First watched : 12 July 1974
On 26th January 1974 I went with my gran on a trip to see the circus at Belle Vue, arranged by the school. It is still my only visit to a circus. It came from Denmark. The lady on the front of the souvenir programme ( not mine unfortunately ) is Annette Jensen ( aka "Nelly Jane" who died in 2009 aged 74 ) . We enjoyed it although my recollections of the trapeze acts, clowns and most of the animals are meagre . The one act I really did enjoy was Helmbrecht Hoppe and his Unrideable Mule which offered members of the audience a chance at being a circus star if they could stay on the animal. Some young men ( no one from our party ) tried and failed then a soberly -dressed, middle-aged man got up to the loud protestations of his wife who was trying to drag him back into his seat. The argument continued into the ring and the mule ended up chasing her around. I realise now, and probably had an inkling at the time, that they were part of the act but it was well done and absolutely hilarious.
We must have told my mum about it because six months later she called me out of bed to watch the same thing on BBC One on a Friday evening. I didn't see myself on screen and given the length of the show's run it's unlikely to have been filmed on the same night we were there but the possibility was exciting.
NB I know there's a discrepancy between the title and the programme cover but that's how it appears on Genome.
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