Former Bartitsu Club instructor Pierre Vigny (right) and his wife and associate instructor Marguerite (second from right) pose for a photo featured in the November, 1903 edition of Health and Strength Magazine. The picture probably represents a moment from their “Attacked by Hooligans” self-defence skit, which was performed at the Royal Music Hall.
Marguerite displays the “hook around the neck” technique with her umbrella handle, a characteristic manoeuvre from both her husband’s self-defence system and her own method. Meanwhile, Pierre assumes a lowered version of the Rear Guard with his cane as he prepares to take on the hooligan shown to the far left, who is wielding a belt. A potential follow-up technique is shown below, from the “Art of Stick Defence” article in the August 1, 1903 Illustrated London News:
