunday the men were herded into the station waiting room, and that was the last the family
ever saw of these loyal workers.
Soon after the start of the war, J.C.’s son, Stanley Boswell, the second son of Jim and May, who
was destined to play such an important role in the future of the circus, was born on 26 th
September 1914 in Pietermaritzburg.
The War years were traumatic ones in many ways for the young showmen. It was not possible to
import artists from Europe or America, and those who were already in the country when war
broke out had no means of returning to their home countries. As was the case in the music halls
and other South African circuses, the same entertainers tended to be seen, often under different
names, throughout this period.
The Boswell family did not keep to their tent during the war years, and gave many performances
on stages in various parts of the country. Soon after the war started they teamed up with a group
of Wild West entertainers. It was thought by their competitors that this name was used to
counter that of Bostock’s Royal Italian Circus that was touring the country at the time. This was
not the case as Boswell’s had used the ‘Royal’ appellation not only for their first South African
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circus, but for many years previously in England, ever since the visit of Queen Victoria to their
show. However, from 1916 onwards the Boswells dropped this title and were known as Boswell
Brothers Circus and Menagerie, which over the years came to be simply Boswell’s Circus.
The year 1919 marked the first Durban showing after the end of the war, and was billed as a
Peace Week attraction. The newspaper advertisements features Little Rene (who had been on th
bill since 1915); the untamable lion; Sandy, the calculating pony and Jammy the little dwarf (30
years old), as well as the educated ponies and funny clowns.
Throughout this period, the Boswells were making every effort to enlarge and improve their
circus. The first Asian elephant was bought in 1921 from Frank Willison, an American who ran a
circus in Madagascar. She was a cow called Molly, who arrived in Durban by ship together wit
ha bear.
About this time Jim also started training his first lion group. This was a trio consisting of
Europe, Africa and Asia. In the opinion of Frank Bostock, one of the world’s foremost animal
trainers, Europe was the finest performing lion he had ever come across. By contrast Asia was
quite untrustworthy. This group was presented in a full arena cage from 1921 onwards. The
review in “The Cape Times” of 1923 mentioned Jim Boswell with his performing lions and
bears, and the elephant that played the mouth organ, and was reluctant to be parted from the
instrument.
In 1924 Boswell’s Circus undertook a tour that took them through Southern and Northern
Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe and Zambia), Mozambique, and up into the Belgian Congo for the
first time. The circus rolling stock at this time consisted of two tractors, one of which drove the
lighting generator, four trailers for the tent, poles and seating, and four cage wagons. The circus
train was made up of twelve bogies. The tent was a 110-foot round top with 50-foot middle
sections added, and the menagerie tent which was only erected in the larger towns, was a round
top of 100 feet. The Boswell elephants were used to push and pull wagons, and during wet
weather would sometimes pause in their duties to have a roll in the mud. Unlike European
circuses, the elephants roamed quite freely, and Jim often had to recompense fruit vendors for
the elephant’s snacks taken in passing.
1929 was a year of decision for the two sons of Jim Boswell, Jack and Stanley. He asked them
to decide on their future careers. Jack was set on becoming a veterinary surgeon and Stanley
opted for a life with the circus and he joined in 1932 after completing his schooling.
From 1931 to 1939 were the years of real consolidation and growth for the Boswell circus, which
had started out as a small show of no great importance, but had gradually been built up over the
years. A period of sustained growth was needed to enable the Boswells to compete with a big
circus like Pagel’s. First, however, they needed to weather the storm of the Great depression that
was gripping the world after the collapse of Wall Street. There was, however, reason for a certain
amount of optimism:
“Boswell’s Circus, the excellent entertainment ring that is drawing
large crowds every night on Cartwright’s Flats, has risen from
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strength to strength during the last 20 years, at the beginning of
which it was a very minor concern indeed, with two ponies, a horse
and a pair of monkeys. The Boswell boys, however, inherited their
father’s determination, and have brought to fruition their dream of
a really big Boswell’s Circus complete with first class turns and
performing animals in large variety. There are twenty horses, 14
lions of which 12 demonstrate their skills nightly, two boxing
kangaroos, two camels, performing monkeys by the score – and
they say in the circus world that Boswell’s can teach a monkey to
speak any language but Mongolian – four elephants, including
Molly, regarding whom some interesting news may be expected
shortly. On the human side, the Boswells take periodical trips
overseas to secure the best performing talent with a view to
presenting so fine a programme that they may emulate in some
measure Barnum, one of the greatest circus proprietors the world
has known, and related alliteratively to the Boswell Brothers.”
