The Two London Graves You Are Encouraged To Dance On

Graveyards are often beguiling and fascinating but, I am sure you would agree, are generally fairly sombre places.

In Islington however, you will find two graves upon you which you are joyously and actively encouraged to dance…

Joseph Grimaldi Park

By the Regent’s Canal near Angel you will find Joseph Grimaldi Park.

Dating from the 18th century, it was the burial ground for the, now demolished, St James’s Anglican Chapel and in late 19th century was turned into a public park.

The park is named after pantomime clown Joseph Grimaldi, buried here in the 1837.

A Life On The Stage

Joseph Grimaldi was born in 1778 into an Italian immigrant family and a long line of performers and entertainers.

His life spent delighting and entertaining Londoners started from a young age. He was taken onto the stage at Sadler’s Wells for his ‘first bow and first ‘tumble’ when he was just 2 years old by his actor and performer father: Joseph Giuseppe Grimaldi, known as ‘Giuseppe’ or ‘the Signor’.

Joseph Grimaldi soon started working regularly as an actor at the Drury Lane theatre and Sadler’s Wells. He quickly became one of the most popular actors of his day.

The ‘King Of Clowns’

In 1806 he performed at the Covent Garden Theatre in Harlequin And Mother Goose. For the section of the pantomime known as a ‘harlequinade’, in which the lead role is played by a clown, Grimaldi created a new style of clown, one that has stuck with us through the centuries.

He was the first to accentuate facial expressions with face paint, painting his lips and cheeks red and painting on eyebrows. He wore bright, over-sized clothes and, of course, would get up to all sorts of shenanigans and hijinks. But, there was also the sadness behind the mask that we associate with clowns today.

It was his biggest success so far in his career and it had a huge influence on the genre and clowning to this day. He is known as ‘the King of Clowns’ and, in fact, pantomime clowns are still often known as ‘Joeys’ today.

The years of exertion, needed for his performances, led to a rapid decline in his health. He retired in 1823 with joint problems and a severe respiratory condition. Joseph unfortunately fell into debt, became depressed, a heavy drinker and died in 1837. He was then buried in, what is now, Joseph Grimaldi Park.

Nearby you’ll also see the plaque to Paul Matthews, ex deputy-mayor of Islington, who championed the restoration of Grimaldi’s grave.

The Dancing Graves

In 2010 the park was refurbished and artist Henry Krokatsis was given the task of creating an artwork to honour Grimaldi and Charles Dibdin (1745-1814), Grimaldi’s employer as proprietor of the Sadler’s Wells theatre.

The installation is called ‘An Invitation To Dance On The Grave’.

It consists of two coffin shaped “graves”, made of bronze tiles, that chime musical notes when you step on them.

They can apparently be made to play “Hot Codlins”, a song popularised by Grimaldi. To be honest, it is quite difficult to get any sort of sound out of them but I did manage to get a few notes!

The artist wanted to “create something that is constantly changing”, “a joyous interlude from the silence of death”.

See below for my attempt at dancing in a series I call ‘Man Embarrasses Himself In Park’.

Clowning Around

To this day Grimaldi’s grave is a pilgrimage destination for modern clowns.

Since 1946, there has been a ‘Grimaldi Memorial Service’ at which clowns gather to honour the father of their craft and praise the gift of humour.

They used to gather at St James’s but since this was demolished in 1980, it has been held at All Saints in Haggerston (also known as ‘The Clown’s Church’). At the event, a ‘Clown’s Prayer’ is read, as well as puppetry, balloon-animal-making and circus songs played on the organ. Click here for some fantastic photos of the event.

The service is free, open to all and takes place every year on the first Sunday of February, although for the last couple of years it has been virtual. You can find out more about it here, fingers crossed for this year.

On the anniversary of his death (31st May) some clowns also still make an annual visit to Joseph Grimaldi Park to lay a wreath at his grave.

In 2021 five clowns called Gingernutt, Frosty, Mattie, Jolly Jack and PJ went to pay their respects. You can see some photos here in the Islington Gazette.

The park is open from 8am-5pm and can be found at 11 Collier Street, N1 9JA.

Thank you for reading, more of London’s quirky history below!