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Hidden Stories of Christmas Steps

The Invisible Circus presents…

‘Hidden Stories of Christmas Steps’

Peel back the layers of time and plunge headfirst into the untold, the bizarre, and the spellbinding history of this iconic Bristol location.

We are thrilled to be producing a series of live performances for Halloween and Christmas, with a digital audiovisual trail launching in February 2025 – all of which will share just some of the incredible histories of Bristol’s Christmas Steps.

Did you experience one of our Hidden Stories of Christmas Steps live events? We need your feedback!

We are required to collect 100 audience surveys as part of the funding guidelines for this project. Your help in filling in this 2 minute survey would be SO very appreciated if you have visited this event. You can fill in the survey by clicking here.

Event Location: Christmas Steps, Bristol, BS1 5BS

Admission: FREE

No tickets required.

Interactive characters deliver true historic tales, with an Invisible Circus infused theatrical twist. You can hear an array of stories told at different spots up and down Bristol’s iconic Christmas Steps, in the Chapel and the Foster’s Alms Houses.

Performances take place in repeated cycles between 13:30 – 18:00 on live event days – so you do not need to arrive for a specific start time. Simply come along during the running time window, and take a journey through the steps – and through time. 

Whether you travel from the top or the bottom you are invited to flow through the experience at your own pace, pausing for performances. Christmas Steps is also home to The Christmas Step Arts Quarter and an eclectic array of independent businesses, so we also invite you to explore inside the various shops and spaces you come across along the way.

We are acutely aware that the Grade-II listed Christmas Steps are inherently inaccessible by nature to those who are unable to use steps, and we don’t want that to unreasonably limit anyone’s experience of this event. 

Key performances will be held on level ground at the top and bottom of the Christmas Steps, at locations that can be reached via step-free routes, connected by Host Street and Colston Street. You can ask stewards (in hi-vis) for directions on the day and they’ll be happy to guide you!

An audiovisual digital version of this project can be experienced both as a trail to discover at the Christmas Steps location using QR codes, or explored online from the comfort of your own home. This element of the project will be developed in the New Year – so we’ll keep you updated on this front!

Video by Alex Allen

We hope to educate and illuminate the history of the area including local legends and hidden characters brought to life. Despite some shocking and tragic events in Christmas Steps’ long history, there are also incredibly inspiring stories of hope, perseverance, love and rebirth. By telling stories from Bristol’s incredible history in the places where they happened, we refresh connections to that past. By documenting these events, we will also create a legacy that can be enjoyed by visitors of Christmas Steps long after the shows are finished.


Carlos Trower – “The African Blondin” – World renowned high-rope walker and abolitionist (7 Christmas Steps – 1876)
Mrs Shufflewick – comedic stage persona of Rex Jameson (né Coster; c.11 June 1924 – 5 March 1983)

 “The Invisible Circus are delighted to be working with the residents and businesses of Christmas Steps on this project. In many ways this area is one of Bristol’s best kept secrets; we hope to change all of that by bringing the area to life with circus, theatre, music and storytelling. If ever there was a hidden part of Bristol with mysteries to reveal – it’s the Christmas Steps! Join us on a voyage of discovery, as we set off to uncover the dark tales of yesterday and write a new story for tomorrow.”