(“Natal Advertiser” – 1 July 1931)
In 1931, Jim was presenting a group of twelve lions in the ring, and there were three elephants:
“A unique performance was the three rounds boxing contest
between the boxing kangaroo and Captain Douglas, Certainly, if
the kangaroo did not conform strictly to Queensbury rules –
balancing itself on its tail it used an occasional hind leg effectively
– the rough and tumble added zest to the performance. The
kangaroo clinched in a most realistic manner and kept Captain
Douglas busy on some occasions beating down its third fist.
Variety and a spice of danger were lent to the work of the
daredevil Lupinis, when the woman partner looped the loop
blindfolded.
Mr. James Boswell was seen in a number of turns, notably with
twelve forest-bred lions; also with Zulu, a trick pony and other
ponies. Miss Rene Booysens contributed a cowgirl act, while
Tishy, a pony, retained his equilibrium on the surface of a fastrevolving table.
Pickles and Pim Pim, the clowns, got over a diverting stream of
patter and that, with their antics, kept the audience highly diverted.
The burlesque giraffe was all that was claimed for it, and the
bullfight with two clowns opposed to a horse with horns was a
clever skit on the national pastime of Spain.
Those who like performing animals of various kinds such as horses
and monkeys, will get their full quota of entertainment from this
old-established circus.” (“Natal Mercury” – 30 June 1931)
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1932 marked the start of the worldwide recession, and Boswell’s and Pagel’s Circuses showed
over the same period in Durban, both holding special charity performances. Boswell’s gave a
show in aid of the unemployed, under the patronage of the Governor-General and the Countess
of Clarendon. In addition, the circus presented the authorities with a large marquee to provide
shelter for unemployed people, who otherwise slept out in the open. There were no doubt many
who were grateful for this kind gesture. A charity performance was also given for 1000 poor
children and the elderly. Times were indeed hard!
The depression years really took their toll at the start of 1935. The circus left for a tour that was
intended to take them as far as the Belgian Congo, but by the time they reached Victoria Falls,
the realized they would have to turn back. The copper mines in Northern Rhodesia had laid off
employees in droves, and circus audiences throughout the tour of Bechuanaland and Southern
Rhodesia had been very thin indeed.
Faced with this dismal situation, the Boswells were more than happy to negotiate a six-month
contract with the Transvaal Chamber of Mines for the circus to play at African compounds on
the gold mines. The programme had to be trimmed down considerably, and a number of acts
returned to Europe.
This period proved a good opportunity to develop and train new animal acts, and with prospects
generally looking much brighter later in the year, the brothers acquired a new tent and some new
artists, and started playing the Reef towns around Johannesburg. More purchases were made and
the elephant herd brought back to seven. Together with the lions, tigers, horses, ponies and
monkeys, the circus had now built up a creditable performing menagerie.
Jim’s training method for all his animals was very simple. He believed in gaining the animal’s
confidence by keeping his voice low but authoritative, and could often be seen talking quietly to
his charges. He considered that once this confidence was won, animals were much more
amendable to learning even the most complicated routines.
The main attraction for 1936 was the Ching YeeWah Troupe. This was the first group of
Chinese entertainers to be seen in South Africa, and really pleased the Press critics:
“The outstanding feature of the evening is the Ching Yee Wah
acrobatic troupe. These agile performers give an amazing
exhibition of balance, whilst juggling with plates on the ends of
sticks. Their star turn is when one of them dives through a tunnel
of sharp knives. There were few in the audience who did not
glance away for a second in case he should have made an error of
judgement. A clever balancing feat of theirs is when two of the
men do a head to head balance an acrobat can attempt.” (“Cape
Time” – 26 September 1936)
“Pride of place on the bill is given to the Ching Yee Wah troupe of
six acrobats. They fully deserve the position. Last night they put
up one of the slickest and fastest acrobatic and balancing turns
that one would wish to see. In spite of the speed of this work,
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everything was carried through with remarkable smoothness. This
troupe alone is worth seeing>” (“Natal Advertiser” – 27 June
1936)
The public fully agreed with the critics and full houses were the order of the day wherever the
circus traveled through the country.
