The thousands of entertainers who travelled around Edwardian Britain included men, women, and children of African descent. The common use of “Negro” or “coloured” in describing burnt-cork minstrel performers makes racial identification uncertain, and the claims of groups alleged to be from Dahomey when actually consisting of people from Sierra Leone, or “Zulus” who were born in the U.S.A. make for confusion.

The pages of the London weeklies The Era and The Stage document the shows scheduled in many theatres, and carry reviews as well as short entries enabling showmen and -women to contact old associates and to see where there were employment opportunities.

On 9 December 1911 page 38 of The Era had this notice: “Wanted, Coloured Man, used to handling Reptiles, for Snake Pit. Address, E. H. Bostock, World’s Fair, Agricultural Hall, London”. Edward Bostock was born in 1858 into a menagerie-owning family and by 1900 owned the Scottish Zoo in Glasgow, continuing in the menagerie business until his death in 1940. He was a leading member of Britain’s entertainment world.

The Stage on 21 December 1911 (page 30) carried an announcement from the actor and promotor George Carney – and future film actor (1887-1947): “Wanted, at once, Tall Coloured Man (Negro), for Stage Assistant and Props. State experience, height, and salary required. George Carney, 4 Wiseton Road, Wandsworth Common, S.W.”

The black men who took these jobs would hardly be mentioned in reviews and publicity, forming a seldom documented part of Britain’s black history.