Chipperfield, Mary, 1938 - 2014
Dates
- Existence: 1938 - 2014
Biography
Mary Chipperfield was born in a circus caravan in Kentish Town, London in 1938 to a long lineage of circus families and animal trainers. Her father was Jimmy Chipperfield and his mother Rose Purchase. The Purchase family had a long history of travelling menageries, and Rose had a lion act herself, while the Chipperfield name has been linked to animal performance and show business since James Chipperfield presented performing animals at the Thames Frost Fair in 1684.
Dick Chipperfield, Mary's uncle, began performing as a clown at the family's fairground variety show when he was just five while Her father Jimmy, also took part in the show as a clown, a wire-walker and an acrobat.
It was in the early 1930s that the Chipperfields started to become well established in the traditional circus business and by the end of World War II the show had become one of the largest touring circuses in Europe and travelled at least 200 horses, 16 elephants and 200 other wild animals.
Mary started riding horses in the circus at the age of ten, and eventually became a very skilled rider. She briefly left the ring to compete in show jumping when she was around seventeen, returning to the circus two years later to present her famous liberty horses and High School act.
although she continued to work with horses, over the years she trained and presented many different animals.
Mary married Roger Cawley, who had been a manager with Bertram Mills Circus, and subsequently joined Mary’s father’s business. In 1955 Mary’s father, Jimmy, had left the Chipperfield Circus to set up his own business providing animals for television and the film industry as well as circuses worldwide.
In the 1960s Jimmy started to develop drive-through safari parks, the first of which was Longleat with the Marquess of Bath, and the second Woburn Abbey with the Duke of Bedford.
In 1961 Jimmy founded Southampton Zoological Gardens, where Mary worked taming a variety of wild animals, in particular she specialised in chimpanzee acts. Although Mary and her husband were heavily involved in Jimmy's business, during this time Mary also continued to appear at numerous circuses in Great Britain, the USA and Europe presenting a wide range of animals from high school horses, to chimpanzees, elephants and tigers.
In the 1970s Mary was at the height of her fame as reflected by her appearance in the BBC’s 1977 This Is Your Life programme, interviewed by Eamonn Andrews. In 1980 she was crowned 'La Dame du Cirque' by Prince Rainier at the prestigious Monte Carlo Circus Festival. Although Mary continued her circus shows into the 1990s, by the 1980s the popularity of animals in circus had heavily declined with animal right movements taking momentum. As the International Fund for Animal Welfare was driving a strong campaign for animal circuses to be banned in 1998, the Chipperfields were brought to public attention for their practices. In 1999, Mary was found guilty of twelve counts of cruelty to animals followed infiltration by campaigners from the Animal Defenders group, who filmed their work. Mary's husband, Roger was also found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to a sick elephant and they were both fined. However, this did not deter Mary, who continued to train animals and present them in circuses as late as 2006.
Mary and Roger had a son, David and a daughter, Suzanne, who also made a career training animals.
Found in 35 Collections and/or Records:
2nd Annual Christmas Spectacular Poster, 19 December - 6 January c1970 - 1979
Bolton. Featuring Mary Chipperfield’s Animal Extravaganza. Red and green type on white background.
2nd Annual Christmas Spectacular Poster, 19 December - 6 January c1970 - 1979
Bolton. Featuring Mary Chipperfield’s Animal Extravaganza. Red and green type on yellow background.
Billy Russell’s Circus Spectacular Programme, 1974
Billy Russell’s Circus Spectacular Programme, 1975
Billy Russell’s Circus Spectacular Programme, 1976
Hippodrome, Great Yarmouth, Jerry, Jimmy and Johnny equestrians, Udo Heltano equilibrist, Mary Chipperfield’s kindergarten animals, chimpanzees and Liberty horses, Senorita Manolita aerial act, Miss Wendy’s Poodle Party, Jacko Fossett and Little Billy clowns, The Belios acrobats, The Halfwits comedy acrobats, The Tonitas Veracruz trapeze, Miss Conti balancing roller act, Jorge Tonito tightwire, The Herculeans moustachioed acrobats. Contains illustrations with photos, 24p.p.
Blackpool Tower Circus Fantastic' 75 Poster, 1975
Charlie Cairoli, Mary Chipperfield. Colour illustrations of a clown, a woman riding horseback, horses, a zebra, a lion, tigers and an elephants against a blue background, type in yellow, orange and white.
