Dan, the resident performer at Lands End,
UK during the Summer season, has been a Punch Prof since 1976. A former
student of theatre arts he is also now a regular performer with Mr. Punch
at festivals overseas. His Mr. Punch has his own battered passport which
has taken him to three World festivals; Lubljana, Magdeburg and Charleville-Mezieres,
and also to the Canary Islands, Japan, Siberia, Jerusalem, Germany, France,
Italy, Portugal, Poland, Northern Island, Slovakia, Hungary, Belgium, Spain,
Switzerland and - of course - many UK festivals. Dan has has mastered sufficient
of the host languages (twelve in all) to be understood fully. Dan and his
wife Gemma are constantly intrigued to see how the wicked humour of Mr.
Punch's little drama - historically rooted in the fears and frustrations
of ordinary people on the street corner - seems to find the universal pulse
of his audience wherever he goes in the world.
CONTACT DAN BISHOP AT: Tel: 44-1736-788308 or Fax: 44-1736-788353
or email him.
Based in Birmingham, Clive is a leading performer. As well as performing Punch
he is the proprietor of Walking Tall Theatre Company which has a set of Giant
dancing puppets including Punch, Judy the baby and the Clown. Tel/Fax 0121
441 5694 or
email
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Tony Clarke ('Prof. Robanti')
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T
ony is a second generation Punchman of the Clarke
family. Born in 1968 he performed his first show on the Gorleston-on-Sea beach
eight year's later. He has since performed in China, Russia and Italy as well
as working all over the UK. He hopes his son Charlie will be following in
the family tradition. Visit his website
or contact him by phone 07884165206 or email.
Postal address: 23 Dean Beck Ave, Odsal, Bradford, BD6 1DE
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Bryan Clarke ('Prof Jingles')
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Bryan, father of Punchman Tony Clarke, was for
very many years the resident beach performer at Lowestoft in Suffolk. He has
been a Punch performer for nearly fifty years and has travelled extensively
within the UK and ovserseas with Mr. Punch. A renowned maker of Punch and
Judy puppets and booths it was a set of his figures which were photographed
for the Royal Mail stamp issue of Sept 2001 which featured the cast of the
Punch and Judy Show. For more information email
Brian and Alison Davey are resident during the
Summer at Lyme Regis in Dorset. They also perform at festivals throughout
the UK and overseas. As The Puppetree Company they also make and supply
all manner of props, booths, theatres and puppet paraphernalia for stage,
film, TV and collectors of puppets.
CONTACT BRIAN DAVEY AT: Tel/Fax (01297) 443728 or email
him. To locate his brochure visit the College Shop.
Glyn describes himself as a "Punch and
Judy activist" and has been responsible for a significant number of initiatives
promoting the tradition. A 'Prof' for over forty five years he was the youngest
performer at the unveiling of the plaque to Mr. Punch in Covent Garden in
1962. He organised the 1974 Punch Festival on the site of Shakespeare's Globe
Theatre in London's Bankside; the Gala Celebrations in Covent Garden to mark
Punch's 325th 'official birthday' in 1987; and the Millennium Punch and Judy
Jamboree in Birmingham in May 2000. He also produced and directed the network
TV documentary 'As Pleased as Punch' (1987). His book 'Successful Punch &
Judy', based on the courses he runs teaching Punch and Judy skills, has been
hailed as the standard modern work on the theory and practice of performing
the traditional show. With his wife Mary - a noted puppeteer and puppet maker
- he has performed the length and breadth of the UK as well as in Greece,
Italy, Spain, Sweden, the USA, the USSR, Japan and the Gulf. He thinks that
Mr. Punch is one of World Drama's great comic creations and that performing
the show is one of the best possible ways to earn a living.
You can contact Glyn by phone at 01903 200 364, by email
,visit his website Glyn Edwards Punch
and Judy Pitch or read his
blog.
Geoff has been a puppeteer since 1982 and has
an extensive list of TV and film credits. He has published two books on Punch
(both currently out of print) and has an extensive archive of Punch related
material. He has performed abroad and on stage at London's Players Theatre
for four consecutive seasons. Geoff is also known as a puppet maker whose
work has been sent all over the world. He made his own booth and puppets.
You are welcome to visit his website.
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Reg Payn ('Prof Goodvibes')
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Says Reg "I've had the pleasure of working here in Cornwall with Mr.
Punch and 'the family' since 1989. We've taken our puppetry pandemonium to
places far and wide (but not too often over the River Tamar) .....fetes ,
festivals, beaches, schools and annually to the Isles of Scilly for the church
fete on St. Mary's. Good ol' Mr. Punch. Our show is fast - I have trouble
keeping up with what's going on most of the time - and traditional: devil,
hangman, really scary ghost and bearded crocodile! We also like bringing in
some of the 'old troupers' that are less often seen these days. Pretty Polly
caused quite a strir when she joined us last year. Our bottler is Mop the
Dog - a smelly, raggedy old mongrel whose coat has seen better days but who's
been with us through thick and thin. I make all the cast, props etc - working
in re-cycled materials as much as possible. Commissions taken! Life with Punch
is bloomin' good fun!" Tel: 01208 851723 or
email.
Mark is a puppeteer, who specialises in Punch
& Judy. He has been performing the show full-time, since leaving school.
