John Stuart Godwin (18 March 1904 – 22 June 1973), known as Jack Goodwin and later as Jack Stuart, was a British rowing

coxswain The coxswain ( or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the wiktionary:cockboat, cockboat, a ...

and magician. Godwin was born in 1904 in

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is southeast of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 88,000 as of 2023. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, charte ...

, Kent. He rowed for Great Britain in the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad () and officially branded as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The opening ceremony was held on 5 July, but some competitions had al ...

in Paris. He was affiliated with the

Thames Rowing Club The Thames Rowing Club (TRC) is a rowing club based on the tidal River Thames, Thames as it flows through the western suburbs of London. The TRC clubhouse stands on Putney Embankment. The club was founded in 1860. As of July 2023, Thames had w ...

in Putney. He was coxswain for the men's eight. The Thames club won the

Grand Challenge Cup The Grand Challenge Cup is a rowing (sport), rowing competition for men's eight (rowing), eights. It is the oldest and best-known event at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male cr ...

at the

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a Rowing (sport), rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It diffe ...

in 1923, but only four members of that victorious crew, Ian Fairbairn, Godwin himself, Arthur Long, and Charles Rew, were present at the Paris Olympics. His team came in fourth in the Olympic competition. Godwin was again part of the Thames club team when they won the Grand Challenge Cup in 1927. Godwin became a professional magician in the 1930s under the stage name "Jack Stuart". He and his sister Phyllis created a stage show that included their "Live Marionettes". During their performance they used puppets that hung below their own chins and were controlled by sticks. The illusion made for the appearance of tiny people with puppet bodies but real heads and faces (played by Jack and Phyllis). Jack appeared on early British television broadcasts in the era of

John Logie Baird John Logie Baird (; 13 August 188814 June 1946) was a Scottish inventor, electrical engineer, and innovator who demonstrated the world's first mechanical Mechanical television, television system on 26 January 1926. He went on to invent the fi ...

as a conjurer. He adapted his magic tricks to accommodate the new medium of television. During World War II he served building the India and Burma railway in India. He then emigrated to

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...

. He was a cousin to both New Zealand aviator James Gowing Godwin and author Robert Godwin. His uncle was Lt Sidney Godwin of Marshall's Horse.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Godwin, Jack 1904 births 1973 deaths English male rowers English magicians People from Bromley Sportspeople from the London Borough of Bromley Olympic rowers for Great Britain Rowers at the 1924 Summer Olympics British emigrants to Southern Rhodesia British coxswains (rowing) 20th-century English sportsmen