A man dressed as a jester. An advertisement for the first state jester to be employed in England since 1649 is to appear in the Times newspaper(AFP/File/Oscar Pipkin)
Posted on 08/04/2004 11:25:49 AM PDT by martin_fierro
'Jester wanted': England brings back the clown
LONDON (AFP) - An advertisement for the first state jester to be employed in England since 1649 will appear in the Times newspaper on Thursday.
The jester, an outrageously-dressed clown complete with triple-pointed hat, is being sought to once again entertain the crowds, as he used to in the royal courts of Europe during the Middle Ages.
English Heritage, a public body responsible for the country's historic environment, is reviving the post which was last seen in the court of King Charles I.
The job will be advertised for the first time in 350 years in the classified section of Thursday's Times.
"Jester wanted. Must be mirthful and prepared to work summer weekends in 2005. Must have own outfit (with bells)," the advertisement is to say.
Duties of the court jester for King Charles I included providing entertainment at feasts to aid the monarch's digestion and preventing state affairs weighing too heavily on him.
The role was abolished by Oliver Cromwell during his puritanical purge of the country -- as a fundamentalist Christian republic, there was thought to be no place in England for such frivolity.
English Heritage now wants to bring the jester back and the contemporary counterpart must be willing to feign stupidity and madness for the sake of other's enjoyment, according to English Heritage spokeswoman Tracy Borman.
A man dressed as a jester. An advertisement for the first state jester to be employed in England since 1649 is to appear in the Times newspaper(AFP/File/Oscar Pipkin)
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I'd like to see them bring back minstrels as well.
Would they take the two johns?
Prithee, nuncle, what need has England for a state jester when there's a Labour government?
See? During the Bush Administration, all the good paying jobs are going overseas!!!!!! AAAAAARRRRGGGGGG!
(Just kidding)
Pray faith, let us inquire of Mad Ivan.
But soft! He approacheth anon. (Exeunt)
We do need some unalloyed laughter from time to time, as opposed to laughter through tears.
Regards, Ivan
:-)
I adore her, and it may become a surprise to NEARLY everyone here that she is my darling (slightly taller) sister. She's one year younger............. and about a decade more foolish.
:-)
Bless 2T.
But, I'm afraid of Jesters.
I bet janine garafolo (I do not know how to spell that womans name, sorry) would be perfect for this.
Send him.
If I'm wrong about the French translation, someone will correct me in
*looks at watch*...
ten, nine, eight....
What about a village idiot?
Is Kerry moving to England after the election?
One can only hope
The year 1649 was when Charles I was beheaded. If that last jester helped the king's digestion the night before his execution, the funny man really earned his pay.
The article also has the obligatory dig-the "fundamentalist Christian republic" is to be blamed for the departure of mirth from England. As if life had been really mirthful for the puritans, dissenters and independents in the centuries before while the privileged played.
Kerry could continue his act on that side of the pond.
If I only had a brain!
.
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