Gang Show - Organisation

Organisation

When the Gang Show started in London in 1932, Reader decided that the cast should be organised as a Scout Troop; an arrangement which persists only in a few shows now. Members of the first Gang Show Troop wanted an identifying feature, with somebody deciding on a red scarf or necker. The red scarf has become a worldwide symbol of Gang shows, and to distinguish one show from another, an insignia in gold thread (UK: the initials GS in Ralph Reader's handwriting shot through with the show's name - AUS: usually a design related to the masks of comedy and tragedy and incorporating the show's name) is embroided into the point of the scarf. Members of Gang Shows in the United Kingdom are only allowed to wear the scarlet scarf if they are nationally recognised as up to the required standard. Every show must be re-assessed every five years.

In 1972, the London Gang Show Fellowship was founded by Reader, so current and former members of the London show could keep in touch. This membership was later expanded to anyone interested in the Gang Shows and Ralph Reader.