© Stevens Amusements 2011 It’s Stevens’: The Show With A Difference So runs the slogan which has been emblazoned on Stevens’ tractors for many years. It is no idle boast. Stevens’ fair is different, or rather special, as Joe Stevens has always ploughed his own furrow. His fair has a unique “Show Biz” glamour about it, reminiscent of Billy Smart’s circus. Indeed, it is to Billy Smart that we must look to find the roots of Stevens’ Carnival Fun Fair. This is because Joe Stevens is married to Peggy Smart, daughter of the late Billy Smart. Beginnings Joe himself is the son of the late Perrin Stevens Senior who used to travel a Coconut Sheet and a Striker round London fairs. Joe Stevens’ mother was Amy Gess before marriage, and Joe was one of six children. He has a brother, Len, and four sisters, one of whom, Lotte, married Albert Botton. If we go back to 1942, we find Joe Stevens earning his living as a haulage contractor doing war work which included demolition of bombed buildings. In that year he married Peggy Smart who he had met at winter dances. They were very keen dancers and Joe was at one time the all Surrey ballroom dancing champion. At this time Billy Smart was still predominantly a fairground riding master. His fair was one of the best in the London area. He was certainly the most enterprising Showman in the London section and was always breaking new ground, especially with hospital carnivals and “holidays at home” fairs during the war. Joe Stevens naturally fitted into the Smart family fair and learnt well. 1946 was a very big year for Billy Smart. He opened his new circus for the first time ever at Southall Park in March. Not only that, he also took delivery of four new machines. One was a brand new Lang Wheel Dodgem. The other three were very modern for the time; a Dive Bomber, a Lusse Big Wheel and an Octopus. These were in addition to his Gallopers, Coronation Ark, Swirl, Ghost Train and enormous Brookland’s Track, the largest car track ever to travel in this country, Billy Smart’s combined circus and fair was certainly “The Greatest Show on Earth”. He was now the top Showman in Britain and was travelling the largest number of big rides together ever owned by one man in this country, before or since. The Billy Smart transport was very interesting, including his fleet of gleaming FWD’s and Foden’s, especially the then new Foden eight wheel mobile power plant rated at over 2,200 amps and called “Lord Morrison”, a famous vehicle which is still in the land of the living. His large and handsome living wagon was known as “The White Lady”. Travelling such a large combined show posed the problem of finding enough grounds big enough to take the circus and the fair together. To do this successfully, Billy Smart had to be free to negotiate for sites without unnecessary constraints, This resulted in his quick exit from the Showmen’s Guild in 1946, together with all his tenants. The Circus, which was originally an adjunct to the fair, went from strength to strength and as the 1940’s wore on into the 1950’s the point was reached where “the tail was wagging the dog”. In other words, the circus became more important to Billy Smart than the fair. This is where Joe Stevens starts to take an important role, because Billy Smart started to sell off his machines and reduce his stake in the fair as he became more and more preoccupied with the circus. So it came to pass that during the early 1950’s a gradual transfer took place whereby Joe Stevens ultimately took over Billy Smart’s fair, This is rather an over-simplification, he did not simply take over the Smart machines. He bought his own, one by one, and it could be said that by the mid 1950’s the fair became officially Stevens’. The Major Rides and Transport No fewer than 24 big riding machines have passed through Joe Stevens’ hands from 1945 to 1984. The very first ride he owned was a delightful Lang Wheel Juvenile Autodrome, delivered new in 1945 and travelled, of course, with Billy Smart’s fair. This was very quickly followed in the same year by a new Ghost Train from Bland’s Engineering. This is the one that was sold in the early 1950’s to John Brett and is now stored at Dingle’s Fairground Heritage Centre in Devon.  Joe’s first really big machine was a magnificent Lakin eight car Skid “The Swoosh”. It was supplied new in 1948 to Wilkie’s for their Amusement Palace at New Brighton.  