Q 01/05

Who is regarded as the 'father of the modern circus'?

A) P. T. Barnum

B) Philip Astley

C) John Ringling

D) Charles Hughes

Answer · why

B) Philip Astley

Philip Astley drew crowds to his riding school with trick-riding displays performed in a ring, then added acrobats, a rope-dancer and a clown to build...

Q 02/05

In what year and city did Astley put on his first public show?

A) 1793, Philadelphia

B) 1782, Paris

C) 1750, Vienna

D) 1768, London

Answer · why

D) 1768, London

Philip Astley and his wife Patty first performed on Easter Monday, 4 April 1768, at Ha'penny Hatch in Lambeth, London, near today's Waterloo station.

Q 03/05

What is the standard diameter of a circus ring, fixed by Astley?

A) 48 feet

B) 55 feet

C) 42 feet

D) 65 feet

Answer · why

C) 42 feet

Astley settled on a ring of 42 feet (13 m), the diameter at which a cantering horse's centrifugal pull helps a rider stand on its back; it became the ...

Q 04/05

Where does the word 'circus' come from?

A) Greek for 'horse'

B) Latin for 'circle'

C) Old French for 'tent'

D) Latin for 'crowd'

Answer · why

B) Latin for 'circle'

'Circus' is Latin for 'circle' or 'ring', borrowed from Greek kirkos; Romans applied it to their chariot-racing arenas, and 18th-century London showme...

Q 05/05

Who coined the term 'circus' when he opened the Royal Circus in London in 1782?

A) Philip Astley

B) Charles Dibdin

C) Andrew Ducrow

D) John Bill Ricketts

Answer · why

B) Charles Dibdin

Charles Dibdin, a songwriter and writer of pantomimes, opened the Royal Circus in Lambeth with the equestrian Charles Hughes in 1782 and chose the nam...