Lady Emma Herbert
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Lady Emma Louise Vickers ( Herbert; born 12 March 1969) is a British circus trapeze artist,
stuntwoman A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...
, and teacher of circus arts.


Early life

The daughter of
Henry Herbert, 17th Earl of Pembroke Henry George Charles Alexander Herbert, 17th Earl of Pembroke, 14th Earl of Montgomery (19 May 1939 – 7 October 2003), styled Lord Herbert between 1960 and 1969 and often known simply as Henry Herbert, was a British landowner, member of the Ho ...
, a member of the
Herbert family The Herbert family is an Anglo-Welsh noble family founded by William Herbert, known as "Black William", the son of William ap Thomas, founder of Raglan Castle, a follower of Edward IV of England in the Wars of the Roses. The name Herbert origi ...
, Herbert was brought up at
Wilton House Wilton House is an English country house at Wilton near Salisbury in Wiltshire, which has been the country seat of the Earls of Pembroke for over 400 years. It was built on the site of the medieval Wilton Abbey. Following the dissolution o ...
in
Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
and educated at St Mary's, Calne. The goddaughter of
Andrew Parker Bowles Brigadier Andrew Henry Parker Bowles (born 27 December 1939) is a retired British Army officer. He is the former husband of Queen Camilla. Early life and family Andrew Parker Bowles was born on 27 December 1939 as the eldest of four children to ...
, on 4 July 1973 she was a bridesmaid at his wedding to
Camilla Shand Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is Queen Consort of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. She became queen consort on 8 September 2022, upon the ac ...
at the
Guards Chapel, Wellington Barracks The Royal Military Chapel, commonly known as the Guards' Chapel, is a British Army place of worship that serves as the religious home of the Household Division at the Wellington Barracks in Westminster, Greater London. Completed in 1838 in the sty ...
.Lady Herbert parks her assets on a trapeze in Naas
in the ''
Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...
'' dated 11 January 2004
Gyles Brandreth Gyles Daubeney Brandreth (born 8 March 1948) is an English broadcaster, writer and former politician. He has worked as a television presenter, theatre producer, journalist, author and publisher. He was a presenter for TV-am's '' Good Morning ...
, ''Charles and Camilla: Portrait of a Love Affair'' (Random House, 2007; ), p. 186
Her mother, Claire ( Pelly), later described her as "very
avant garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or 'vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical De ...
" and "a bit of a wild child". ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' said in 2003 that she was "born with
rebellion Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...
in her blood".Jack Grimston, Julia Llewellyn Smith
Focus: Orf to the circus
in ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'', dated 14 December 2003
Her father, who died in 2003, was a film director and producer, whose work included the movie '' Emily'' (1976), starring
Koo Stark Kathleen Norris Stark (born April 26, 1956), better known as Koo Stark, is an American photographer and actress, known for her relationship with Prince Andrew. She is a patron of the Julia Margaret Cameron Trust, which runs the museum of the Vic ...
and partly filmed at the family home, and ''
The Girl with Brains in Her Feet ''The Girl with Brains in Her Feet'' is a 1997 British comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a ...
'' (1997). Her younger brother, William Herbert, is now
Earl of Pembroke Earl of Pembroke is a title in the Peerage of England that was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title, which is associated with Pembroke, Pembrokeshire in West Wales, has been recreated ten times from its origin ...
.


Later life and career

Herbert's parents did not fight her eccentric lifestyle. On leaving school, she went to New York City, where she lived in a
Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...
house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...
. She later commented "It was straight from
A-levels The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...
to crack dens, junkies, shootings. I saw lots of very ugly things which made me decide I didn’t want to do them myself." On her return to England, Herbert met a performance art group,
Mutoid Waste Company The Mutoid Waste Company are a performance arts group founded in London, England by Joe Rush and Robin Cooke in collaboration with Alan P Scott and Joshua Bowler. It started in the early 1980s, emerging from Frestonia's 'Car Breaker Gallery'. The ...
, and one of them became her boyfriend. She learnt acrobatic skills from the ''Mutoids'' and toured Europe with them. Other friends at that time included the pop group
Sigue Sigue Sputnik Sigue Sigue Sputnik were a British new wave band formed in 1982 by former Generation X bassist Tony James. The band have had three UK top-40 hit singles, including "Love Missile F1-11" and " 21st Century Boy". The band's music, image and insp ...
and the singer
Lemmy Ian Fraser Kilmister (24 December 1945 – 28 December 2015), better known as Lemmy Kilmister or simply Lemmy, was an English musician. He was the founder, lead singer, bassist and primary songwriter of the rock band Motörhead, of which he wa ...
, of
Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...
. She became a stuntwoman, getting her first job in '' Xena: Warrior Princess'', and said in an interview, "I whiplashed my spine falling out of a tree, but it was brilliant fun jumping through explosions and coming out of the sea in leather loincloths". She then joined 'Generating Company', also known as 'Genco', a circus theatre group, appearing with them around Europe. In 2002, she performed at the Privilege night-club on the island of
Ibiza Ibiza (natively and officially in ca, Eivissa, ) is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of the Balearic Islands, in Spain. Its l ...
, better known for its sex shows. In 2003, ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' reported on her work as a
trapeze A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes or metal straps from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or flying, an ...
artist and
acrobat Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro ...
, calling her "one of Britain’s leading exponents... Nobody can question her hard work and bravery" and noting that she was at the cutting edge of modern circus. She then had spiky pink hair, with a black badger streak, and a chin stud. In 2004, she was a trapeze artist at 'Time', a club in
Naas Naas ( ; ga, Nás na Ríogh or ) is the county town of County Kildare in Ireland. In 2016, it had a population of 21,393, making it the second largest town in County Kildare after Newbridge. History The name of Naas has been recorded in th ...
,
County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...
, Ireland, where she was reported to be the star attraction. After spending a year touring New Zealand as lead aerialist in the Weber Bros Circus, Herbert married Robin Vickers in 2005. The next year, she gave birth to a daughter, Vanessa Esvedra Rose Vickers, and became a teacher of circus arts at the Performing Arts School of New Zealand,
Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...
. A son, Vincent Sidney was born in 2009.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herbert, Emma 1969 births Acrobats Daughters of British earls British stunt performers Living people Tightrope walkers Women stunt performers British circus performers People educated at St Mary's School, Calne