Marcus Clarke (puppeteer)
Encyclopedia
Marcus Clarke is a puppeteer and voice actor from Nottinghamshire
. He is best known as the puppeteer and voice actor behind the BAFTA
-winning ITV Kids series Bookaboo
and the principle puppeteer of Audrey II in the 1986 version of Little Shop of Horrors. Clarke has worked as a puppeteer in over 60 television series and has created a similar number of puppets. Clarke was also a puppeteer and voice actor in two Muppet feature films and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?.
before being settled in West Bridgford
, Nottinghamshire where he left West Bridgford School
, his local Comprehensive School
with no qualifications. After a series of jobs behind the scenes in theatres, he became Stage Manager in a West End
production of Little Shop Of Horrors
, where he looked after Audrey II - the giant plant. He became interested in the Art of Puppetry. Clarke went on to audition for Jim Henson
's TV Puppeteering Workshop, where he befriended Brian Henson
.
Inspired in part by Henson, he and his partner, Helena Smee, formed a puppet creation company, "Hands Up Puppets", in 1986. To date, they have created more than 60 puppets and worked as puppeteers on a similar number of UK television series.
, 2009 BAFTA-award winning Kids TV Series has Clarke Puppeteering a "rock puppy" who is unable to play the drums before one of his friends has read him a story. Designed to back the 2008 National Year of Reading campaign, Bookaboo's friends are celebrities such as Meat Loaf
and David Seaman
. Since 2009, Clarke has been working on new projects, teaching puppetry classes and working with charities. He created a short film with young people at Clayfields House, a secure children's home in Stapleford
Clarke is also on the Board of Funny Wonders Inc. CIC Co-Organisers of the Buxton Puppet Festival.
s for Pre-school Live Action. The first was in 2004 for PJ's Storytime and the second in 2009 for Bookaboo
. Bookaboo went on to win Best Children's Programme at the Broadcast Awards. and its Catogory at the Prix Jeuness International. Clarke was also Milky Cat in The Christmas Milkshake Show nominated in the same category in 2009. The young people in Clarke's Puppet Film Clayfields House won two writing awards from the Koestler Trust
and he has been listed as one of the "Prominent people in Nottinghamshire" in 2010 at the Nottinghamshire Archives.
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
. He is best known as the puppeteer and voice actor behind the BAFTA
British Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
-winning ITV Kids series Bookaboo
Bookaboo
Bookaboo is a British children's television series for young children created and produced by Lucy Goodman of Happy Films, co-directed by Lucy with Ian Emes and commissioned by Emma Tennant for CITV. The 26 episode show features puppets, celebrities, picture books, songs and animation...
and the principle puppeteer of Audrey II in the 1986 version of Little Shop of Horrors. Clarke has worked as a puppeteer in over 60 television series and has created a similar number of puppets. Clarke was also a puppeteer and voice actor in two Muppet feature films and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?.
History
Marcus Clarke was born in Forest Gate, East London. He spent several years in Canada, Care and in Orphanages NCHNCH
Action for Children is a national children’s charity in the United Kingdom that supports and speaks out for the most vulnerable and neglected children, young people, families and their communities....
before being settled in West Bridgford
West Bridgford
West Bridgford is a town in the Rushcliffe borough of Nottinghamshire, England. It lies immediately south of the city of Nottingham, delimited by the River Trent; this proximity means that it forms a continuous urban area with Nottingham, effectively makes West Bridgford a suburb of the city, and...
, Nottinghamshire where he left West Bridgford School
West Bridgford School
The West Bridgford School & Specialist Technology Academy is a co-educational Comprehensive school in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England,-About the school:* It used to be a grammar school.* The school operates a two week timetable system....
, his local Comprehensive School
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
with no qualifications. After a series of jobs behind the scenes in theatres, he became Stage Manager in a West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
production of Little Shop Of Horrors
Little Shop of Horrors (musical)
Little Shop of Horrors is a rock musical, by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman, about a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood. The musical is based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Roger Corman...
, where he looked after Audrey II - the giant plant. He became interested in the Art of Puppetry. Clarke went on to audition for Jim Henson
Jim Henson
James Maury "Jim" Henson was an American puppeteer best known as the creator of The Muppets. As a puppeteer, Henson performed in various television programs, such as Sesame Street and The Muppet Show, films such as The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper, and created advanced puppets for...
