Researching sideshow mermaids was an interesting little task. A quick google mostly made reference to the eponymous Fiji Mermaid. A macabre splicing of a monkeys head and torso, sewn to a fish’s tail. I fancied something a bit more glamorous so kept on searching and began to uncover stories of simple illusions involving a trick of perspective. A girl made up in finest mermaid garb would position herself behind a small tank and appear to interact with rocks and plants within it. When viewed from the right position, she appears to be submerged in the briny deep.
Having always had a bit of a thing for mermaids it seemed the ideal excuse to get out my sequins and start sewing a little aquatic siren of my own, here she is!
Bryony Tide has never seen the sea. She grew up in a mining town in the Midlands on a diet of Bovril and artichokes, with nothing much to do except play tricks on the neighbour’s elderly and frankly quite flatulent dog. She despises water and hates even to get her face wet in the shower, the consequence of which being a constantly Bovril stained face. Ironic then that she secured a job in the sideshow as their resident fake mermaid.
And so, I find myself halfway through my sideshow ten-in-one. What a motley crew they make:
Mistress of Monsters 