Joe Stevens bought and first opened the machine in 1951. It had the famous post war Lakin “buttress” type false pillars with lanterns, very handsome rounding boards with lamps set in all round their tops, lots of chrome and very sleek “Odeon” type decoration. It was a twin to Billy Manning’s Swoosh at Southsea. Very shortly after buying the Skid, Mr. Stevens acquired a new Supercar alloy Dodgem, 60 ft. by 40 ft., with the “Sunrise Pattern” on the trellises and brackets. Next came his Lusse Octopus from Marshall Hill in 1954 with a very neat boxed in centre truck. In 1956, Mr. Stevens bought the former Bert Searle’s Gallopers, and these were the first of two sets that he has owned. At the end of 1957 he sold this set to Butlins for their Ayr Amusement Park, and ordered a new Ark from Maxwell’s. This Ark was delivered at the start of 1958 and was the famous ‘Sputnik Chaser’, very topical, and named after the first Russian space satellite “Sputnik I” which was launched in 1957. This Ark was the first new one which had been built for ten years, the previous one being the famous Botton Brothers ‘Rocket Drome’ which had been the first post-war Ark. Mr. Stevens’ new Ark had a magnificent front and porch decorated by Fred Fowle with an enormous “Dan Dare” space rocket. The rest of the rounding boards were delivered in 1959. This was an 18 platform ride, and the bikes, chariots and horses came off W. Noble’s Lakin Ben Hur. At that time of course, second-hand Ark mounts were plentiful owing to the fact that even in the late 1950’s many Arks were being converted to Waltzers. Also, in 1958, some very smart rounding boards were fitted to the Dodgem again decorated by Fred Fowle. 1959 was a golden year for Joe Stevens. The roundings and false uprights were supplied for the Ark, the Swirl was entirely re-decorated using the original motifs but to greater and more colourful effect. Also, Mr. Stevens bought his second set of Gallopers, a beautiful ride from J.J. Butterworth of Rhyl. One other change was that the arms of the Octopus were shortened in order to make it fit a 50 ft. position. With five superb rides, Stevens’ fair was now a really great show and, to celebrate, Mr. Stevens had a handsome glossy brochure produced at the end of the year as a publicity tool to send out to Carnival organisers. The booklet had photographs of all the machines taken at night, pictures of all the family, Joe Stevens, his wife Peggy and children Joseph, Charmaine, Perrin and Peggy as well as his brother Len who was at this time acting as advance Publicity Manager for the fair. The brochure also included various shots of the fair at its August holiday carnival staging in Homefield Park, Worthing, an event which Stevens’ still attend. This is a fitting point to pause and examine the transport which Joe Stevens had at this time. Then, as now, his vehicles were a wonderful spectacle, all painted yellow with orange wheels, mudguards and underframes. In 1959 they all had whitewall tyres. The emphasis was very much on loaded lorries, the philosophy being that each lorry carried its own machine and powered it through the prop shaft to a rear mounted dynamo. All the lorries and tractors were quite elderly at the time, as was general in the fairground business in those days. However, they were very handsome and all had headboards proclaiming “Here Comes Stevens” over the cabs. The three box trucks with the Ark, Dodgem and Swirl were magnificently decorated as was the Ford publicity van. Here is the travelling order for 1959: A.E.C. Mark III Matador Tractor SME 807 pulling Dodgem Box Truck, Mr. Stevens’ Southern Living Wagon and Swirl Box truck in that order. Albion CX 8 Wheel Lorry “No. 20”, CMR 703 frame body for Dodgem plates and superstructure pulling Dodgem car and principle truck. Albion CX 6 Wheel Lorry “No. 4”, BMW 930 flat for Swirl bottom pulling Swirl car truck. AEC Mark LII 4 Wheel Lorry “No. 16”, HGJ 131 frame body for Octopus pulling Ark box truck. AEC Mark III 4 Wheel Lorry HGJ 120 frame body (boxed in shortly after) for Gallopers pulling Gallopers centre. Albion CX 4 Wheel Tractor FYW 567 pulling Ark flat platform truck, Ark centre and Foreman’s two wheel living trailer in that order. Guy ex bus FOP 393 serving as gaff lads kip and towing Octopus centre. Ford 4D Publicity van LUV 399 (with loudspeakers and lights) towing two wheel rubbish truck. This convoy was a wonderful looking lot altogether. The Matador Tractor was sometimes used to carry the Carnival Queen in processions at Carnivals which the fair attended. Sadly this tractor caught fire on the Ml during 1960 and was completely burnt out though it was decoupled in time to prevent the fire from spreading to the rest of the road train. For 1960, the two Albion lorries were replaced by Maudsley Mentors, AYJ 705 for the Swirl, and MWE 767 for the Dodgems. Also, the Albion Tractor was replaced by a Maudsley Mentor 8 wheel box lorry for the Ark. During the winter of 1959/60 