Buffalo Bill's Wild West

David Dunford attended the University of Essex, graduating with a degree in Government. He joined Essex County Newspapers in Colchester as a reporter and later became an assistant editor. He later moved to the BBC in London where he wrote and edited news bulletins for all BBC Radio outlets. He later became Editor of the BBC General News Service, responsible for providing news and current affairs for stations around the country. In 2003 he was Editor of all BBC local radio and regional television coverage of the second Gulf War. After taking early retirement he became a visiting lecturer in radio journalism at the University of the Arts in London. In 2014 he returned to Essex University to study for an MA in History which he was awarded with distinction. In addition to this book, he has also chronicled the history of horse racing in Chelmsford as well as writing numerous newspaper and magazine articles.

5* Andy M Two years ago, David Dunford chronicled the history of horse racing in Chelmsford in his book, 'Full Circle'. Now he's delved into the archives again to give a colourful account of the appearances in Essex of the extravaganza that was Buffalo Bill's Wild West. The spectacular show was summed up by the Illustrated London News: 'It is not a circus, nor indeed is it acti ng at all, in a theatrical sense, but an exact reproduction of daily scenes in frontier life.'Audiences around the world were awed by exhibitions of horse-riding, sharp-shooting and rope tricks and re-enactments of battles. Those taking part were the real deal: the cowboys had actually ridden the range, the cavalry men were veterans and the Indians were real native Americans (at least one had fought in the Battle of the Little Big Horn). The whole caboodle was led by the intrepid Buffalo Bill, Colonel William Cody: guide, scout, hunter, trapper and canny businessman. Dunford's narrative takes a while to reach Essex, but the build-up information is fascinating, fleshing out characters who'd hitherto just been exotic names from our childhoods: Sitting Bull, Annie Oakley, Wild Bill Hickock etc. It's interspersed with excellent illustrations. The show had Royal patronage when it was in London, and crowds flocked to see it when it moved down to Essex in 1903/4 - the evening performance in Chelmsford attracted an audience of about 11,000. This is a really entertaining and well-written little book that casts a light on what Dunford calls 'the first reality show in Essex. 5* Clive Stewart. This is a brilliant book, it covers so much of Buffalo Bill from his early life too.

• Page 9 IntroductionPage 11 1. The Making of a LegendPage 19 2. Treading the BoardsPage 27 3. The Wild West Show is BornPage 33 4. The Early Years - Annie Oakley and Sitting BullPage 43 5. The Wild West Arrives in EssexPage 49 6. The American ExhibitionPage 61 7. Across the Atlantic AgainPage 67 8. On the RoadPage 71 9. Three Days in September - Leyton, Southend andColchesterPage 87 10. The Final Tour - Chelmsford and IlfordPage 97 11. The End of the TrailPage 106 Selected BibliographyPage 108 About the Author