‘The Clee Pierrots’, Cleethorpes entertainers 1922.

An original photograph by J. W Hardy, Cleethorpes. The popular Pierrots generally performed on small stages set up on the beach by the North or Central Promenade. The names of the performers are handwritten on the reverse of this photo and others in our collection. This will provide an opportunity for some research. It would be good to know a little about the lives of these guys. One of the very best of seaside photographers, John William Hardy, was born in Sheffield on 10th February 1876. He was the son of a newsagent. John married Minna in Sheffield in 1905. He was already a photographer by the time of his marriage. By 1911, he was working as a photographer in Cleethorpes. After living in Signhills Avenue in the early 1920s, the Hardy family moved to 52 St Peter’s Avenue (where the Co-op in now) between 1925 and 1926. J. W. Hardy also had a studio on the seafront. He took outdoor, souvenir photos of holidaymakers walking along the promenade sitting in deckchairs, paddling in the sea etc. John William Hardy continued as a busy photographer through many decades. He still had the studio at his home at 52 St Peter’s Avenue when he died on 29th or 30th July 1954. His son, (John) Keith Hardy (1907-1955), was also working there as a photographer.