Blackpool Tower Circus Fantastic' 75 Poster, 1975
Charlie Cairoli, Mary Chipperfield. Colour illustrations of a clown, a woman riding horseback, horses, a zebra, a lion, tigers and an elephants against a blue background, type in yellow, orange and white.
Blackpool Tower Circus Fantastic' 75 Poster, 1975
Charlie Cairoli, Mary Chipperfield. Colour illustrations of a clown, a woman riding horseback, horses, a zebra, a lion, tigers and an elephants against a blue background, type in yellow, orange and white.
Blackpool Tower Circus Fantastic' 78 Poster, 1978
Charlie Cairoli clown, Mary Chipperfield animal tamer, Lilly Yokoi, Yong Bros. Colour illustration of a pouncing tiger, main background is blue with yellow and white stars, main title in yellow and red, act announcements in red and black on a yellow background.
Blackpool Tower Circus Fantastic' 78 Poster, 1978
Charlie Cairoli clown, Mary Chipperfield animal tamer, Lilly Yokoi, Yong Bros. Colour illustration of a pouncing tiger, main background is blue with yellow and white stars, main title in yellow and red, act announcements in red and black on a yellow background.
Blackpool Tower Circus Fantastic Programme, 1975
Charlie Cairoli and his Company, Mary Chipperfield and her animals, The Flying Marilees Flyers Aerialists, Circus Knie’s Horses, Franz R. Althoff elephants, Kris Kremo juggler, Fattini blancing act, Skating Rolwoods, Chy Bao Guy Troupe, The Six Bertinis trick cyclists and balancing act, Desmond and Marks clown, Helen Piderman. Notes of times handwritten on programme. Contains photos, 12p.p.
Blackpool Tower Circus Fantastic Programme, 1978
Charlie Cairoli and his company clowns, Lilly Yokoi trick cyclist, Yong Brothers balancing act, Mary Chipperfield and her magnificent animals, Norman Barrett ringmaster, The Salvadors ball balancing, Kludsky Troupe tumblers, Miss Wendy and her birds, Burger Sisters, El Gran Rober. Contains illustration on cover with photos, 12p.p.
Blackpool Tower Circus Fantastic Programme, 1975
Colour portrait photographs of Charlie Cairoli and Mary Chipperfield in circles and illustration of animal heads in yellow and red scroll joining the photos on a black starry background on the front cover, inside black and white photographs of performers and acts with text, programme in the centre and commercial advertising. Printed by United Printing Services, Stanley Road, Blackpool, 6p.p.
Blackpool Tower Circus Posters, c1930 - 1990
Posters for Blackpool Tower Circus including shows by Knie's Circus, Circus Krone, Circus Schumann, Bertram Mills Circus, Robert Brothers Circus and performances by Charlie Cairoli, Doddles, Coco the Clown, The Rosaires, Lilly Yokoi, Alfred Court, Vojtek Trubka, The Great Wallendas and Mary Chipperfield among others.
Blackpool Tower Circus Programmes, c1900 - 2009
Blackpool Tower Circus programmes.
Charles Taylor Collection
The Charles Taylor collection is a fine example of Taylor’s of Wombwell printers’ posters, which highlight changes in printing techniques, fashion and taste within the popular entertainment industry. Included are examples of posters for pantomimes, fairs and circuses. The collection also contains handbills and other advertising material.
Chipperfield Circus Programmes, 1963 - 1995
Chipperfield Circus programmes, including Jimmy Chipperfield, Mary Chipperfield and Tony Hopkins presenting the Chipperfield Circus, contain black and white and colour photographs of performers and acts with text, programme and commercial advertising.
Chipperfield's Christmas Circus Programme, 19 November 1976
Thames Television invitation ticket admit one, David Hamilton Ringmaster, Mary Chipperfield and her elephants, poodles, monkeys and tigers, Los Alamos Wild West show, Herculeans Moustachioed strongmen, Bubi Ernesto and company clowns, Dick Chipperfield with panthers and leopards, Brucksons balance act, The Leotaris trapeze act. Contains tiger illustration, 4p.p.
Christopher Palmer Collection
Circus programmes and VHS tapes from Billy Smart’s Circus and Chipperfields’s Circus collected during the 1970s and early 1980s by the TV producer, Christopher John Palmer. There are also a number of promotional photographs of artistes and other ephemera related to the circus.
Circus Friends Association Collection
This collection consists of a large library of books and journals, as well as archival material including posters, programmes, photographs, films, handbills, research material, scrapbooks, original artwork and many other items of ephemera relating to British, Irish and European circuses