600 Years On Strings

We have been celebrating our 65th birthday with an ambitious heritage project, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, to revive and preserve the future of marionette puppetry in the UK, an endangered craft with more than 600 years of history.

This summer we produced a landmark public programme to celebrate this momentous occasion: including a new marionette performance on the restored historic marionette bridges, a panel talk, exhibition, masterclasses and a published guide!

“This feels like the culmination of over five years of dedication and advocacy for the much loved yet endangered craft of marionette making. Thanks to the support of many organisations who have invested in myself and Little Angel Theatre, including Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust (QEST), Heritage Crafts, and now The National Lottery Heritage Fund, we can finally work towards bringing this artform to life on stage as well as safeguarding it for the next generation of makers and audiences alike.”
Oliver Hyman, Associate Director

Publication

MARIONETTE: A DIY Guide to Making Your Own 9-String Puppet

To mark our 65th anniversary, Little Angel Theatre is publishing a book that’s a step-by-step guide to building your own 9-string marionette using nothing but basic hand tools. But its much more than that! It’s also a catalogue of some of the artists who’ve kept this craft alive across six decades, and essays about the craft and history. Contributions from Oliver Hymans, Sarah Wright and Stephen Mottram, alongside profiles of leading British marionette makers past and present.

£9.99 | Published by Social Art Publications | Launches 21 August 2026

Find out more

You can read our blog about putting the Marionette Heritage Project together here.

This project is supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to money raised by National Lottery players.

The Marionette Heritage Project is delivered with Applied Live Art Studio (ALAS) CIC.

Exhibition and publication artwork by Pablo Larrosa.