THE CIRCUS was coming to town in 1984 and Paulo’s traditional big-top show was going to pitch its tent in South Hill Park, Bracknell and seven lucky readers were going to be given the chance to get in for nothing.

In an easy to enter competition 10 familiar circus related names had been juggled in an early form of ‘alphabetti spaghetti’ such as NCSLWO (clowns) RAETZEP (trapeze) and IGB PTO (big top).

The original Madame Paulo retired in 1950 but her children had re-united in the 1980s and were coming to Bracknell for the first time.

The News was feeling generous when in another competition the then News Editor George Tuckfield presented a Melbury picnic basket to lucky competition winners Isabelle and Horace Dowling from Wokingham.

Bracknell News:

Silverware was more to the taste of 16-month old Victoria Osbell when she posed for the News photographer after winning Binfield’s beautiful baby contest as a host of other village shows took place during September 1984.

One show even included the ‘snooker loopy’ stars of the green baize Bill Werbeniuk,Ray Reardon and John Virgo.

The South East England branch of the Doctor Who Appreciation Society convention had recently made the decision that Bracknell was the centre of their universe 33 years ago.

Bracknell News:

The members told the News that they take group matters very seriously and spend time during these meetings discussing the technology behind the making of Dr Who and many other science fiction programmes.

Racal Avionics had a Royal guest to view its latest airborne navigation systems and the Duke of Kent also had an early chance to see the RNS5000 which was the newest of its ‘multi-sensor’ aviation electronics.