Dates

• Existence: c1934 - 2007

Biography

John Turner is best known as the author of the Dictionaries of British circus Biographies which is an invaluable source for researchers of Victorian and twentieth century circus performers. He also created a database which enables quick searches of performers and provides citations of primary sources that were used in his research.

John Turner was born in Hull and graduated from the University of Leeds with a PhD in 1959. He worked as an academic biochemist, in California and London, and finally as a Reader in Biochemistry at the University of Liverpool from 1963 until 1989.

After his retirement, John became interested in the history of circus. This stemmed from his discovery that Hengler’s Grand Cirque had once flourished in Hull, Liverpool and other provincial towns as well as in the Metropolis. Initially he collected information on the many performers and showmen of the Victorian period later continuing his research to include performers in the twentieth century.

His aim was to produce a definitive series of source-books on the history of British circus which could be used by others to discover more about this popular form of entertainment. He continued his research right up until his sudden death in 2007.

For many years, John Turner was the librarian for the Circus Fairground Association, taking over from Malcolm Airey and was instrumental in depositing the library in the National Fairground Archive at the University of Sheffield.

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