Stanley Boswell had great ambitions for the family circus, and was keen to embark on a
programme of modernization. His father and uncles were very conservative in financial matters,
having lived through some hard times, and were not anxious to see all their new-found wealth
ploughed back into improvements on the show. Stanley must have been very persuasive and his
plans were eventually, though grudgingly, accepted. A new, much bigger tent seating nearly
3000 people was ordered. All the old iron-rimmed wheels on the wagons were replaced with
pneumatic tyres, and a new electricity generating plant was purchased. This replaced the old
one, which operated by means of a belt from a towing tractor, and was liable to plunge the circus
into darkness, usually at a critical time, when the belt slipped off the pulley. New seating was
also constructed giving patrons a much greater degree of comfort.
As had been the case during the First World War twenty-one years earlier, the circus
management had to scratch a little to find acts to fill the programme each year. Many demands,
both charitable and patriotic, were made on the circus, too. Special performances were arranged,
with the proceeds going to various War Funds. An acute paper shortage as a result of the war,
meant that the circus had to cut back drastically on the printing of posters and programmes.
Great interest centered on the 1941 appearance of the twenty-one year old lady with the lions,
Miss Helen Ayres of Pretoria. A newspaper reported that she handled the animals with great
courage, putting them through several tricks. Helen was in fact the wife of Stanley. They had
married in 1939.
The end of 1942 saw the retirement of three of the four original Boswell Brothers. Walter, who
had clowned for many years under the name of Pickles went to live in Johannesburg. Jim, built a
cottage for May and himself and continued training ponies, both for the circus, and to take to
fetes and other charitable events round Johannesburg. Alf, who had clowned with the circus from
the very beginning as Pim Pim, took over the circus farm at Birchleigh in lieu of shares in the
circus. Syd continued after the war making trips to Europe and America booking new
programmes, and alternated this duty with Stanley.
Stanley and Helen moved into their own private railway saloon, the better to cope with their
growing family, their first son, Brian, having been born in 1942. The saloon consisted of a large
lounge area comprising half the coach, and a further four compartments. Onve was their
bedroom, there was kitchen, an office, and the last one was the home of Tickey, who, after his
former partners returned to Europe, became virtually part of the Boswell family. He now
concentrated exclusively on his clowning, and soon became one of the best-known figures
throughout Southern Africa.
The basic programme with a few name changes, and sometimes changes of act, continued
through the war years. The circus advertisements proclaimed that even under blackout
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conditions, Boswell’s presented a programme that firmly established them as leaders of circus
fare in South Africa.
During 1947 South Africa was faced with a poliomyelitis epidemic of mammoth proportions.
Large numbers of children were being infected which, of course, resulted in a big drop in circus
attendance, especially at matinees. There was no certainty among health officials on how the
disease was transmitted, and it was generally felt that it might be air-borne.
1947 again saw Boswell’s and Pagel’s playing right next to each other on the Cape Town
foreshore. Their artistes’ saloons were in the same railway yard. Very cordial relations existed
between members of the two shows, and local newspapers remarked that Stanley Boswell and
William Pagel were frequently seen in each other’s company.
William Pagel, the grand old man of South African circus, died in Knysna in 1948. Pagel during
his young days was one of the world’s really strong men. He was a German born in Plathe, in
Pomerania. After some wanderings in the Far East and Australia, he arrived in Sought Africa in
1905 with his wife, to start a circus in South Africa.
After his wife’s death in 1936, Pagel married the woman who had nursed her through her last
illness. His second wife, Cecil Pagel, tried to carry on the business after his death, however
Pagel’s Circus gradually faded away, leaving Boswell’s with a virtual monopoly of the South
African circus scene.
Stanley and Helen had made their first trip overseas to book acts in 1948 and traveled
extensively in China and Australia as well as Europe. They would alternate the trips with Syd
for several years.
During the early part of 1953, the Boswell family entered into an agreement with the African
Consolidated Theatres Organization. The remaining original Boswell Brothers, Jim, Walter and
Syd, decided that they wanted to sell part of their shareholding. Stanley was not in favour of the
arrangement and wanted to retain the circus as a family concern. African Theatres acquired half
of the circus shares, with the understanding that if the family ever wished to sell, they would be
given the first option of purchase.
