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Great British Circus was a company that specialized in circus entertainment. Unusually for a UK-based circus company, it included wild animals such as tigers, camels and lions in its acts. Martin Lacey was the company's owner and Circus Director. In 2012, at the age of 70, he announced he would retire and the Great British Circus would not return for a 2013 season.
Martin Lacey defends the company's approach as follows: "The Circus takes veterinary advice from world-respected experts, not from campaign groups who too often seek to excite public sympathy in their quest for donations and support." [1] Martin Lacey has bred tigers for many years and provided most of the tigers used in the Esso oil television advertisements up until the 1970s. [2] [3]
In April 2007, the Advertising Standards Authority (United Kingdom) upheld a complaint against the company's claim that it was "Voted No.1 for Animal Care". [4] In February 2009, The Independent reported that the company brought performing elephants to a UK circus for the first time in ten years. [5]
On March 3, 2009, an Early Day Motion was tabled by John Austin, referring to the introduction of elephants into the circus, as follows:
That this House shares the RSPCA's deep concern at the recent introduction of elephants into a circus in Nottinghamshire; hopes that the public will boycott the circus in protest; believes that the Government should intervene in this case and state categorically that it opposes the use of wild species in circuses; and urges the Government to bring forward proposals to ban the use of wild animals in circuses without further delay.
This motion was signed by 110 MPs. [6] On the following day, another EDM was tabled by Mark Pritchard, specifically naming the Great British Circus, as follows:
That this House notes with concern the continuing use of non-domesticated animals in circuses and more recently the re-introduction of elephants by the Great British Circus; is increasingly concerned by the delay of the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in reporting on increasing amounts of evidence surrounding poor animal welfare standards in circuses; believes that the report of the Chair of the Circus Working Group fails to provide reliable information on this subject; supports the work of the Captive Animals Protection Society and others in achieving an end to animal use in circuses; and urges the Government to maintain its commitment to ban the use of non-domesticated animals in travelling circuses and to limit the use of domesticated species under a strict, accountable and open licensing system.
This motion was signed by 78 MPs. [7]
The company's circus performances have attracted animals rights demonstrations at locations throughout the UK. [8] [9]
In August 2009, an undercover investigation secretly filmed a member of the circus staff hitting an elephant with a metal hook. The staff member was subsequently sacked. [10]
On October 19, 2009, the company was referred to in allegations in a BBC documentary that visitor attraction Noah's Ark Zoo Farm secretly looked after animals on its behalf. [11] Noah's Ark Zoo Farm was subsequently expelled from the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) in December 2009. BIAZA noted in a statement that''The reasons for termination are due to a refusal to provide BIAZA with information when requested and entering into an arrangement with the Great British Circus, which contravenes the Animal Transaction Policy, despite having been warned of possible consequences''and that''the behaviour of NAZF has brought the association into disrepute''. [12]
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In 2014, Great British Circus was acquired by the Kirilov family. With over 20 years experience in Circus throughout Europe, they redesigned and modernized the show, without the inclusion of any animals. Great British Circus is now a blend of traditional Circus performers, hi-tech acts, music, and dance perhaps more associated with live theater shows. Great British Circus is currently touring Indonesia.
The Kirilovs, originating from Bulgaria, are the third generation of showmen and also own other entertainment ventures, including Big Kid Circus and Billi Smiles Circus, which operate throughout the world.
A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclists as well as other object manipulation and stunt-oriented artists. The term circus also describes the field of performance, training and community which has followed various formats through its 250-year modern history. Although not the inventor of the medium, Newcastle-under-Lyme born Philip Astley is credited as the father of the modern circus.
Whipsnade Zoo, formerly known as ZSL Whipsnade Zoo and Whipsnade Wild Animal Park, is a zoo and safari park located at Whipsnade, near Dunstable in Bedfordshire, England. It is one of two zoos that are owned by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), a charity devoted to the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats.
The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, also known as the Ringling Bros. Circus, Ringling Bros., the Barnum & Bailey Circus, Barnum & Bailey, or simply Ringling, is an American traveling circus company billed as The Greatest Show on Earth. It and its predecessor have run shows from 1871, with a hiatus from 2017 to 2023. They operate as Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey. The circus started in 1919 when the Barnum & Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth, a circus created by P. T. Barnum and James Anthony Bailey, was merged with the Ringling Bros. World's Greatest Shows. The Ringling brothers purchased Barnum & Bailey Ltd. in 1907 following Bailey's death in 1906, but ran the circuses separately until they were merged in 1919.
West Midlands Safari Park is a safari park located in Bewdley in Worcestershire, England. It was opened under the name of West Midland Safari Park in Spring 1973.
