Bertram Mills’ Circus at Olympia Poster

This poster was made for the Bertram Mills’ Circus at Olympia in 1928. It was designed by Leon Crossley, who designed Mills’ circus publicity from 1924 for over 40 years. Crossley worked from sketches made during rehearsals and his images gave a realistic picture of the acts the audiences saw in the ring. There were usually at least two posters for each Olympia season - one advertising the opening dates, another issued toward the end of the run reminding people that there were only a few performances left. Mills' Circus also issued posters for its tours after it began tenting in 1930. The printers W.E. Berry, who produced most of Bertram Mills’ publicity, have been producing circus posters since 1923 and are still considered the foremost printers of circus posters in the UK.