the Ark was fitted with a flat roof of wooden ceilings by Maxwell’s. It should be remembered that only the previous year, Maxwell’s had supplied the first ever ceilinged Waltzers to Brett Bros. and Teddy Morley. Mr. Stevens fitted a similar flat ceilinged roof to the Swirl during the winter of 1961/2. Also during that winter the Dodgem was sold to Mrs. Lovett in Scotland. In the early 1970’s it came back to London in the ownership of Freddy Beadle and was immortalised by being heavily featured in the film “That’ll Be The Day”. Mr. Stevens started 1962 with a brand new Dodgem from Supercar. It was again 60 ft. by 40 ft. but was rectangular. Many people thought this very modern but of course all the earliest Dodgem tracks in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s were rectangular, so this was simply a return to the original shape. The reason that rounded ends were adopted from about 1932 onwards was that the cars at that time only had quarter steering locks and got trapped in the corners of the earlier oblong tracks. For his new Supercar Track, Mr. Stevens had a fleet of 20 new cars made in Italy by Spaggiari and Barbieri with fibreglass bodies and balloon bumpers, the first such cars to be seen in this country. These cars had no locks at all and so the problem with oblong tracks did not exist. So for the same overall length and width, extra space on the floor was gained. The track was given very nice rounding boards decorated by Fred Fowle in 1963. During 1962 the number two Gallopers were sold to A. Dunn in Scotland, and by the late summer Mr Stevens had a brand new ride, one of the first ‘Cyclone’ Twists to be built by Ivan Bennett. By 1963 the transport had altered considerably. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens’ Southern Living Wagon had gone to George Smith (Scotland) and replaced by a low slung “Reall” Living Trailer with twin close coupled tandem axles. Stevens had by now standardised on AEC Mark V’s or at least that’s what they all looked. like. Some of them were the old Maudsley’s with AEC Mark V cabs. There is a marvellous colour photo of them all lined up side by side in Dennis Miller’s “Illustrated Encyclopedia of Trucks and Buses” (Hamlyn). The numbers were KKO 950 for Octopus, GSA 250 for Twist, SX 6347 for Swirl, MWE 767 for Dodgems, AYI 705 for Ark, and the Tractor KGH 796. The Ford publicity van was by now replaced by an equally glamorous Dodge van, again with loudspeakers and lights. Also, Stevens had moved from their old family yard in Feltham to their present premises at Fairford House, Fordwater Road, Chertsey where amongst the facilities there was an old aircraft hanger, ideal for winter work and storage. And so to 1964 and Mr. Stevens appeared with another ride, bringing the total to 6. This was one of the first Bennett upright Paratroopers. One of the special qualities of the Stevens firm is that they are always amongst the first to present any good new type of ride which comes along. They did it again two years later. In the winter of 1965/6 the Octopus was sold to Billy Mayne, and the Paratrooper to Gilbert Chadwick (it is now Henry Scarrott’s). Mr. Stevens went back to Bennett’s and had made one of the latest sensations, a Trabant or Satellite. The first of these had appeared at travelling fairs only the previous year, 1965. Teddy Morley had one, as did Bob Wilson, another riding master who has always been ahead of the game. Stevens’ fair remained essentially the same from 1966 to 1971 when the Trabant was sold to Robert Howard. It is now with Neil Bealey. Also during 1971 the Bennett Twist was sold. For 1972 Stevens had a brand new Twist built at Ilkeston to their own specification. This was a pioneering machine, the basic idea of which has been widely copied since. It was an artic load with fold up floor and paybox on the swan neck. The drive to the three column sets of cars was by friction, a system which has been used on nearly all subsequent floor mounted Twists. It gave a ride which was faster and smoother than any other Twist made up to that time. This pioneering prototype spawned many further Stevens’ built Twists including the latest generation of “Twisters” built by Stevens at their own Chertsey premises. This pioneering machine was pulled by AEC Mark 5 unit CYK 912C. At the start of 1972, Mr. Stevens sold the ‘Sputnik Chaser’ Ark to Ronnie Bugg who was already travelling a very smart Big Wheel with Stevens’. In 1973, Mr. Stevens and all his tenants joined the Showmen’s Guild. Many of us thought that this would spell the end of the uniqueness of Stevens’ fair as other familiar rides from Guild members infiltrated Stevens’ grounds. Fortunately this did not happen, though at big places other machines did come in, especially at the Hayes Easter Fair. This grew greatly in size and became Stevens’ biggest fair. In 1977, for example, there were 19 big rides at Hayes. At the end of 1976, the number 2 Twist was sold to Billy Irvin who later re-sold it to Monty Hammond. It now belongs to Reuben Slater.  