Family Album

I am still updating this page

As you probably already know I originally published this website in memory of my late Grandfather Xavier Petulengro who was the one person responsible for making our family a household name back in the 1930’s.

If I may, I would like to explain one or two things regarding the Petulengro name. Over the years there have been many people claiming to be related to my Grandfather the famous ‘Gipsy Petulengro’ who became a household name in the 1930’s & 1940’s mainly through his BBC broadcasts and his writings in popular newspapers such as ‘Daily Sketch’, ‘Sunday Chronicle’ and the ‘Women’s Own’ magazine, he also travelled many Fairs and Carnivals up and down the United Kingdom. It was due to his popularity many Gypsy fortune tellers at the time hopped on the bandwagon and started calling themselves Petulengro. Although, anyone with the family name of ‘Smith’ is perfectly entitled to use the name Petulengro simply because Petulengro is the Romany term for a ‘Black Smith’, a ‘Petula’ being a Horseshoe and an ‘Engro’ a Man/person, however, there are a large number of other people just using the name because of its popularity.

There are in fact only two people remaining who are directly descended from the Original Famous ‘Gypsy Petulengro’, Myself and my cousin Stella who is the daughter of my Uncle Leon Petulengro.

: My Grandmother & Grandfather

: From Granfathers book ‘The Romany Life’ published in 1936

: Myself

: My Late Wife Pamela (1939 – 2017)

: My Father

: My Mother

: My Uncle Leon (Mothers Brother)

: My Cousin Stella (Leon’s Daughter)

Uncle Leon Petulengro wrote the Stars for the Woman’s Own magazine for more than 25 years, later going on to join the promotion team at Brooke Bond ‘PG Tips’ travelling with the famous Brooke Bond Chimps Tea Party’ in the 1970’s. He also published several books including ‘Roots of Health’, Gypsy Boy’ and ‘Romany Astrology and Palmistry’