1954 saw strong competition for the Boswells with the arrival from England of W.H. Wilkie’s
Great Continental Circus. Wilma and Walter Wilkie, the sons of an amusement park magnate in
England, had put a circus together and were attempting to run it there. After a couple of years of
struggling, they were advised by Jimmy Quinn to try South Africa, where Boswell’s was the
only show on the road. They brought with them a strong and varied programme and proved to
be serious rivals to the Boswells. This was before the advent of television in the country, and
provided the shows kept well away from each other; there was definitely the potential for two
circuses.
From 1955 – 1963 marked the high-point for Boswell’s Circus, and the presentation of the
strongest programmes in their history. In the 1963 programme, destined to be the last, Brian
Boswell was doing whip cracking and rough riding, as well as presenting the high-jumping dogs
and the liberty horses.
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The end of the road for Boswell’s Circus came in November 1963. Jim and Syd Boswell
decided that they wanted to sell their shares, and so African Theatres took up their option to
purchase. Stanley had been very much against the take-over, as he wished to keep the circus in
the family, but he was over-ruled and had to go along with his father and uncle. African
Theatres then approached W.H. Wilkie with a proposition for amalgamation. The upshot of the
whole deal was that Wilkie’s bought out Boswell’s Circus, and then sold a fifty per cent share in
the combined show to African Theatres, with the Wilkie family retaining managerial control of
the business.
The very last performance of Boswell’s Circus took place in Krugersdorp on the West Rand on
Saturday 23 rd November 1903, and was an occasion of great sadness for a lot of the people. The
name would in the future be perpetuated, in terms of the settlement, in the combined show,
which was thereafter known as the Boswell-Wilkie Circus.
By 1964, rumours had been circulating for some while that Chipperfield’s Circus, one of the
oldest in England, was contemplating a move to South Africa. The Chipperfields felt that they
had exhausted their audience potential in Britain to a large extent, and were also feeling the
effects of television. They considered that South Africa, at that time without television, was a
‘new’ country with a large population, with not a lot of entertainment, and one of its official
languages was English. Brian Boswell was approached by the Chipperfield family to be their
agent in South Africa. He was connected with the circus from the outset, as adviser and
‘problem-solver’, and he was responsible for engaging and assembling the necessary staff, and
for the hundred and one logistical arrangements that were needed prior to the arrival of a large
circus.
The show opened on December 12th in Cape Town and the Chipperfields presented a very strong
programme of artistes from all over Europe, and from behind the Iron Curtain as well. The show
was very well received both by the press and the Cape Town public:
“Acts were presented in a blaze of showmanship. Last night a
large audience, which included Mr. Stanley Boswell, veteran South
African circus personality, must surely have been of one delighted
mind in voting this well-varied fast-moving entertainment top of its
class. Applause was generous, and the atmosphere was charged
with enthusiastic approval” (“Cape Times – Ivor Jones)
“Animals in the pink of condition, young artistes picked from all
parts of the world including some the communist countries, and
that almost legendary know-how provided an evening of great
enjoyment.” (“Cape Argus -13 December 1964”)
Chipperfield’s Circus remained in the country for three years. Brian Boswell was ringmaster in
the 1965 and 1966 programmes, and during 1966 he presented the lions, tigers and bears, as well
as participating in a Spanish Riding act. It was determined in 1967 that the circus would return
to England. The Chipperfields had lost heavily on their South African adventure. They found
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that the distances between viable centres of population were just too great for such a massive
show.
Druing the time that the Chipperfields were in South Africa, however they established two lion
parks, the first one in the world at Umlaas road near Pietermaritzburg Natal, and the other near
Johannesburg. At the same time they founded one in England on the grounds of Woburn Abbey,
the estate of the Duke of Bedford. At that time this was a new concept, where the public could
drive through parks inhabited by the animals. Jim and Marjorie Stockley (nee Chipperfield)
remained in South Africa after the circus left to manage the Natal Lion Park, with the help of
their daughters Jane and Carol.
In 1969, Brian married Jane Stockley, elder daughter of Marjorie Chipperfield, one of the six
children of Richard Chipperfield, a member of the oldest circus family in Britain. The very large
extended Chipperfield family was related in some way to almost every circus famiy in Britain.
