or How To/Not To* Make Punch and Judy

Recently I started to think that the set of puppets I have, although great for children to have a go and handle, are not traditional enough for the End of the Pier Show. Consequently I wanted good set of traditional style wooden headed puppets, as these to buy can go for anything from £500 to £2000 (Ouch) I decided I would have to find a less expensive avenue to persue. So I resoved to make them myself! One slight drawback, I have no talent for making things whatsoever, at all, nada, zip. I have no wood carving skills, I can just about manage a running back stitch but highly inconsistently, and my one claim to fame is I once designed a logo for hospital radio. So what was I thinking of, attempting to build a Punch and Judy cast from scratch? The man is Mad! But this is not unpreceedented.

Faenol (Vinyl) the Dragon from Radio Glan Clwyd

Thankfully I know from my medieval puppetry (see http://abbotofmisrule.wordpress.com) that some exsisting puppets can be adapted to good effect and also I call upon the help of my life partner who more than makes up for my shortcomings. And as these are for Victorian rather than Medieval recreation there is one more useful fact in our favour! We can use machinery!

So over the next few weeks I will be outlining the process here as to how I have gone about – ow! – sorry! How we have gone about making the new line up, and also, if there is room, the new booth. I am not suggesting for a moment that this is definitive or the best process, all I can say for certain, to misquote old nosey himself,

That’s A Way to Do It!