When Punch and Judy turf wars led to a punch-up in Southend

The festival has been running at the end of the pier for decades and is always a major draw for children and parents.

One welcome part of the event is always the Punch and Judy shows, which have an even longer connection with Southend.

From Victorian times through to the Edwardian era and even up to the 1970s and 1980s, when it all but died off, this form of puppetry entertainment thrilled young holidaymakers by the thousands.

Pier gathering - mums and dads gather to watch a Punch and Judy show on the pier in 1990 (Image: Newsquest)

It might seem outdated now but we shouldn’t underestimate the pivotal part that Mr Punch and his troupe played in Southend’s cultural history.

It’s hard to imagine how such grotesquely chinned puppets have been able to muster so much enjoyment, but they certainly did.

The genre has its origins in 16th century Italian commedia dell’arte, where the character of Punch developed from the stock character of “Punchinello”.

Main event - men, women and children scramble to watch a Punch and Judy show at Chalkwell Park in 1922. You can just about make out the puppet booth to the right of the photo. (Image: Newsquest)

The date of May 9, 1662 is said to be Punch’s official birthday because that was the first known date the figure was recorded as being seen in Britain.

Words and phrases that we still use today have their roots in the genre. The stick that Punch carries is called a “slapstick” while Punch’s consistently chipper nature led to the popular figure of speech “pleased as Punch.”

Although Punch’s often violent temper with his sidekicks the crocodile, the policeman, the baby and, of course Judy, would raise eyebrows today, he was once something of a hero.

In 1728, the satirist Jonathan Swift mentioned the excitement generated at fairgrounds by Punch’s curious squawking voice (produced by an instrument known as a swatchel). One of the photos in our gallery shows just such excitement right here in Southend as crowds packed into Chalkwell Park for a Punch and Judy show in 1922.

Southend’s Punch and Judy history, however, wasn’t always as sweet as Punch’s jester-type sugarloaf hat.

In August 1866, a turf war bust-up took place between two rival Punch and Judy showmen in Southend.

Ironically, these entertainers were often known as “punchmen” and they certainly lived up to the name on this day.

The two men weren’t named but the brawl made headlines in the local paper, the Southend Standard. Basically, one of the Punch and Judy showmen had been coming to Southend every summer for six years and always set his red and white striped booth up on the corner near the Royal Hotel.

Seafront smiles- a Punch and Judy show on Canvey beach in 1972 (Image: Newsquest)

He believed it was his rightful spot after so many years in the same place, but when a new rival entered the town and tried to secure the much-coveted spot for himself, it led to fisticuffs in the street.

Although we can’t be certain, it’s likely one of the punchmen involved in the punch-up was William Rutter.

A decade or so after the brawl, Rutter was hauled to court and branded an “abominable nuisance” for performing a Punch and Judy show in the High Street, near the Royal Hotel, in front of crowds of hundreds.

A policeman asked Rutter to move but he refused, saying he’d been here for years and nobody had ever complained.

But people were complaining, certainly residents of nearby Royal Terrace, who were fed up with Rutter’s shows and had written to police and council chiefs.

In the end, Rutter was let off without a fine.

Having fun– an animated lad, photographed in June 1990 at a Southend Punch and Judy show (Image: Newsquest)

Punch and Judy showmen also called themselves “professors”. Legend has it, this was thanks to a dictate from the king, who allowed the use of the word for the puppet masters.

In the 1890s “Professor Lewis”, of Albert Road, Southend, was one of the main Punch puppeteers. He was always on hand to provide the entertainment at events around the town.

Lewis was also a noted costumier and always lent out clothes for acts taking part in Southend Carnival.

Despite the characters in Punch and Judy often being criticised for being too violent or rude, Professor Lewis’s show was described as “refined”.

Demand for Punch and Judy shows only increased in Southend and by 1912 there were so many unlicensed “boxes” (booths) set up on the seafront that several councillors and other business owners called for them to be removed, saying it was unfair to those who actually paid rates.

There are many cases of Punch and Judy showmen being hauled to court for setting up their booth and performing a show when they had no licence to do so.

Those who fell foul of laws were sometimes given herculean fines.

In 1907, for example, a Punch and Judy showman from Romford was given an eye-watering fine of 40 shillings for not moving quickly enough when a police officer told him to disappear.

This was such a hefty fine that even the man’s critics said it was too much for an entertainer who likely made no more than a few pennies a show.

By 1957, the Southend Children’s Theatre was lauded across the national press for its child-appropriate Punch and Judy performances.

The entertainment in the town was described as “never containing vulgarity”, having “no mention of death” and “including nothing to scare the children”.