Daredevil dubbed the ‘human cannonball’ was shot out of a cannon across the River Avon

It was an idea sparked over a conversation in the office.

50 years ago, a then 21-year-old Mary Connors, came up with a plan – to be fired out of a cannon across the River Avon.

While it might seem like a farfetched, if a tad dangerous, pipe dream, it became a reality for Mary.

And little did she know she would become a trailblazer for other women.

Mary may have missed out on the record of becoming the first woman to be blasted across that stretch of water five decades ago today – but the memories live strong.

The Leicester native revealed to Metro.co.uk that she fell into the dangerous hobby by chance – and wasn’t deterred by an unfortunate injury to a man who went by the name of Fiery Fred.

Mary was part of the UK’s first all-female stunt display group called the Motobirds, much to her parents’ disapproval.

Aged 19, she defied her parents and moved out of the family home to join group.

She worked as a secretary for Joe Weston-Webb from 1972, who was a showman and owner of the human cannonball.They eventually married.

‘I was bullied into becoming a human cannonball by my friend Liz who was the first female to be shot out of a cannon,’ Mary said.

‘I worked in the office with Joe and I came up with the idea of being shot across the River Avon in Tewkesbury in a cannonball.

‘Originally a guy called Fiery Fred was meant to do it but he broke his pelvis in the practice shot.

‘My friend Liz was the substitute but refused to do it when she found out what had happened to Fiery Fred.

‘It took a bit of convincing but she eventually managed to talk me into it. I thought to myself, why not, it is something a bit different.’

Mary’s world record attempt was held on the bank of the River Avon in Tewkesbury on August 25, 1974.

She was shot out of the cannon three times over the course of three days in front of 20,000 people, eager to witness the incredible spectacle.

Despite appearing to seem confident before and after the attempts, Mary felt anything but.

‘I was absolutely terrified and so scared for all of it,’ she said.

‘When the cannon blasted me out it felt like it had gone wrong and I definitely knew it had once I hit the water because I dived straight in.

‘People travelled from miles around just to come and watch it because of course there was no other entertainment like TVs then.

‘It was a spectacle back then because firing girls out of a cannon was just unheard of. We were pioneers in that way.

‘While I failed to cross the river in a cannon, I almost crossed the river again in 1975 in a catapult.

‘Bank to bank, the river is 150ft, but unluckily I bounced back into the river off the net on the other side. It was all good fun though.’

Mary’s dangerous stunts did not stop there and continued into the mid-1980s.

She recalled that one of the scariest moments was when she was blasted across Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge stadium at midnight in a cannon.

Mary said: ‘When I was waiting in the cannon ready to be shot out I felt horrendous.

‘I just wanted to get out and when it didn’t fire off at first I thought something bad was going to happen.

‘Finally it fired off on another attempt and luckily I didn’t get hurt. Doing that in the dark just added to the fear.

‘I also had an accident while on tour in Denmark where I tore my ligaments and was out of action for a while afterwards.

‘There were other fun moments from my career though. I was shot out of a cannon 12 times on one specific day and beat the world record for this.

‘I was also John Cleese’s stunt double in an advert to encourage people to wear their seat belts.

‘So much happened looking back on it all.’

Mary eventually passed her wisdom down to others who wanted to follow in her footsteps.

How does a human cannonball shot work?

Mary would lay inside a capsule within the barrel of the cannon.She would then be shot up at speed through it before it stops at the end.

This movement would blast her out of it.

In 1983, a £200-a-week position for a human cannonball was advertised and more than 100 women applied.

Only five managed to audition. In BBC Archive footage, Mary can be heard passing on a few tips before they took to the cannon.

She can be heard saying: ‘Just keep your legs together, spread your arms and relax into a forward roll.’

Mary’s family still has mixed thoughts on her daring endeavors even today.She recalls a time when her daughter became embarrassed by her appearance on Channel 5’s Outrageous Stunts.

After her retirement, Mary had two children and went into business with Joe specialising in high-end party marquees.

They even set one up once for Sir Elton John.

The couple also lived in America for a short while before relocating to the UK after their business was destroyed in Hurricane Charley in August 2004.

Joe died in 2012 and Mary described how he was ‘irreplaceable’ and invented ‘a whole host of things’.

She also fondly recalls how her son, who died from coronavirus, was always proud of her achievements.

Mary believes her and the other women involved inspired future generations to try things they would normally never do.

‘We were trailblazers very much so,’ she said.

‘I think our acts inspired a whole host and generation of girls to get involved in dangerous sports, particularly racing driving. 

‘We were 14 women. We always had to go above and beyond everybody else. Proving our worth time and again.’

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