For 1977 Stevens’ had a new improved version of the Twist built, again at Ilkeston. This was in turn sold at the end of 1978 to Willy Studt, and for 1979 Stevens had another, identical, new one. This was the fourth travelled by Stevens and the third built to their own specification. This ride was sold at the end of 1980 to Michael DeVey. In the summer of 1977 the famous Skid was sold to Philllp Appleton and progressively succumbed to a rather crude black based decoration. During the winter of 1977/8  Stevens’ had a new Maxwell Waltzer of revolutionary design. It was a spinning top machine, the fifth such made by Maxwell’s. What really made it so revolutionary was, first, the low flat across the front six sections. Previous Waltzers had a high flat across the back six sections. Also this new ride had hydraulic drive to the outside rims of the platforms, ten black fibreglass cars, and an illuminated black and orange paybox which looked like a giant juke box. Strangely enough, all the sleepers, gates and trams were of wood despite the fact that Maxwell had already started making Arks and Waltzers with alloy underworks. Joe Stevens’ younger son Perrin was by now taking a large part of the running of the fair. Indeed he already owned the last two Twists and those that were to come after. The Dodgem was also his. For 1980 Perrin had a new Meteorite from Sam Ward. In 1981 Stevens’ presented a spectacular ride from the U.S.A., the famous Super Loop. Also that year Perrin made the first of a new generation of Twists at Chertsey, the “Sizzler’s”. These have fibreglass cars, a perspex paybox and boxed in panels round the top frame covered in running lights. These Twists are, for my money, the best such machines ever built. This first one was sold in 1982 to Thurston Brothers and replaced by another identical one, sold in 1983 to Albert Heal for his Brighton Seafront Amusement Park. Also in 1982 the Meteorite was sold to an operator abroad. 1983 saw the third Sizzler Twist, again built by Perrin Stevens at Chertsey, and this was sold at the end of that year to Michael Holland and was at Hull Fair in the October. The practice up to now was to build a new Twist each winter, run it for a season and then sell it but in 1983 Perrin built the first Sizzler new for someone else, Jimmy Booth at Barry Island. It was at Goose Fair in 1983. Another was built in the winter of 1983/4 for Dunweil Parnham. Perrin also built another for his own use (No. 8). During this winter, we heard that Stevens’ were one of four firms to be having a new Sobema Matterhorn imported from Belgium. The first three of these came over respectively for Bob Wilson (the ‘Phantom Chase’), George Heath, and Freddie Rose. The Stevens one was the last of the four to arrive and made its debut opening in Victoria Park, Haywards Heath on the 11th July 1984 and was a sensation! I had watched it build up for the first time during the previous two days when it still had all its packing materials round it, corrugated cardboard and so on. This wonderful ride was “The Event” of 1984 as far as I was concerned and I think the best Matterhorn yet imported, with its illuminated cars and mountain scenery stretching right across the centre. It is an artic semi-trailer load and to pull it Stevens had a Volvo F7 unit. It is now appropriate to bring the transport up to date. Stevens were standardised on AEC’s for some twenty years from the early 1960’s until the beginning of the 1980’s. The AEC Mark V fleet of the early ‘60’s was steadily updated with similar more modern vehicles of the same marque culminating in the final AEC fleet which was entirely of the mass produced British Leyland “tilt cabs” turned out with AEC, Leyland or Albion badges. I had no great affection for these rather characterless lorries, even though the Stevens’ ones were very smart. At the start of the 1980’s it was decided to progressively replace all the AEC’s with Volvo F88’s. These are very handsome and excellent performers and by 1985 the entire fleet was Volvo F88 lorries, tractors or artic units except for the new Volvo F7 with the Matterhorn. The breakdown was: F88 Volvo six wheel tractor RBM 428M. F88 Volvo four wheel tractor BGM 41L (carrying big removable generator house). F88 Volvo four wheel unit UPR 132L (for Twist). F88 Volvo four wheel unit GKC 