The son of a deranged Italian immigrant, Joseph Grimaldi (1778-1837) was the most celebrated of English clowns. The first to use white-face make-up and wear outrageous coloured clothes, he completely transformed the role of the Clown in the pantomime with a look as iconic as Chaplin's tramp or Tommy Cooper's magician. One of the first celebrity comedians, his friends included Lord Byron and the actor Edmund Kean, and his memoirs were edited by the young Charles Dickens. But underneath the stage paint, Grimaldi struggled with depression and his life was blighted with tragedy. His first wife died in childbirth and his son would go on to drink himself to death. In later life, the extreme physicality of his performances left him disabled and in constant pain. The outward joy and tomfoolery of his performances masked a dark and depressing personal life, and instituted the modern figure of the glum, brooding comedian. Joseph Grimaldi left an indelible mark on the English theatre and the performing arts, but his legacy is one of human struggle, battling demons and giving it his all in the face of adversity.
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Always vivacious and engaged, Stott's writing is earthed in research that gives resonance to the amplitude of detail he provides, tactfully tucking away documentation of sources in endnotes that are a pleasure in themselves. --Jennie Renton, Sunday Herald
Grimaldi's is a story of comedy mixed with pathos, endurance with absurdity. It is exceptionally well told here. --Sam Leith, Daily Mail
McConnell Stott's engaging book...presents a fantastic panorama of stage history, tracing how pantomime rose to be the most popular British art form at a time when the rest of Europe was convulsed by the Napoleonic wars.
--Sunday Times
Grimaldi's is a story of comedy mixed with pathos, endurance with absurdity. It is exceptionally well told here. --Sam Leith, Daily Mail
McConnell Stott's engaging book...presents a fantastic panorama of stage history, tracing how pantomime rose to be the most popular British art form at a time when the rest of Europe was convulsed by the Napoleonic wars.
--Sunday Times
Review
This interesting and entertaining book gives a real insight into how much professional comedy has changed over the last 250 years, and how much it hasn't changed.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
By Dan the man
Format:Hardcover
This is a fascinating book; entertaining, fastidiously researched and beautifully written. I doubt many people will know of Joe Grimaldi now, but in Georgian England he was a true star in a time when Byron instituted the very notion of modern celebrity.
Except the crucial difference between now and then is that Grimaldi had talent, bags of it. He was torn between the warring theatres of Drury Lane and Sadlers Wells, which Stott brings to uproarious life throughout this biography of the first clown (as we now recognise them). Grimaldi excelled at playing the archetype in the pantomime, but his own life was punctuated by tragedy and cloaked in melancholy. He was a troubled individual, his story is very moving, and you can see the shades of several current lugubrious comics in his character. He made them laugh all night, but was 'Grim-All-Day'.
However, Stott doesn't over-indulge the maudlin aspects of the story. Instead his well-crafted prose evinces hope and humour in the hardest struggles, making this an - ultimately - uplifting read. As well as it's excellent content, it's a beautifully produced and designed book and the perfect antidote to the bookshop shelves at this time of year stuffed full of garish biographies saying nothing of interest about vacuous lives.
Except the crucial difference between now and then is that Grimaldi had talent, bags of it. He was torn between the warring theatres of Drury Lane and Sadlers Wells, which Stott brings to uproarious life throughout this biography of the first clown (as we now recognise them). Grimaldi excelled at playing the archetype in the pantomime, but his own life was punctuated by tragedy and cloaked in melancholy. He was a troubled individual, his story is very moving, and you can see the shades of several current lugubrious comics in his character. He made them laugh all night, but was 'Grim-All-Day'.
However, Stott doesn't over-indulge the maudlin aspects of the story. Instead his well-crafted prose evinces hope and humour in the hardest struggles, making this an - ultimately - uplifting read. As well as it's excellent content, it's a beautifully produced and designed book and the perfect antidote to the bookshop shelves at this time of year stuffed full of garish biographies saying nothing of interest about vacuous lives.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
To borrow a title from later great clowns, "The Crazy Gang."
Andrew McConnell Stott has written perhaps the finest biography I've read this year. Following his modern day prologue at the annual Clowns' Memorial Service in Hackney, the turn of a page takes us back to Boxing Day 1810, as the greatest clown of all is about to step onto the pantomime stage.
We are then treated to an enthralling biography of the clown himself, with stories illustrating the theatrical and social scene around him adding extra colour. At the end, for further interest, pantomime "Mother Goose" is reproduced in full from an 1807 printing and the "Notes" section contains famous extracts of verse including Joe's own "Hot Codlins," written for him by Dibden.
Deciding to take this broad view is a wise one. With few solid records and so many anecdotes abounding (the "go see the great clown to cure your depression - I am that clown" story is here weighed and rightly fast dispatched) lesser authors might become mired in probably irrelevant details. Instead, placing Grimaldi in his favourite environment allows us to enjoy the intrigues of the artistes' "Green Room" and managers' offices; with excursions into the auditorium, Parliament and the homes of gentry and commoners alike to balance out the biographical insights.
Best of all, Stott's text is as light as Harlequin's moves, his eye for humour and the need to clarify details for those unschooled in that period always as deft and sure. Not a single passage drags, and it is both the facts and the atmosphere of the era that the reader will absorb by the end.
