Southwark Fair

This engraving by William Hogarth illustrates many aspects of a typical London street fair in the early 18th century. Although entitled 'Southwark Fair', the print combines elements of both Southwark and Bartholomew fairs. Southwark Fair was held each year in September. The heart of the fair was Borough Street which Hogarth shows here. The clock tower of St George's Church can be seen in the background. The Royal Oak alehouse can be seen to the right.

Hogarth's pictures often contain visual references to contemporary figures and events which would be recognised by his audience. In the top left corner of the picture there is a banner advertising a play called 'The Stage Mutiny'. This is a reference to a group of Drury Lane actors who defected to the Haymarket in protest at their new management.

Street entertainers were a common attraction at fairs. Several acrobats can be seen performing on high wires. A magician is shown executing a trick with a cup and bird outside the alehouse. Hogarth's central character is the female drummer in the foreground who is advertising a troop of street players. To her left a black musician is playing the trumpet. Black characters appear in numerous Hogarth pictures. To the right two young women from the country are being groomed for prostitution. On the far left the actors and musicians in the play 'The Fall of Bajazet' are literally falling as their stage collapses. Vice, gambling and petty crime were also rife at Southwark. In the bottom right of the scene a pick pocket is at work robbing a distracted couple.

Hogarth made engravings of his own paintings to discourage copyists selling cheap prints. In 1733 Hogarth decided to bypass the print sellers altogether by opening his own shop in Leicester Fields.