408N (for Super Loop). F88 Volvo six wheel lorry WYT 14N (for Waltzer). F88 Volvo six wheel lorry DBE 118L (for Dodgem). F7 Volvo four wheel unit SEE 120T (for Matterhorn). Ford publicity van GAP 729N. We must not forget the little fork lift truck which was carried round with the fair on a low trailer and always proved very handy on the grounds. Since the mid 1960’s Mr. Stevens has had two handsome artic living wagons, the second of which was “The Surrey Queen”, sold to Coupland’s in 1982 at which time Mrs. Peggy Stevens ceased to travel with the fair and stayed home at Chertsey to handle the business and administration side. Mr. Stevens now has a two wheel trailer for his own use. The Stevens’ Run has always been of great interest because Stevens’ fair has always gone further afield and travelled greater distances than any other major firm. This is partly historic. Operating outsde the Guild as Mr. Stevens did until 1973 (and as did Billy Smart from 1946 onwards), he was prepared to look for grounds in many parts of England and in some cases outbid the established Guild lessee’s. To my mind this is nothing more than good healthy competition which Guild rules tend to stifle. Admittedly there would be chaos if everyone did it, as indeed there was before the formation of the Guild. However, the business can certainly stand a few enterprising mavericks! The background to Joe Stevens’ early struggles is set out in some detail in Duncan Dallas’ excellent book “The Travelling People” (pages 126—129) which was written before he rejoined the Guild in 1973. Among the places the fair has visited over the years outside the London area are Swindon, Rugby, Mansfield, Hereford, Corby, Buxton, Nuneaton, Brackley, Southampton and many places in Sussex. In addition, his lovely Swirl attended the winter fair and circus in the Kelvin Hall, Glasgow for eighteen years. The Stevens’ season for the complete fair is now surprisingly short compared to most others, starting before Easter, always at Holtspur, they are finished by the end of September although odd machines visit later events in October notably Goose Fair and Hull. The 1984 run from March to the end of September for the whole fair was, in chronological order, Holtspur, Hayes, Oxford, Watford, Nuneaton, Totton, Haywards Heath, Southwick, Worthing (Seafront), Eastleigh, Worthing (Homefield Park), Uckfield, Wellingborough, Burnham-on-Crouch. Additionally, the Super Loop made its ill-fated attendance at Newcastle Town Moor. The Matterhorn attended Goose Fair, the Super Loop and Matterhorn went to Hull, and the Matterhorn and Waltzer went to the Milton Keynes Firework Show. Supporting Attractions It is worth looking at major attractions which have appeared with Stevens’ Fair over the years. Amongst the regular tenants with stalls and juveniles, special mention should go to John Smith who also acted as Stevens’ Ground Manager. He took over the Juvenile Autodrome from Mr. Stevens in the 1950’s. He and his family ran a smart Arcade, stalls, Juvenile, Canteen Trailer and Swinging Gyms. Back in the 1950’s, it was common for Stevens’ to join forces with Chipperfield Brothers for the big Hayes Easter Fair. In 1957 at that event the rides were Stevens’ Swirl, Octopus, Number 1 Gallopers and Number 1 Dodgems, plus Chipperfield Brothers’ Big Wheel, Dive Bomber and Caterpillar. Another regular tenant is Ronnie Bugg who bought a splendid Big Wheel from Horatio Spencer in 1971, the year Stevens sold the Trabant. Ronnie Bugg took over the Ark in 1972 and his son had a set of Tubes. In March 1969 Mr. Stevens’ elder daughter Charmaine married John Guest Jnr. Among the wedding guests was the legendary pop singer Guy Mitchell who had, a month before, presented Charmaine with a prize at a St Valentine’s Beauty Contest. She certainly was, and is, a lovely lady and was a real pin-up amongst us lads when she used to sit in the Dodgem paybox during the 1960’s. I digress! Charmaine and John started together with an Arcade which is still travelled. In September 1972 they bought Billy Nichols’s Jets and presented them for the first time at Stevens’ fair at Slinfold Engine Rally (near Horsham Sussex). These Jets were sold to Freddie Jones during the winter of 1978/9 and for 1979 John and Charmaine had a brand new Bennett Lifting Paratrooper which was later sold to Glen Smith and is now in Ireland. Side-shows have on and off always been a feature at Stevens’ fairs. In the early 1950’s, those of Carl Brinn and Lord Thomas Howard were to be found with Stevens. The Boxing Academy of the West of England was with them in 1960. In 1963, Charlie Chaplin’s (his real name!) three magnificent shows were with the fair accompanied by one of the most elaborately decorated lorries I have ever seen. Music It has always amazed me that apart from the organs, fairground music is of so little interest to enthusiasts. When I first saw the Stevens in 1958, they were using a big open-reel tape recorder in the Dodgem paybox from which the music was relayed to all machines via the legendary “Moorhouse” haired speaker boxes. Stevens’ must have been about the first to use tape on a regular basis, although it did not last very long. Gramophone records were used from about 1960 until the cassette machines were phased in and then replaced by CD’s during recent years.  