Puppet Maker Peter Firmin to Get Special Honor at BAFTA Children’s Awards

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts said Tuesday that Peter Firmin, TV illustrator, puppet maker and co-creator of such popular U.K. kids TV programs as The Clangers and Bagpuss, will receive its Special Award at this year’s British Academy Children’s Awards.

The event will take place on Nov. 23 at The Roundhouse in Camden, London.

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The Special Award recognizes an individual’s outstanding contribution to children’s media and the entertainment industry. The award will be presented by Bernard Cribbins with a special introduction by Monty Python member Michael Palin.‎ In 2013, a new version of The Clangers was announced, with Palin providing the narration and Firmin serving as an executive producer.

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“Peter Firmin helped lay the foundations for the industry we see today, all from his small barn in Blean,” said Harvey Elliott, chairman of BAFTA’s children’s committee. “His legacy is delighting and enchanting a whole new generation with the upcoming remake of family favorite The Clangers. Over the past 50 years, Peter’s work has thrilled, entertained and inspired generations of filmmakers and animators.”

Firmin studied at London’s Central School of Art & Design. With long-term collaborator Oliver Postgate, he created children’s TV programs The Saga of Noggin the Nog, The Clangers, Ivor The Engine, Pogles’ Wood and Bagpuss.

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Firmin said: “I’m delighted to receive this Special Award from BAFTA. I first worked with Oliver Postgate in 1958 on what was originally meant to be a six-week series. In a television world hungry for new ideas, this developed into a 50-year partnership; a partnership which opened up the world of television to us and allowed us to explore new ways of telling stories to generations of children.”

He added: “Television has changed and developed beyond anything we could have dreamt of in the years before color and digital and computer chips with everything, so it is touching that our work is still remembered with such affection. I’m honored that our work, and that of everyone who contributed to it, is being honored with this accolade.”

Email: Georg.Szalai@THR.com
Twitter: @georgszalai