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Gypsy

1970 , Spalding (Lincolnshire)

Cat no. 225307

BBC Look East report on the life of Silvester Gordon Boswell, a Romany gypsy.

Silvester Gordon Boswell, a Romany gypsy, scrap metal merchant and horse trader, drives a hard bargain as he sells a donkey from his herd. Boswell is also the author of 'The Book of Boswell: Autobiography of a Gypsy', which contains a family tree and photographs of their nomadic lifestyle. Interviewed by a BBC East correspondent, Boswell talks about the gypsy reputation, claiming their sales tactics are no worse than car salesmen and that cock fighting is much less common in modern Romani communities. After a visit to his scrap metal yard, Boswell discusses his life and his desire to ensure his children were educated. He also describes his own desire to keep visiting spring fairs, the life of modern gypsies in East Anglia and his fear that, in the future, gypsy culture will disappear entirely.

Keywords

Gypsies; Romany; Travellers

Background Information

After Silvester Gordon Boswell's death in 1977, the scrap metal yard in Spalding was purchased by his son, Gordon Boswell, who created a museum as a tribute to his father. The Gordon Boswell Romany Museum has one of the world's largest collections of Vardos (traditional Romany caravans) as well as photographs and sketches covering over 150 years of British Romany history. Gordon comes from a long line of Romany historians. He is a direct descendent of Tyso Westrus ‘Dictionary’ Boswell who helped produce a definitive history of the sanskrit-based Romani language in the 1860s.

  • Production company : BBC East

Manifestations

Gypsy

  • Barcode
    INV370806
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:04:50
    Modification Date
    11/11/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    733849
  • Barcode
    INV368317
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:04:50
    Modification Date
    11/11/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    733848
  • Barcode
    INV392369
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:04:50
    Modification Date
    11/11/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    733846
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV383227
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    DV digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:04:50
    Modification Date
    16/05/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    711973
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV407189
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    master digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:04:52
    Modification Date
    16/05/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    711950
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV191164
    Canonical Identifier
    1976/1
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Details
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Colour System
    bw
    Colour Type
    bw
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:15:00
    Has Image
    Y
    Has Sound
    Y
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    neg
    Modification Date
    06/10/2010
    Parts
    Reference
    693487
    Sound
    sound
    Sound System
    mag stripe

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