[1] The most popular attractions at the exhibition were the two so-called “colonial villages”—an “Irish village” and a “Senegalese village“, which were designed to communicate the success of imperialism. The “Senegalese village” was a so-called “native village” displaying day-to-day life, as well as various artefacts. Press reports commented on the “surprising cleanliness” of the Irish, reminded readers were reminded that the Senegalese were “cleaner than they looked”.
[2] ‘Bostock‘s Arena and Jungle’ is recorded at Earls Court in 1908 and then visited principal cities in the UK over the following years. The Bostock and Wombwell dynasty were famed for the presentation of travelling Menageries throughout the nineteenth century and the first third of the 20th century.
[3] Frank Bostock was a famed third-generation animal trainer and menagerist. His greatest money maker was a chimpanzee named Consul, the “Man Chimp”. In his act he would eat with a fork and knife, drink wine, prepare and drink tea, smoke a cigarette, dress and undress, and ride a bicycle. Consul was replaced by Consul II, but even during his life, there were multiple Consuls, so that when Bostock had several shows out he could have a “Consul” in each. The postcards here are from the Earl’s Court exhibit in 1908 and 1910, several years after Bostock’s original Consul’s death.
[4] The Ulster is a Victorian working daytime overcoat, with a cape and sleeves.
[5] Donatienne by Rene Bazin. Published 1903.
[6] Tussore: a strong coarse brownish Indian silk.
[7] The French Knot is a simple embroidery stitch that creates a nubby, little three-dimensional dot. It works great alone, or strung together in lines, or clustered to form a lovely piled surface.
[8] A Lame Dogs Diary by S Macnaughtan. Published 1906.
[9] Bourne & Hollingsworth was a large department store on the corner of Oxford Street and Berners Street (me: where I used to regularly shop as a student nurse in the 1980’s).
The Diaries of my Great-Great-Aunt Kate 