The History of Bloxwich Carnival

 

By GEORGE JEVONS

 

Early Carnivals

Staff of Walsall Times in Carnival costume, 1930 (Wilf Sims front left)

 

Bloxwich Carnivals began with the aim of supporting the community, and have continued to do so throughout their history.

 

Early in 1918 the Walsall Observer had been calling for support for the Walsall Hospital, and was raising quite large sums of money for this cause. When the First World War ended, peace celebrations began, many towns held these back until 1919 when the troops started arriving back, Bloxwich was one of these.

 

Homeshaw in his history of Bloxwich tells us that Bloxwich’s Carnivals started at this time. Though a report in the Walsall Observer on the 1925 Carnival reported that this was the 3rd annual effort of the Bloxwich and District Hospital Aid Society whose own history goes back to 1909, so maybe they were organised by another group.

 

1926 saw the coronation of the first ever Bloxwich Carnival Queen Miss Edna Holden, which was held, at the Wake Ground.  Edna was also selected, by public ballot, for 1927, and because the rules changed to prevent it she will be the only queen to have reigned in successive years.

 

The route for these early carnivals makes our two-mile procession look very small. The 1926 carnival left the Wakes Ground, High Street pausing at the War Memorial for Edna to place her Queens bouquet, into Lichfield Street, then Field Road to Red Lion, then Green Lane to Four Crosses, then via Leamore Lane, Portsea Street, Cope Street, Broadstone Avenue, where the parade stopped for a tea interval, before proceeding through the new Blakenall housing Estate, to Pinfold, then along high street and ending in Bellfield Meadow.

 

In 1930 the queen was replaced by Lady Godiva, who was played by Miss Doris Mugglestone of Leicester, who was repeating the post she had performed previously at Leicester. This caused quite a controversy, not because the lady in question was nude, (she wore “pink fleshings”) but because Coventry accused Bloxwich of “trespassing on their historical rights”.

 

The 1930's proved to be a difficult time for Bloxwich Carnival, there was not a carnival in 1931, and the final carnival was run in 1932, possibly due to the economic climate at that time.

 

 

Post War Carnivals

 

Cinderella float, Bloxwich Carnival, 1949

This period boasted what has proved to be the most successful period of Carnivals to date, most under the control of Arnold Roe – the longest serving president to date.

 

In 1949, following two years of collecting and running events for the “old folk” of Bloxwich, William Henry Fletcher and a group of local councillors decided to have a big event to generate more funds, and in 1947 the carnival was revived.

 

This revival began the longest continuous run to date of the Carnival, making it one of the largest, if not the largest carnival in the area, with attendance’s of up to 25,000 people.

 

Bloxwich Carnival Committee was very inventive in selecting events for Carnival day.

 

• 1949 a talent show looking for new acts for the BBC was judged by Mr. W. Hughes of BBC Midland Region, the winners were Miss Francis Bradburn (soprano), Mr Robert Hope (baritone), Mrs Irene Gardener (contralto)
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• 1956 there was a beauty contest for the selection of a dairy princess to represent the Area in a national competition organised by the National Milk Publicity Council in connection with the June Dairy Festival.
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• 1958 there was a ladies football match, watched mainly by men!, between Wolverhampton Ladies and Tillington Ladies of Stafford.  Wolv won 5-3.
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• It was believed to be the first to hire a helicopter in 1960
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• 1964 there was a Rodeo
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• In 1969 the Carnival ran to two days with the 2nd day being a Steam Rally

Carnival Queen Janet Cook and attendants, 1968 

The carnival was visited by a range of celebrities, and even had Ken Dodd as a Vice Chair for a period in the early 1960’s.

 

It was not all good news the chairman often had to call for new blood, and often lack of volunteers threatened the carnival. The carnival was so well placed though that in 1955 the then Treasurer - Austin Farrow, commented that Bloxwich without its Carnival would seem like London without its Lord Mayor's show. 

 

In 1957 our honoury president Arnold Roe took over the chair of the carnival, which he held until the last carnival of this period in 1977, when public apathy & lack of support killed the carnival, after an unbroken run of some 27 years.

 

 

Rotary Carnivals

Elmore Row Adult Centre float, Bloxwich Carnival, 1980's

 

 

In 1981 Bloxwich Rotary who had been formed just 4 years previously revived the Carnival after 3 years of absence with an attendance of 6,000.  These carnivals ran until 1985, when once again they stopped.

