Circus of Horror

The world renowned venue at Olympia in London saw the Bertram Mills Circus grace its doors in 1919.  Members of the Mills circus agreed to a publicity stunt which involved catering for the whole Bertram Mills Circus. 

As it was nearly Christmas, the team put on a lavish Christmas lunch with all the trimmings.  The team included amongst others, the world’s smallest man as the waiter, and the world’s tallest man as a between course entertainer. 

The chef, the resident sword swallower, knew absolutely nothing about cooking.  He left the Turkey out to “hang” thinking it should be treated like beef.  By the time the bird was cooked it looked delicious and so most of it was devoured by the Circus members.  A few hours later, just before the photocall, every member of the circus had violent food poisoning and the photographers had to be sent home. 

The world’s smallest man, due to his tiny body mass, was rushed to hospital, critically ill and was absent from the circus for over three weeks while he recovered at the nearby St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington.