On this day in 1937 the Gridneffs arrived in Southampton on SS Njassa, having secured British naturalisation in South Africa the year before. ‘Of course, there was a bit of bribery and corruption in the process... I don’t know how much it cost the boys’ (George Gridneff).
Photo from the Passenger Arrival Lists, National Archives.
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#circus #circushistory #circushistories #circusarchive #vintagecircus #circuslife #circusarts #circusaroundtheworld #circusphotography #circushistorian #historiesofcircus #socialhistory #gridneffs #southamptonport #1930s
George and Lydia Gridneff practising at home in London, late 1940s. Amongst all the professional photos with amazing costumes, these quiet and unstaged moments are by far my favourite.
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#circus #circushistory #circushistories #circusarchive #vintagecircus #circuslife #circusarts #circusaroundtheworld #circusphotography #circushistorian #historiesofcircus #socialhistory #documentaryphotography #blackandwhitephotography #vintagephotography #vintagephoto #circusfamily #circusperformers #unsupportedladder #unsupportedladderact #gridneffs
The Amazing Gridneffs for #worldcircusday – Russian circus performers with an unsupported ladder act who travelled through China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines and South Africa before settling in London during the 1930s. This footage dates from a European tour in the late 1930s, with Bertha Gridneff hanging by her teeth.
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#circus #circushistory #circushistories #circusarchive #vintagecircus #circuslife #circusarts #circusaroundtheworld #circusphotography #circushistorian #historiesofcircus #socialhistory #circusfamily #circusperformers #unsupportedladder #unsupportedladderact #balance #gridneffs #acrobat #acrobatics #super8film #supereight #vintagefilm #1930s
