William Bradley (10 February 1787 – 30 May 1820), known more commonly as Giant Bradley or the Yorkshire Giant, is one of the tallest recorded British men that ever lived, measuring , the same height as

Angus MacAskill Angus MacAskill (1825 – 8 August 1863) was a Scottish-born Canadian giant. In its 1981 edition the ''Guinness Book of World Records'' stated he was the strongest man who ever lived, the tallest non- pathological giant in recorded history, the ...

from Scotland.

Biography

Born in

Market Weighton Market Weighton ( ) is a town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is one of the main market towns in the East Yorkshire Wolds and lies midway between Hull and York, about from either one. According to the 2011 UK cen ...

within the

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a ceremonial county and unitary authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, South Yorkshire to t ...

, William was the fourth son in a family of thirteen and weighed 14 pounds (6.35 kg) at birth. His father, a master tailor (Note: Market Weighton parish registers instead say he was a Butcher) measured , while his siblings and mother Anne were of average size, although one sister who died in an accident at age 16 was tall. He was said to have been teased at school because of his height, though many students were scared of him. Teachers at the school were said to have punished misbehaving students by getting Bradley to lift them onto high cross beams, until the teacher decided to have them taken down again. After leaving school he worked on a farm near the town of

Pocklington Pocklington is a market town and civil parish situated at the foot of the Yorkshire Wolds in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The 2011 Census recorded its population as 8,337. It is east of York and northwest of Hull. The town's sk ...

, earning less than 10 shillings (50 p) a week.

The Yorkshire Giant

Bradley travelled with a group of showmen under the alias of the Yorkshire Giant; at the time, the

freak show A freak show, also known as a creep show, is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to in popular culture as "freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, those with ...

s were popular and would draw large crowds. As the tallest British man, Bradley was a prized asset in the business joining the huge Yorkshire Pig which was bred in Sancton two miles from Market Weighton. After touring many fairs up and down the country, including the

Hull Fair Hull Fair is Europe's largest travelling funfair, which comes to Kingston upon Hull, England for one week from 5 pm on Friday to 11 pm of the Saturday eight days later, encompassing 11 October each year. The fair is open every day betwe ...

, he parted from his minder by 1815 to manage himself. He would charge a shilling for each person to visit him in a room which he hired in various towns. He was even presented before King

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

who gave him a large golden watch on a chain, which he wore for the rest of his life. Bradley died aged 33 in his hometown of Market Weighton, where he was buried inside the church because of fears of graverobbing. His house still stands on Market Hill. The

A1079 road The A1079 is a major road in Northern England. It links the cities of York and Kingston upon Hull, both in Yorkshire. The road is noted for its past safety issues, and regularly features in the Road Safety Foundations reports on Britain's most ...

which passes Market Weighton is named Giant Bradley Way.

Giant Community Day

An annual festival is organised in memory of William Bradley in his home town of

. The event has been held annually in May since 1996 and is attended by hundreds of people in the town. It is a family-oriented event with games, amusement rides, stalls and other attractions, including the famous "Weighton Lash".

Christopher Greener Christopher Paul Greener (21 November 1943 – 11 February 2015) was a British actor and basketball player who went on to represent the United Kingdom. Greener was born in New Brighton, Wallasey, Cheshire. He was at one point the tallest ...

who was the tallest living European for a period of time has taken part in the celebrations in the past.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bradley, William 1787 births People from Market Weighton 1820 deaths People with gigantism Sideshow performers