GIFFORDS CIRCUS 2025 LAGUNA BAY
“For our 25th anniversary, we have invited a dazzling mix of new faces and old favourites that will surprise and delight our beloved audiences. Set in the buoyant and sunny era of 1950’s America, Laguna Bay is a spectacular blend of fun, excitement and charm. To come to Giffords is to immerse yourself in another world and escape everyday life for a few blissful hours. Our astonishing mix of thrills, skills, adventure, romance, theatrics and hilarity will change all your preconceptions of traditional circus.’’
Cal McCrystal, Director.
Events
Since 2014 Fennells Farm has been home to Giffords Circus. Sat on a ridge overlooking the Slad Valley and Stroud down in the valley below. This is where the magic happens, the circus shows are created, the horses are trained and rehearsals take place every spring before the show open.
Fennells Farm is a magical place, it looks like a farm at a first glance, but in the barns there are props, costumes, a team of dedicated employees all burning the midnight oil to get the show on the road.
Book nowGiffords Circus is very excited to be returning to Bowood House and Gardens. Home of the Marquis and Marchioness of Lansdowne, Bowood House is set within 100 acres of beautifully landscaped ‘Capability’ Brown Parkland. Surrounding the Georgian House is the Italian-inspired Terrace Garden, the Private Walled Gardens and the herbaceous border, all radiating colour throughout the seasons.
Giffords Circus can’t wait to discover both the gorgeous grounds, but the amazing adventure playground too!
If you wish to visit Bowood House & Gardens before the show, day tickets into Bowood House & Gardens can be purchased separately online here www.bowood.org
Book nowGiffords Circus first visited Sudeley Castle in 2014 with Greek tragedy ‘The Thunders’ and we had such a warm reception we have returned every year. Sudeley Castle is situated in the historic town of Winchcombe, in a bowl-shaped valley surrounded by rolling Cotswold hills. The Castle’s 1,200 acre estate is certainly one of the most beautiful grounds that we visit every year. When we arrive each spring, we nestle the tent and wagons next to the ancient horse-chestnut trees with their white candle-like blooms, whilst buzzards ‘mew’ overhead and frothy cow-parsley lines the country lanes.
If you wish to visit Sudeley Castle before the show, tickets for Sudeley Castle can be purchased separately online here www.sudeleycastle.co.uk/book
Book nowiffords Circus returns to the breath taking Blenheim Palace in 2023. Home to the 12th Duke of Marlborough and his family and the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill, Blenheim Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site boasting a long and diverse history. Blenheim Palace was built as a gift to John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, from Queen Anne and a grateful nation in thanks for his victory at the Battle of Blenheim on 13th August 1704. Giffords Circus is situated amongst the beautiful and ancient trees of the parkland, near the Butterfly House and Marlborough Hedge Maze.
If you wish to visit Blenheim Palace before the show, tickets for Blenheim Palace can be purchased separately online here www.blenheimpalace.com/tickets-booking/
Book nowEvery summer, Giffords Circus travels to the bright lights of London to entertain the crowds at Chiswick House and Gardens. The tent is always packed out with jostling school children, family gatherings, hen parties and London glitterati, all keen to get in on the action. Chiswick House is a calm oasis surrounded by bustling city life and we love it. The parakeets that chatter and swoop overhead, the excitement of being in the city which gives us the opportunity to catch up with friends and even see a show or two and even the possibility that you could be sat next to a rock star in the tent!
If you wish to visit Chiswick House before the show, tickets for Chiswick House can be purchased separately online here www.chiswickhouseandgardens.digitickets.co.uk/tickets
Book nowSet amongst the beautiful Northamptonshire countryside, this 60-acre privately owned woodland garden contains a large and notable collection of plants; ranging from unusual trees and shrubs to a wide selection of lilies and other bulbs. We would highly recommend a visit to the garden before or after the show.
Book nowGiffords Circus is delighted to return to Stonor Park in 2025. It is thanks to owners the Hon. William and Lady Ailsa Stonor, whose family have owned Stonor Park for over 850 years, for welcoming us to this hidden valley on the border between Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. Stonor Park and Gardens are beautiful and are open to visitors, we recommend combining your visit to the circus with a potter around the gardens and a play in the amazing playground Tumblestone Hollow – but please if you see Tweedy playing there, do send him back to the circus!
If you wish to visit Stonor Park before the show, tickets for Stonor Park can be purchased separately online here www.stonor.digitickets.co.uk/tickets
Book nowBarrington, a sleepy Cotswold village near Burford in the height of the summer is woken by the Giffords Circus wagons rolling in and gathering in a farmers’ field between Little and Great Barrington, just across the lane from The Fox pub. Among the picture postcard scenery and Cotswold cottages the vintage style wagons and circus tent appear as if by magic, the music from the big top carrying in the breeze through the Windrush valley.
The setting is bucolic English countryside and could be straight from the pages of an Enid Blyton book, for those who step into the tent are rewarded by being transported far away from the quintessential countryside and into the magical world of circus.
Book nowSituated in the beautiful parkland of Frampton Court where the Frampton Country Show takes place every year. We love Frampton-on-Severn, the villagers are so welcoming, the village green so beautiful and there's nothing better than a pie and a pint in the Three Horseshoes pub.
Book nowMinchinhampton holds a special place in our hearts, we have been visiting the Common since 2001 and are always welcomed so warmly by the local community. We visit in high summer when the Common is parched by the sun and children are on their school summer holidays. As the wagons roll in, the cows that roam the Common freely watch the comings and goings, occasionally having a scratch against a circus caravan much to the surprise of whoever is inside!
Book nowMarlborough town’s motto is ubi nunc sapientis ossa Merlini – “where now are the bones of wise Merlin” – and legend has it that the 62ft high mound in Marlborough College is the burial site of Merlin. Steeped in ancient lore and legend Marlborough is the perfect location for Giffords Circus to magically appear each summer in the heart of rolling Wiltshire hills and white horses.
Book nowStratton Meadows lies on the outskirts of Cirencester, a beautiful and historic market town in the Cotswolds. Stratton Meadows is just off the Roman road ‘Ermin Street’ to the west of the town and has been one of Giffords Circus favourite grounds for over a decade. Nell Gifford planted an oak tree with owner Sarah Holland in the meadows in 2018 to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the circus here in the UK.
Book nowSince 2014 Fennells Farm has been home to Giffords Circus. Sat on a ridge overlooking the Slad Valley and Stroud down in the valley below. This is where the magic happens, the circus shows are created, the horses are trained and rehearsals take place every spring before the show open.
Fennells Farm is a magical place, it looks like a farm at a first glance, but in the barns there are props, costumes, a team of dedicated employees all burning the midnight oil to get the show on the road.
Book now“For our 25th anniversary, we have invited a dazzling mix of new faces and old favourites that will surprise and delight our beloved audiences. Set in the buoyant and sunny era of 1950’s America, Laguna Bay is a spectacular blend of fun, excitement and charm. To come to Giffords is to immerse yourself in another world and escape everyday life for a few blissful hours. Our astonishing mix of thrills, skills, adventure, romance, theatrics and hilarity will change all your preconceptions of traditional circus.’’
Cal McCrystal, Director.