Ursula Bottcher, 1927-2010

“Hailed as the ‘Brilliant Baroness of the Bears’ in America, every night she faced six male and four female bears, some of them 12ft tall. Although polar bears are regarded by performers as highly dangerous, Ursula Bottcher said: ‘I am not afraid of them. I’ve been working with polar bears since 1964, and understand just how they think.’ Her partner in the act, Manfred Horn, was killed by a bear in 1990. She also worked with lions, pumas and leopards, and married an elephant trainer who later trained bears.” Bottcher died earlier this month.