For those like myself, who know little about that theatrical period, this proves an excellent guide.... Read more ›
Andrew McConnell Stott has written perhaps the finest biography I've read this year. Following his modern day prologue at the annual Clowns' Memorial Service in Hackney, the turn of a page takes us back to Boxing Day 1810, as the greatest clown of all is about to step onto the pantomime stage.
We are then treated to an enthralling biography of the clown himself, with stories illustrating the theatrical and social scene around him adding extra colour. At the end, for further interest, pantomime "Mother Goose" is reproduced in full from an 1807 printing and the "Notes" section contains famous extracts of verse including Joe's own "Hot Codlins," written for him by Dibden.
Deciding to take this broad view is a wise one. With few solid records and so many anecdotes abounding (the "go see the great clown to cure your depression - I am that clown" story is here weighed and rightly fast dispatched) lesser authors might become mired in probably irrelevant details. Instead, placing Grimaldi in his favourite environment allows us to enjoy the intrigues of the artistes' "Green Room" and managers' offices; with excursions into the auditorium, Parliament and the homes of gentry and commoners alike to balance out the biographical insights.
Best of all, Stott's text is as light as Harlequin's moves, his eye for humour and the need to clarify details for those unschooled in that period always as deft and sure. Not a single passage drags, and it is both the facts and the atmosphere of the era that the reader will absorb by the end.
For those like myself, who know little about that theatrical period, this proves an excellent guide.... Read more ›
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By Claire
Format:Hardcover
A brilliant, fascinating pleasure to read.
I loved the inclusion of the Mother Goose script because it made it so much easier to visualise pantomime as it was then and I could easily picture Grimaldi at work each evening. I felt kind of sad for him because he worked really hard and was on the receiving end of some tough luck but I loved how respected and loved he was by the end of his career. In fact it brought tears to my eyes in the closing chapters when he had his final shows and could barely walk. Had health and safety laws existed at that time many of the imaginative and wonderful stunts, props and scenes would never have been brought to life.
It is fantastic that something I would never otherwise have chosen to read about has been vividly brought to life and it was an absolute joy to immerse myself in the world of clown, pantomime and theatre.
I loved the inclusion of the Mother Goose script because it made it so much easier to visualise pantomime as it was then and I could easily picture Grimaldi at work each evening. I felt kind of sad for him because he worked really hard and was on the receiving end of some tough luck but I loved how respected and loved he was by the end of his career. In fact it brought tears to my eyes in the closing chapters when he had his final shows and could barely walk. Had health and safety laws existed at that time many of the imaginative and wonderful stunts, props and scenes would never have been brought to life.
It is fantastic that something I would never otherwise have chosen to read about has been vividly brought to life and it was an absolute joy to immerse myself in the world of clown, pantomime and theatre.
By ann vickers
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I found it a very good read, it also amounted to a Social History of the time.
Would recomend it to both theatre and history buffs.
Would recomend it to both theatre and history buffs.
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Joseph Grimaldi remains an iconic figure in the history of comedy, clowning, and pantomime. Andrew Stott's book provides a detailed portrait of the performer, balancing his public triumphs and friendships with historic figures such as Lord Byron, with his rather tragic and disordered offstage life. Whether making theatre history in a record-breaking run in Mother Goose, or taking a fatal dose of poison only to have an attack of wind, Stott turns in a sparkling and vivid account of 18th and early 19th Century London life.
3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
For those readers interested in the development of the modern-day circus clown from his earliest roots in pantomime, this book is an absolute must. It is a well-researched and in-depth look at the life of Joseph Grimaldi, the first clown to adopt the white face and broad red smile that we have grown to love at the circus. I have always felt that clowns are, inherently, very sad characters and, judging by Joseph's early life, this is, indeed, the case. I commend this book to those who may find the subject matter of interest.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
a dire-tribe
Amazed at how positive all the reviews on this book are. I was really looking forward to reading it and have to say I have been sorely disappointed. Read more
Published 7 months ago by oto_jo
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Celebrity story with a true celebrity as its subject
I'm not a fan of clowns albeit I am not scared of them, and would not normally have read a book about them but I had heard about this one when it was the Radio 4 Book of the Week,... Read more
Published on 25 Jan 2011 by History Fan
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of my top 10 books of all time
If you (like me) had a vague idea that Grimaldi was just a circus clown - WRONG ! This is an amazing history of life on and off the London stage in the 18th century. Read more
Published on 16 Dec 2010 by Mary Evans
5.0 out of 5 stars
JOEY THE CLOWN
I purchased this book on a reccomendation from a Sunday newspaper not always the most reliable of sources,but anyway it turned up trumps with this one! Read more
Published on 1 Oct 2010 by WILLIAM SMAIL
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Pantomime Life of Joseph Grimaldi
A worthwhile read, this book is full of interesting facts, not only about 18th and 19th century London theatre but about London itself and how what are now fully fledge parts of... Read more
Published on 22 Jun 2010 by Red Cabbage
5.0 out of 5 stars
Where the wheeping clown began
A biography can be dry, a summary of facts, the research worn heavily. This is not. This is a story that, to step into cliche has sound and smell. Read more
Published on 2 Mar 2010 by J. Nimmo
5.0 out of 5 stars
Was thouroughly enjoyed
I bought this as a christmas present for my mother and she has read extremely widely and her feedback was that it was excellent. Read more
Published on 21 Jan 2010 by Ms. J. E. Weston Davies
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