Annual Grimaldi Clown Church Service, London

It may seem strange that clowns should meet in a church for a religious service, when nowadays clowning seems to be such a secular activity, enjoyed mainly by audiences at circuses. However, the clown is a symbolic image for the Holy Fool, a much respected figure in the early church.

Clowns, or fools, were seen in their child-like natures as representing the purity and simplicity of saints like St Francis of Assissi and St Basil, the Russian saint. The early Catholic church used the Holy Fool to comically, and sometimes frighteningly, simplify and illustrate the church’s doctrine to an illiterate audience.

As society became more complex and urbanised, particularly with the Reformation, clowns in the theatre became agents questioning how the individual should live life, rather than how the mass of the common people could understand the Biblical teachings. In Shakespeare’s plays one of the reasons religious and political arguments were put amusingly into the mouths of clowns was to avoid problems over censorship.

The Clown Service in Dalston celebrates the life of the great Joseph Grimaldi. He was born in London on 18 December 1778 and died on 31 May 1837, the son of Italian immigrants.

According to many eye witnesses, Grimaldi is said to be one of the ghosts that haunt the Theatre Royal in London's Drury Lane.

His greatest contribution to the clowning world was to increase the complexity of the clown personality through his creation, Joey.

Grimaldi built on the original concept of naivete and foolishness by mocking his audiences and encouraging their participation. He is said to have been the inspiration behind the invention of the pantomime dame. He introduced the concept of the sad clown, the happy mask that hides a tragic soul. Grimaldi raised the profile of the clown by placing him centre stage.

The clown in one form or another is still seen as an absolutely vital element of entertainment culture worldwide. The Grimaldi Memorial Service is a tribute to that great tradition as well as a  thanksgiving for the gift of laughter.