Jim Boswell passed away in November 1971 at the age of 90 years.
Brian and Jane Boswell moved to the Natal Lion Park in 1973. In 1982, Brian took over a small
collection of animals that had been established on a neighboring farm, and this formed the
nucleus of the Natal Zoological Gardens.
Once they were properly established at the Lion Park, Brian and Jane started training animals for
various South African circuses, for the Boswell-Wilkie Circus as well as the Continental Circus
Berlin owned by Boet Fritz. Wilkie also put two additional shows on the road for short periods:
Wilkie’s International Circus, which lasted for seven months, and Robero’s Circus, for five
months. Wilkie was considering taking the Boswell-Wilkie Circus off the railway and using
road transport instead, and these two shows were experimental preliminaries to iron out possible
difficulties in the changeover. Brian and Jane provided trained animals for both these shows.
Brian and Jane were becoming very involved with film work, both feature films and advertising
commercials. Their most important assignment came in early 1982, when the film with the
working title “Jungle Paradise” was filmed entirely at the Lion Park (‘later released as “The
Crazy Jungle Adventure.”) Brian had recently taken over five Asian elephants from Wilkie, and
these were used for the movie. Also included were 35 lions and 10 tigers as well as leopards,
ostrich, crocodiles, snakes, chimpanzees, an orang-utan, parrots, macaws and cockatoos, a sea
lion, and even a leguan. The leguan was guilty of having bitten almost everyone of the film
crew.
The production of this film on their property provided Brian and Jane with the capital they
needed to start their own circus, an idea that had been at the back of their minds for years.
Soon after filming had been completed, Boet Fritz arrived at Lion Park. He had decided to
disband his circus, and left a lot of equipment at the Park. When the vehicles were put up for
public auction, Brian acquired a number of them, which formed the nucleus of the transport
needed for the new circus.
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A Big Top and additional wagons were purchased, and seating was constructed at the Park. In
December, Brian Boswell’s Circus set up at the Lion Park and, attended by a large crowd of
friends and relatives, the first performance took place on Saturday December 4th 1982. The
public and the press received the new enterprise very favourably.
The Boswell-Wilkie Circus directorate had been far from happy by the opening of the new
circus, especially by the good reports that were appearing in the press. They applied for an
interim order against Brian Boswell’s Circus, seeking to restrain them from using the name
Boswell on their circus publicity material. The courts granted this in March, and tape and black
ink had to be used to obliterate the Boswell name from posters and the sides of wagons.
Brian Boswell’s Circus today is a small lively family show, which has no pretensions of being
the greatest show on earth, yet nevertheless succeeds admirably in bringing to today’s audiences
some of the timeless magic of the Big Top. They have a small tent by modern standards, and
seat about 1000 people. The big advantage of the smaller tent is that everyone in the audience
has a close-up view of the action in the ring, and even an opportunity of seeing the expressions
on the faces of the artists.
The accent is very much on the presentation of their own animals, bred and reared at their farm
at Umlaas Road, and often trained while the circus is on the road. The show also provides an
excellent training ground for young South African circus artistes, and there are several at present
who are making the most of this golden opportunity. In most towns, special performances are
given for school children, at which the pupils are charged a small entrance fee, and enjoy a
shortened programme of about an hour. It has been Boswell family policy throughout the years
to assist those who cannot afford the price of admission.
In 2002, it was announced that the Boswell-Wilkie Cicus, Brian’s only opposition, had closed,
the difficult financial times being cited as the reason for the closure. As a result, Brian was at last
to reclaim his family name, and the show is known as Brian Boswell’s Circus.
When music halls opened towards the end of the nineteenth century, the end of Circus seemed at
hand. When the cinemas supplanted the music hall, the prophets of doom again sounded the
death-knell for Circus, and when the technological age of television and computers came along,
there seemed little hope of its survival. But circus folk are resilient and have taken all these
innovations in their stride, more often than not adapting them for their own use.
Circus is essentially a live entertainment whose nuances can never be captured on film or by
television. One can therefore be confident that while the shows are in the hands of families who
have weathered all the previous storms, and who have handed their traditions down from one
generation to the next, Circus will continue to grow and flourish for years to come.
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