Biography

Thomas (Tommy) Otto Roberts was born in 1914 to Paul Otto Kleinschmidt and his wife Mary Fossett. Tommy came from a long line of circus performers, his father was a continental tumbler that came to England in the early 1900s to work in the British circus, while his mother was the sister of circus impresario ‘Sir’ Robert Fossett, at which circus Paul and Mary met.

Tommy’s life run in parallel to his older brother’s Bobby (1912), both children joined Sir Robert Fossett Circus at a young age performing as clowns and each one eventually developed into a versatile performer, Tommy appearing in riding acts, aerial numbers and in an acrobatics. The brothers even changed their surname to Roberts together.

Over the course of their career Tommy and Bobby worked at various circuses including Otto’s Victory Circus, which belonged to his parents, Rosaire's Circus and Chapman's and performed all over the country in tenting circuses during the summer months and in theatres during the winters.

In 1941 Tommy married variety and circus performer Marie Beck (1914-2008), just a short while after Bobby had married himself and they continued working alongside each other joined by their wives.

In 1942 Bobby and Tommy, were called up to complete their national service in Edinburgh with the fire brigade. After their service Bobby went to work with Harry Coady and Don Ross Circuses until the brothers joined forces again in 1944 to form their own circus, which they called Robert Brothers Circus. Over the years, they also called their circus Hip-Hip-Zoo-Ray, a name previously used by the Chapman’s Circus for their stage shows.