Digger Pugh was born in England in 1902, although the family emigrated to Australia in 1912, where Digger grew up. From a young age Digger trained in tumbling and trampolining and soon started performing in variety and music hall theatres. Eventually his career evolved from performer to Producer and Supplier of acts for the variety and circus sectors. Digger returned to England and set up what became world famous dance tumbling acts including ‘The Wallabies, Digger Pugh Ariel Ballet’ and ‘The Digger Pugh Troupe of dancers and acrobatic Circusettes’. The shows introduced elaborate and lavish aerial acts for circus and variety, which toured the UK, Europe and USA. His troupes became most popular in leading circuses across the globe during the 1950s and the 1960s.

Digger’s son John Wallace Pugh became an internationally renowned circus showman, he became President and CEO of Cole Bros and was credited with reinventing and revitalising The World's Largest Circus Under The Big Top in America. His ingenuity spurred him to design a radically different Big Top arena in American circuses and revolutionised the way circuses travelled in the country.

At the request of H.S.H. Rainier III, John served as a judge of the prestigious International Circus Festival in Monte Carlo. The United Kingdom's World's Fair Association presented him its "International Award," and John received Sarasota's Ringling Museum's "Power Behind the Scenes" Award.

In 2010 John Pugh was inducted into the Circus Ring of Fame which noted, "Few have done more to preserve the traditions of the traveling, 3-Ring Tented American Circus."

The Digger Pugh archive, encompassed the ascending career in circus and music hall of two generations of the Pugh family, giving a rare insight into the characteristic multi-faceted profession of showmen and women in the entertainment sector. Between the middle of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty first the family had an international impact in the popular entertainment sector led by innovation, branching out into the most successful forms of entertainment of the day.