BAFTA award for puppet company (From Penarth Times)

BAFTA award for puppet company

A VALE company that designs and builds characters and props for television has won a BAFTA for Best Children's Programme.

Masquerade, which is is based in Sully, are experts at working with the Welsh channel S4C.

The programme that scooped the award is entitled Cawl Potsh, a kids programme that focuses on Celtic tales, and incorporates 70 different characters into the adventures.

The first series, which included thirteen episodes, has recently finished, and the second series, with another thirteen episodes, will be televised early next year.

Andy Bradshaw is part of the design team, but he also writes the series, which was filmed in Cardiff.

The company has a design team of ten, and twelve puppeteers are required to work on the programme.

He said that the recent series had taken four months to write, and six months to film.

The Washington Gallery is planning to hold a series of summer workshops, to allow people to make their own puppets, and Andy is set to attend some of them, to assist and give advice to the youngsters involved.

Emma Evans, who will be a tutor with the workshops, explained that people can spend their time making rod or shadow puppets, and there will be mask making going on as well.

She said that kids usually enjoy making the rod puppets with sticks the most, because they are fun to construct.

She added that at the end of the workshops, little shows will be put on by the children, so that they can show off their newly created puppets for all to see, which they can then keep.

The workshops start on Friday, August 23, and run for two weeks, up until September 2, from 10am to 12pm, including Saturdays, but there are no workshops held on Sundays.

Children have to be aged between five and 12 years, and the sessions cost £5 a day, with the two day workshops costing £10. For further information telephone 029 20712100.