When you think of female fairground performers, you might picture the fortune teller, the knife-thrower’s target or, perhaps, the bearded lady. But beyond the stereotypes, in its heyday the Victorian fair was one of the few places where women could forge independent careers.

In the 19th Century, women primarily belonged to the domestic sphere – either as wives and mothers, or servants, nurses and teachers.

So how is it that in a society where the average woman had limited prospects, show-women were able to subvert the norm?  More