William IV as a dancing bear on a village green, his own head inset in that of the muzzled beast, stands on hind-legs. A chain attached to the bear's nose is held by Brougham (left) who cracks a whip, looking over his shoulder at the spectator with a cynical twisted smile. Grey (right), turning from the animal, gloomily plays the pipe and tabor. On the bear's head sits a little monkey wearing a jacket and a cap with a tricolour cockade and a pen-feather, and inscribed 'PR of T.B. U.' [? President of the Birmingham Union, i.e. T. Attwood, see BM Satires No. 16070, &amp;c.]. The distressed bear holds behind its head, like a balancing-pole, a long sceptre. The performance is for the benefit of three schoolboys: O'Connell (left) watches with a pleased smile, while behind two more boys rush from the gateway of a [Charit]'y School by Thos Pain'; they are Hunt followed by Hume (in tartan). Beside the school is a dilapidated church, placarded 'To Be Let'.  c. November 1831
<br>Hand-coloured lithograph
1831<div style="display: none;">date QS:P571,+1831-00-00T00:00:00Z/9</div>
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