As to the records themselves, these were always well chosen. Rock and Roll ruled throughout the late 1950’s and early’60’s with Charmaine in the Dodgem as disc jockey for the whole fair. She had excellent taste. In the mid 1960’s she treated us to those wonderful Tamla Motown records by the Supremes, the Four Tops, the Temptations etc., at a time when elsewhere we were being bored to death by the Beatles! Later it was all disco music, of course, played through the superb Carlsboro systems. Conclusion When Stevens’ fair comes to town, even for private business, it is a real event in the community. Very colourful posters are displayed all round the neighbourhood and an advertisement is usually inserted in the local paper. The publicity van tours the district. Also some special attraction is sometimes included. The most famous of these is the Easter Bonnet Parade and party at the Hayes event which Mr. Stevens organises for local charities on Easter Sunday. Another speciality of his is the “Greasy Pole” Competition with big cash prizes for those who manage to climb to the top! Mike Hanna wrote the above article because Stevens’ are one of his favourite firms. I hope you have found it interesting, and urge you to visit a Stevens fair as soon as possible if you have never seen them. You will not be disappointed. It is definitely “The Show with a Difference”! Stevens': The Show with a Difference.  In 1985 Mike Hanna wrote the above history of the Stevens family. The original article covered the family history from the start in 1942 to the mid-1980s. Last winter David Humphreys and Kevin Smith began thinking about updating the histories of some of the showland families, and with David knowing the Stevens family well we decided to start with them. The Rides On 11 July 1984 Perrin Stevens premiered their Sobema 'Alpine Express' Matterhorn. This was the fourth Sobema Matterhorn to cross the Channel, with the cars transported on a second trailer. This was the same as Stanley Thurston's but the Stevens family soon rebuilt the top of the ride to carry the cars. When the ride was open the top was made to show the original artwork. The ride was seen on Stevens' position at Oxford, Nottingham and Hull Fairs. In 1996 it was sold to Harry Ayers and is now owned by Albert Holland. It has been completely redecorated by Matt. Around 1986 the Orbiter was bought from the McCormick family in Eire. This was one of the first Orbiters built by Tivoli Engineering and was first opened by the Stevens family at Worthing. During the following winter it was rebuilt, with the original double-axle trailer being replaced by a new triaxle trailer and a new paybox being fitted on the swan neck, along with new steps. This made building up and pulling down a lot easier. In 1997 the Orbiter was sold to Jimmy Manning, and is now owned by William Hancock in the Northern Section. With the Orbiter up for sale, the Stevens family started to look for a new type of ride. At the 1996 Hampton Court Easter fair they presented the ARM ‘Megaspin’ Twin Spin for the first time. The ‘Megaspin’, painted by Chris Gadd with a Judge Dredd theme, was soon attracting large crowds. In the winter of 2000-2001 it was sold to Harry Ayers for operation at Pleasurewood Hills. It is now travelled by Darren Matthews. Also in 1996 Stevens’ bought an ARM Skymaster from Patrick Collins. The 'Apollo' made its first appearance in their ownership at Oscar's Leisure Centre, Swindon, but stayed with them for only a short time before being sold. At Hull Fair in 1997 they presented the new ‘High Roller’. This was originally a cross between a Superbowl and a Breakdance. It soon became known all over Europe, with a two page report on the the ride being published in the “Kirmes and Park Review” magazine. In 1998 the roll-over cars were removed and rebuilt as Superbowl-type cars. The High Roller was transported as an artic load with the cars on a Foden eight-wheeler. The ride has since been rebuilt to be carried entirely on the artic trailer and was sold to James