 

 

Millennium Carnival

 

Then in 2000 the Friends of Bloxwich Parks successfully applied for and were awarded a £5000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund under the Millennium Festival for All, for the restoration of the 1891 fountain in the Promenade gardens, and the revival of the carnival.  They brought together a range of community groups within Bloxwich to work as a sub committee of the Friends Group to organise the carnival.  On August the 12th 2000 the 48th Bloxwich Carnival was successfully revived on a day bathed in glorious sunshine.

 

Instead of a Carnival Queen it was decided to ask local primary schools to select a pupil who, through their own personal endeavours, rather than academic achievements, should represent the town as Ambassadors.

 

The carnival continues to run successfully.  In 2001 the "Old Folks" tea party was revived, now taking place on the Friday before the Carnival, where invited old folks attend a performance by one of Pat Collins' fairground organs.

 

Our 50th, Carnival fell neatly in the year that celebrated the Queens Golden Jubilee.

2006 Carnival

The 2006 Bloxwich Carnival Queen and her entourage. 
L to R:  Mia Ford, Kirsty Rolston, Natalie Slaney, Samantha Badger.

This year our 54th Carnival sees the return of our parade after a lapse of two years.  On the 5th August the parade will start in Park Road, Then along High Street, Left into Field Road, Left into Lichfield Street, back to Park Road.

 

Events will again be held in King George V Playing Fields, and will consist of a daring Stunt Show, Dancing Bands and a Dog Agility display.  Entrance is £1, which will be used to fund 2007’s Carnival.

 CONTACT BLOXWICH CARNIVAL COMMITTEE:  bloxwichcarnival@yahoo.co.uk

 

Carnival Queens, Princesses & Rosebuds

Year	Queen	Year	Queen	Year	Queen
1919	none	1959	Mildred Saunders	2000	Ambassadors
1920	none	1960	Megan Dawes	2001	Ambassadors
1921	none	1961	Joan Sadler	2002	Ambassadors
1922	none	1962	Janette Garbett	2003	Tammy Scale
1923	none	1963	Sylvia Cockayne	2004	Danielle Peakman
1924	none	1964	Kathleen Smith	2005	Samantha Badger
1925	none	1965	Marianne Preece	2006	Kirsty Rolston
1926	none	1966	Rosemary Shelmilt		Princess
1927	Miss Edna Holden	1967	Lynn Blewitt	2003	Amanda Pearce
1928	Miss Edna Holden	1968	Janet Cook	2004	Suzanne Peakman
1929	Miss Sarah Garbett	1969	Mrs Usha Dewan	2005	Lindy Barnsley
1930	“Lady Godiva”	1970	Jane Sillifant	2006	Natalie Slaney
1932	Lily Doleman	1971	Sandra Crutchley		Rosebuds
1949	Cynthia Steward	1973	Susan Hough	2004	Nichole Hall
1950	Elsie Walker	1974	June Clarke	2005	Chloe Stephens
1951	Mavis Jones	1975	Susan White	2006	Mia Ford
1952	Murial Toon	1976	Carol Dawes	2007
1953	Audrey Edwards	1977	Jane Baughey	2008
1954	Vivian Purchase	1981	Mandy Brown	2009
1955	Beryl Somerfield	1982	Kay McDowell
1956	Anne Morris	1983	Dianne Lowe
1957	Sylvia Evans	1984	Zoe Russell
1958	Yvonne Hill	1985	Sarah Kimberley

 

Ambassadors

Year	Ambassadors
2000	Christopher Alcock, Katie Berrington, Simon Barratt, Charlotte Benton, Mathew Thomas,  Katheryn Perkins,  Natash Oakley.
2001	Jay Buckerfield,  Lisa Peck, Daniel Jackson,  Danielle Quilt,  Luke Taylor, Samantha Jane Reynolds,  Ben Whelan,  Stephanie Reynolds,  Leanne Savigar,  Sarah Somerfield.
2002	Simon Hyams,  Kay Marshall, Connor Moore, Christina Phipps, Tom Poulton, Katie Broadhurst, Mathew Slater, Ellese France.
2003	Craig Astell, Freda Bibi, Bruce Evans, Sarah Moss, Luke Hyams, Emma Reynolds, Andrew Paddock, Demi Rolston, Jake Stanton, Victoria Williamson, Lynsey Winwood.
2004	Daniel Humphries,  Rachel Topliss, David Pitt,  Charmaine Mason, George Read, Hannah Russon, Luke Neil, Samantha Porton,  Brandon Moriarty, Becky O'Mara, Jasdeep Kaur.
2005
2006	Emile Fisher: Olivia Perry Stuart Forsyth: Danielle Marriott: Lewis Harrison: Sophie Gunter: Ryan Law: Megan Morris: Liam Miner: Natasha Steane: Callam Perry: Lauren Spooner