Pelham Puppets Today
David Leech is responsible for the design and production of all the new Pelham Puppets. Working from his workshop in Ilfracombe, North Devon, he draws on years of experience in making marionettes that not only look good, but most importantly, work well.
Continuing in the tradition of using recycled materials for puppet making, just as Bob Pelham did when he started, all the puppets are made from components and items originally produced for some other purpose!The heads are still wooden spheres, the feet are still made from toggles and the bodies are made from banister rails. Legs and arms are made from dowelling, (for the prototypes he used broom handles, but the quality of the timber was not good enough for puppet making,) and the t- shape control bars are the same style and size as used for the original Type LS or animal control bars. (See “How the Puppets are Made” for more details.)
The simpler, t-bar control is used, so that children as young as five or six can manage them, (under supervision at first) but are designed to have a range of movements and control to appeal to older children as well, should they want to develop the hobby and stage shows at home or as part of a school project.
Several thousand puppets have been produced and sold in the last two years and the demand is steadily increasing. Without exception, all the “feedback” regarding the quality of the product and service has been very positive and complimentary. We aim to keep it that way.
As Bob Pelham once said, many years ago, “ A puppet is not just a toy, but it has to walk, act and dance for someone!”
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