Rogers in 2007. In 2002 Perrin Stevens bought David Taylor's Safeco 'Crazy Frog' Jumper . In his ownership the ride was resprayed black and the multi-coloured lights were replaced with red lights. At the start of the 2004 season it was sold to Elmer Bell. As well as the rides owned by Perrin, Louise and Perrin Jnr, other members of the Stevens family have also presented rides and attractions. Charmaine (Joe Stevens' daughter) and her husband John Guest had a Bennett-built lifting Paratrooper which they replaced with a Supertrooper bought from Billy Benson. This became a popular ride with the public. Whilst on a European trip to look for a new ride for the family run they came upon a Huss Top Spin in Germany. This was a star attraction and when the Guest’s returned home they began looking for someone who could build them such a ride. David Ward, with help from John Guest, eventually built what was to be known as the ‘Rolling Thunder’. This first appeared at the Stevens family's Easter fair at Hayes. It was fitted with a backflash, mounted on the side of a second lorry. This backflash was used only a couple of times as the ride usually occupied a central position on their grounds. The ‘Rolling Thunder’ was operated by John and Charmaine's son, John Jnr. In 2002 it was sold to a Showman in Poland. John Guest Jnr. delivered the ride to Poland and built it up for the new owner. It was well received by the large crowd that greeted its first opening there. John Jnr. then took control of Joe Stevens' Maxwell Waltzer, his mother Charmaine acquiring a new KTE Twister. During 2009 Perrin started travelling an 8 year old ‘G-Force’ Fabbri Booster. The Stevens Transport Fleet At the start of the 1980’s the Stevens family used Volvo F88’s. replacing them by the middle of that decade with mainly Volvo F12’s. The two F88’s used with the Waltzer were succeeded by an ERF eight- wheeler and an ERF generator unit. The ERF is still in use today. Two Volvo F12 six-wheel artic units were used with the ‘Alpine Express’ Matterhorn, the Orbiter and the ‘Sizzler’ Twist. In the 1990’s one of the Volvo F12’s was replaced by a Foden artic unit (B512 WYC). which was first used with the ‘Apollo’ Skymaster. When the ‘Apollo’ was sold the Foden was transferred to the new ARM ‘Megaspin’ Twin Spin. This in turn was replaced by a Foden 4450 (G848 UST), the older Foden being put to work with the High Roller. The High Roller was originally an artic load with an eight-wheeler for the cars. To transport the cars, a Foden 4300 (F337 RHY) was used. This was an open frame unit on which a body was later built. When the High Roller was converted to a one-load artic load, the Foden 4450 (G848 UST) became its prime mover. In 2004 a Volvo FH16 (M687 TWL) six-wheel artic was bought for use with this ride. A Volvo F10 (NCG 377T) six-wheel box unit was acquired to transport the track and carry the cars of the PWS Dodgems. This was replaced in 2004 by a Volvo FH 12-340 (N617 JTC) six-wheel box unit. Perrin Stevens also had an ERF E-series (J291 MCM) four-wheel artic unit which he used with the ‘Crazy Frog’ Jumper. He now has a Volvo FH12 which is used with the new Jumper he built for himself. John Guest used a Volvo F10 (AEW 61Y) four- wheel artic with the Supertrooper, which was replaced by a ‘Rolling Thunder’ Volvo. A Foden (B921 KPG) six-wheel artic was replaced by a Volvo F12 (G220 HCL) six-wheel unit which, following the sale of the ‘Rolling Thunder’, was used with the Supertrooper. This Volvo is now used to pull John's artic living trailer. An ERF EC (L508 LTO) four- wheel artic is used to transport Charmaine Guest's KTE Twister. The Family Joe Stevens' family is still growing. Perrin and Louise Stevens had two children; Louisa, now married to Perron Coupland who travels the 'Midnight Express' Matterhorn and a Miami, and, of course, young Perrin. Charmaine and John Guest also have two children; John, who married Georgia Lee (daughter of Billy Lee) who have a young son also called John, and Chrissie who married Christopher Davies and travels with the arcade that was new to her father in the 1970’s and the Dodgems. They also have a very nice Idees Loisirs Formula juvenile ride. Joe Stevens also has two other grandchildren, sisters Tiffany and Jay Bond. Tiffany married David Searle Junior in 2003 and they travel the London area with a PWS ‘Sizzler’ Twist. Joe's other daughter is married to Jimmy Bond. They travel independently with an arcade and various juveniles. Joe Stevens died on September 9 th  2008 aged 90. Our thanks go to the Stevens family for their help and co-operation in putting this story together. David Humphreys, Kevin Smith and Dave Belton. BACK TO TOP