Dates

• Existence: 1949 - 2017

Biography

Derek Simpson was a well known personality in the circus circles. He was an agent for foreign acts coming to British and Irish circuses from the 1980s to the present day and had strong links with most of the circus owners throughout the country. He was well versed on the intricacies of obtaining visas, work permits and liaising with British and foreign embassies abroad.

Derek was an art teacher with a degree from Belfast College of Art. His interest in graphic design led to him creating many of the iconic later twentieth century posters for Irish circuses. As such, his graphic influence is very clear in today’s posters with some of his designs being found in the Victoria and Albert Museum collection.

Derek not only designed posters for Irish and British circuses but he also distributed them in hard line paramilitary dominated areas. Derek went to became Head of Art at Ashfield and some of his pupils’ murals, both political and non-political can be seen on gable walls in parts of East Belfast.

Derek was also a life-long circus fan and editor of Ireland’s CIRCUS magazine and wrote reviews and articles for specialist journals. He spent most of his spare time visiting shows in Ireland and Europe and photographing them. He was a very important figure amongst Irish Circus Friends and one of the founder of the Circus Association of Ireland in the 1990s. As well as generating his own archive in his capacity as an artist and agent, Derek was an avid collector of circus material and amassed a large collection of posters, handbills, programmes, scrapbooks, photographs and other items of ephemera.