The idea for The Happy Sideshow came to us about a year after Shep and The Space Cowboy met Captain Frodo in Copenhagen in 1998. The three dudes had accepted a gig on the Isle of Man, UK, doing solo street shows for 40.000 drunk bikers. With no exageration the gig was a nightmare and the three decided to team up. In doing so, they discovered their incredible strength as a group and the idea of a group show was born.

The name didn't come about until later that year. We had been talking about a name and wanted one that could describe the awesome energy that we created when we where together. It became evident what it would be during the Lizard festival for the total eclipse of the sun in 1999 in Cornwall, UK, where the dudes were booked to perform and Tigerlil was along for the ride.

After arriving and doing solo shows for two days the management called a meeting to tell us that there was no chance the festival was gonna make it financially so none of us where gonna get paid. A lot of the performers and bands cracked the shits and left promptly but we decided to stay and together with our fellow street performers kept the cabaret tent running for the few thousand punters that had paid and where keen to party on.

We got some routines together, spread the word and in a collaborative evening with Howard Marks, The Happy Sideshow was born in a cabaret big top in Cornwall during a total ecclipse of the sun.