The Detroit Zoo is a zoo located in the cities of Huntington Woods and Royal Oak in the U.S. state of Michigan. Spanning 125 acres (50.6 ha), it houses more than 2,000 animals and more than 200 different species. The zoo was the first U.S. zoo to feature bar-less habitats, and is regarded to be an international leader in animal welfare, conservation and sustainability by the Detroit Zoological Society.
Blackpool Zoo is a 32-acre (13 ha) zoo, owned by Parques Reunidos and located in the sea-side resort of Blackpool, Lancashire, England. It cares for over 1,000 animals from all over the world.
Knowsley Safari is a safari park and tourist attraction near Prescot, England. It is a member of the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) and the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA). It contributes to conservation and research through links with conservation projects and its links with universities in nearby Liverpool, as well as Chester and Manchester.
The Born Free Foundation is an international wildlife charity that campaigns to "Keep Wildlife in the Wild". It protects wild animals in their natural habitat, campaigns against the keeping of wild animals in captivity and rescues wild animals in need. It also promotes compassionate conservation, which takes into account the welfare of individual animals in conservation initiatives. Born Free also creates and provides educational materials and activities that reflect the charity's values.
Lion taming is the taming and training of lions, either for protection or for use in entertainment, such as the circus. The term often applies to the taming and display of lions and other big cats such as tigers, leopards, jaguars, black panthers, cheetahs, and cougars. People often use lion taming as a metaphor for any dangerous activity. Lion taming occurs in zoos around the world to enable the keepers to carry out medical procedures and feedings.
The Center for Elephant Conservation (CEC) is a 200-acre (0.81 km2) breeding farm and retirement facility for elephants in Polk City, Florida, opened in 1995. The CEC is solely sponsored by Feld Entertainment, the holding company which operated the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus from the 1960s until 2017.
Noah's Ark Zoo Farm is a 100-acre (40 ha) zoo developed on a working farm in Wraxall, North Somerset, 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Bristol, England.
Belfast Zoological Gardens is a zoo in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is in a relatively secluded location on the northeastern slope of Cavehill, overlooking Belfast's Antrim Road. Opened in 1934, it is the second-oldest zoo in Ireland, after Dublin Zoo, which opened in 1831.
Paignton Zoo is a zoo in Paignton, Devon, England. The zoo was started as a private collection by avid animal collector and breeder, Herbert Whitley, in the grounds of his home Primley House. It was opened to the public on a number of occasions, originally as Primley Zoological Gardens, and closed twice due to disputes with the tax authorities. The commercialisation of the zoo came when animals and attractions were relocated from Chessington Zoo during World War II, and the site was named as Devon's Zoo and Circus
Woburn Safari Park is a safari park located in Woburn, Bedfordshire, England. Visitors to the park can drive through exhibits, which contain species such as southern white rhino, elephants, tigers and black bears. It is part of the estates of the Duke of Bedford that also includes Woburn Abbey and its 3,000-acre (1,200 ha) deer park. The Safari Park itself covers 360 acres (150 ha).
The British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) is a registered charity and the professional body representing over 100 zoos and aquariums in Britain and Ireland.
A zoo is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes.
Animal Defenders International (ADI), founded 1990, has offices in US, UK, Colombia, Peru and South Africa; education and public awareness campaigns to protect animals in captivity and wild animals and their environments. ADI 's campaigns focus on animals used in entertainment, sport, for clothing; illegal wildlife trade; and replacement of animals used in research and testing. ADI collaborates with governments on large-scale international rescues of wild animals following legislation to end animal circuses, illegal animal trafficking. ADI owns and operates the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, South Africa, home to nearly 40 ex-circus lions and tigers from Peru, Colombia and Guatemala.
Freedom for Animals (FFA) is the working name of the Captive Animals' Protection Society, a charity registered in England campaigning to end the display of animals in zoos, and the use of animals in entertainment, such as circuses, the exotic pet trade and the audio-visual industry.
Martin Lacey is a circus ringmaster, company director and trainer of wild animals. He trained most of the tigers that were used in the Esso television advertisements in the 1970s
Joe Martin Turns 'Em Loose is a two-reel black-and-white silent comedy film released by Universal Pictures on September 15, 1915. It is not found in the Library of Congress' film preservation database and as such, is believed to be a lost film. The film was regarded by contemporary reviewers as a remarkable for its integration of plot, animal performance and stuntwork. The film’s animals were the trained tigers of Paul Bourgeois paired with the menagerie of the recently established Universal City Zoo, under the leadership of Rex De Rosselli. Bourgeois was the director and scenarist.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/feb/10/circuses-remove-big-cats
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