Category: Interviews

Autumn is in the air and that can mean only one thing for Showmen in the Midlands: it’s Mop time! Three lessees share their experiences about this hectic part of the season.As the nights get longer, fairground lights really come into their own. And as …

Each year, John Lowery books hundreds of rides for dozens of events. Yet he still looks back fondly on the days he danced in a gorilla suit on the front of Ernest Hall’s ghost train.“All I had was a black bag with my belongings,” says …

During the pandemic lockdowns, many people took up new hobbies, or resumed hobbies that had fallen by the wayside over the years. One such was David Wallis who found a new use for his paintbrush.Showman David Wallis is no slouch when it comes to fairground …

It’s over a decade since Billy Williams left the North Wales coast, but he can’t get the beach out of his system. Or big wheels, too, for that matter.When he and his brother Adam were growing up, Billy’s parents operated amusements in Rhyl and later …

Born into traditional Showmen’s families, Charles and Amy Charlotte Barwick have fulfilled the long-held dream of owning a pier they’ve always loved.Following their recent acquisition of the pier in the popular seaside town of Southwold in Suffolk, Charles and Amy Charlotte Barwick appear to have …

Silcock’s are synonymous with amusements in Southport, as well as Blackpool. Herbert Silcock Jnr tells World’s Fair about his career on the coast over six decades, and why being a Showman is better than being a dentist.Silcock’s links with Southport (Merseyside, but still fondly remembered by …

World’s Fair speaks to Max Waddington and Bradley Bedford in their first full season on the road together as lessees.Over the past few years, we have interviewed some of the UK’s biggest fairground players in these pages. This month we profile two of the newest …

After establishing their mobile bar business over a decade ago, Stanley & Debbie Reeves have got two new hospitality ventures on the go.“I’m 70 in November,” the North East born, Manchester-based Showman tells World’s Fair. “I don’t want to be getting in lorries, pulling off …

Swansea-based Showman Henry Studt has travelled 15 machines in less than two decades. But which one ride does he regret selling? Henry explains all…Mad Max (and other Miamis)My first Miami, which I bought off Abie Danter in 2005, started me off on a good road. …

As Pete Tate prepares to hang up his paintbrushes, his unofficial apprentice Tom Tooley is keen to keep his signwriting skills alive.The decoration of fairground rides and attractions has gone through several styles and mediums over the years. Signwriting with ornate lettering, banners and scrolls …