In 1988, Mark (aged 16) won the College's ‘Most Promising Young Prof’
award. Later that year was invited to perform for the season at Llandudno
by the Codman family. Since then he has performed on beaches all over the
south coast, including Newquay, Weston-Super-Mare, Broadstairs and his resident
‘pitch’ on Goodrington Sands, which is where his style of show is
most at home. He is constantly introducing new ideas and topical comedy to
the show and tries to perform routines that were thought to be impossible!!
Performances have been given all over the country from birthday parties to
the Millennium Dome. Shows have been presented at Plymouth's National Marine
Aquarium, Woodlands Leisure Park to name but a few. He makes puppets, props,
booths and sign writes for other performers. He still ‘Busks’ the
show whenever he gets the opportunity. You can reach Mark by email
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Bob Sacco (College Professor Emeritus)
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A showman of wide experience and excellent reputation
and he has been interviewed about Punch on radio and TV as well as arranging
and organising a number of Punch & Judy festivals and conventions. Retired
from active performing with Punch and Judy , Bob - a qualified lecturer with
an Honours Degree in Education - still gives talks on 'The Life and Times
of Mr. Punch'. He is married to Jean Purdy, also a very busy and popular all-round
entertainer, who is currently the World Champion Fire-eater. Jean, who has
worked in film, on stage and in the circus, is also an avid supporter of Punch
and enjoys working together with Bob when circumstances permit.
Contact Bob by phone at 01753 663 374 or by email.
John has recently celebrated 50 years in 'the
business' performing "from Pubs to Palaces, Beaches to Broadway, House
Parties to Hollywood". He has performed over 17,000 Punch and Judy Shows
and entertained at some 10,000 birthday parties. He has operated Mr. Punch
in 20 feature films - currently in Disney's 102 Dalmations - and 20 commercials
and has also made some 250 radio and TV appearances. He has also performed
15 times for royalty at Buckingham Palace. He was also elected Gold Star member
of the Inner Magic Circle and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He has
appeared at 50 British Promotions and festivals worldwide as well as at the
Smithsonian Institute, Washington DC and the Magic Castle, Hollywood. He was
awarded the MBE "for services to the arts: especially Punch & Judy"
in the 2004 New Years honours list. You are welcome to visit John's website.
| A second-generation performer, Robert gained his first experience
at the age of sixteen entertaining the crowds at Thorpe Park in Essex,
and on the street outside Pollock's Toy museum in London. Since then
he has been invited to children's birthday parties, school fetes, adult
parties & wedding anniversaries, trade shows, county fairs and corporate
events. He has participated in Christmas promotions at Harrod's, Liberty
and Selfridges department stores, and has performed in restaurants,
gardens, parks, shopping malls and outside the Houses of Parliament
on the Six O'Clock News.
In 1991, he and Mr. Punch were invited to represent Great Britain
at a cultural festival marking the end of Luxembourg's presidency
of the E.C. Further Activities abroad followed: to the 8th International
Puppet festival Titirimundi in Salamanca and Segovia, Spain; Guignols
Europeens in Marseille, France; International Kaspertheaterfestival
in Frankfurt, Germany; Internationale Pupperntheatertage in Mistelbach,
Austria and the Prater in Vienna. Most recently Robert performed in
Japan in the Autumn of 2007. You can contact him though his
website.
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Des Turner (College Professor Emeritus)
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| Veteran Punch showman and President of the Punch & Judy Fellowship,
Des has announced his retirement and accepted the title of Professor
Emeritus from his College colleagues - awarded as a mark of gratitude
for his stalwart efforts on behalf of the Punch tradition.
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David started performing Punch as a young child and was advised and encouraged
by a number of leading performers. He was voted Britain’s Most Promising
Young Professor aged 16 in Covent Garden, by the Punch and Judy College of
Professors and has performed his acclaimed show extensively since then. Also
a major collector, David has loaned puppets from his definitive collection
to numerous institutions and individuals for research and displays. The collection
includes rare examples from stage and screen, including items from Are You
Being Served, Tony Hancock's puppets from the cult film The Punch and Judy
Man, and the late Peter Brough's famous ventriloquist dummy, Archie Andrews,
the star of the 1950's radio serial Educating Archie. You can contact David
by
email , or telephone 0208
650 2840 ( mobile 07941 245 491). You can also visit his
website.
Since winning the title of ‘Britain’s Most Promising Young Punch and
Judy Professor’ in 1999 Gary has performed his show at hundreds events
around the country. His show has been performed at venues such as the Millennium
Dome and has appeared at various Puppet festivals including numerous festivals
at Covent Garden, London. His show is also a familiar sight at the seaside
town of Weston-super-Mare where he has been booked to perform on the beaches
and in the parks for the last four summer seasons and where the show was recently
a feature at channel 4’s T4 on the Beach event. Gary is also a professionally
trained actor, he recently graduated from ArtsEd. London School of Acting
where he represented ArtsEd at The Sam Wanamaker Festival at the Globe Theatre
and was also nominated for the BBC Carleton Hobbs Radio Drama Award. As an
actor Gary has performed at Buckingham Palace, Shakespeare’s Globe and
The Criterion Theatre. He has also worked in radio drama and voice over. You
can contact him by
email
