The Chimpanzee tea party was a form of public entertainment in which chimpanzees were dressed in human clothes and provided with a table of food and drink.[1][2][3]
The first such tea party was held at the London Zoo in 1926, two years after the opening of Monkey Hill.[4][5] They were put on almost daily during the summer until they were discontinued in 1972.[6] Tea parties were also adopted by other institutions seeking to draw crowds.[1][4][5][2] The chimps, adorned in hats, dresses, and other garments, would engage in activities reminiscent of a sophisticated tea party, such as sipping from cups, nibbling on snacks, and interacting with each other in playful ways.[3][2][1] This idea was even used for marketing techniques in the 1900’s.[3] They were the inspiration for the PG Tips television advertisements which began in 1956.[7][3] Neil Heath notes that concerns over animal welfare and the potential for exploitation have been a result of using chimps for advertising campaigns.[3]
- ^ a b c Allen, John S.; Park, Julie; Watt, Sharon L. (January 2008). "The Chimpanzee Tea Party: Anthropomorphism, Orientalism, and Colonialism". ResearchGate. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ a b c Wassilieff, Maggy (24 November 2008). "Zoos and aquariums". Te Ara. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ a b c d e "PG Tips chimps: The last of the tea-advertising apes". BBC News. 9 January 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
- ^ a b Animals in human histories: the mirror of nature and culture. By Mary J. Henninger-Voss. Boydell & Brewer, 2002. Page 281.
- ^ a b "Zoo Tea Room for Apes—Lesson in Table Manners." Daily Mail. 6 April 1927.
- ^ Monsters of our own making: the peculiar pleasures of fear By Marina Warner. University Press of Kentucky, 2007. Page 335.
- ^ Laws, Roz (12 January 2015). "'You hum it son, I'll play it' Remember the PG Tips advert tea chimps?". Coventry Live. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
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