's TV Puppeteering Workshop, where he befriended Brian Henson
Brian Henson
Brian Henson is an Academy Award-winning puppeteer, director, producer, and technician. The son of puppeteers Jane and Jim Henson, Brian was born in New York City, New York....
.
Inspired in part by Henson, he and his partner, Helena Smee, formed a puppet creation company, "Hands Up Puppets", in 1986. To date, they have created more than 60 puppets and worked as puppeteers on a similar number of UK television series.
Recent work
BookabooBookaboo
Bookaboo is a British children's television series for young children created and produced by Lucy Goodman of Happy Films, co-directed by Lucy with Ian Emes and commissioned by Emma Tennant for CITV. The 26 episode show features puppets, celebrities, picture books, songs and animation...
, 2009 BAFTA-award winning Kids TV Series has Clarke Puppeteering a "rock puppy" who is unable to play the drums before one of his friends has read him a story. Designed to back the 2008 National Year of Reading campaign, Bookaboo's friends are celebrities such as Meat Loaf
Meat Loaf
Michael Lee Aday , better known by his stage name, Meat Loaf, is an American hard rock musician and actor...
and David Seaman
David Seaman
David Andrew Seaman MBE is a former English football goalkeeper who played for several clubs, most notably Arsenal. He retired from the game on 13 January 2004, following a recurring shoulder injury...
. Since 2009, Clarke has been working on new projects, teaching puppetry classes and working with charities. He created a short film with young people at Clayfields House, a secure children's home in Stapleford
Stapleford
Stapleford can refer to a number of locations in England:*Stapleford Abbotts*Stapleford Tawney**Stapleford Aerodrome*Stapleford, Cambridgeshire*Stapleford, Devon*Stapleford, Hampshire*Stapleford, Hertfordshire*Stapleford, Leicestershire...
Clarke is also on the Board of Funny Wonders Inc. CIC Co-Organisers of the Buxton Puppet Festival.
Awards
Clarke has been nominated for and won a number of awards, including two BAFTABritish Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
s for Pre-school Live Action. The first was in 2004 for PJ's Storytime and the second in 2009 for Bookaboo
Bookaboo
Bookaboo is a British children's television series for young children created and produced by Lucy Goodman of Happy Films, co-directed by Lucy with Ian Emes and commissioned by Emma Tennant for CITV. The 26 episode show features puppets, celebrities, picture books, songs and animation...
. Bookaboo went on to win Best Children's Programme at the Broadcast Awards. and its Catogory at the Prix Jeuness International. Clarke was also Milky Cat in The Christmas Milkshake Show nominated in the same category in 2009. The young people in Clarke's Puppet Film Clayfields House won two writing awards from the Koestler Trust
Koestler Trust
The Koestler Trust or award scheme,is a charity which helps prison inmates and detained psychiatric patients in the UK to express themselves creatively. The trust promotes the arts in special institutions, encouraging creativity and the acquisition of new skills as a means to rehabilitation...
and he has been listed as one of the "Prominent people in Nottinghamshire" in 2010 at the Nottinghamshire Archives.
Film
| Year | Role | Film |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Audrey II principal puppeteer | Little Shop Of Horrors |
| 1988 | Various puppeteering | Who Framed Roger Rabbit? |
| 1992 | Additional Muppet performer (voice), Various puppeteering | The Muppet Christmas Carol The Muppet Christmas Carol The Muppet Christmas Carol is a 1992 musical comedy film adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, starring Michael Caine as Ebenezer Scrooge, directed by Brian Henson, produced by The Jim Henson Company, and released by Walt Disney Pictures... |
| 1996 | Additional Muppet performer (voice), Various puppeteering | Muppet Treasure Island Muppet Treasure Island Muppet Treasure Island is a 1996 American musical film based on Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. It is the fifth feature film to star The Muppets and was directed by Jim Henson's son Brian Henson.... |
Television
| Year | Character | Show | Location/Company |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Devil | The Storyteller | The Jim Henson Company The Jim Henson Company The Jim Henson Company, an American entertainment organization, traces its origins to the founding of Muppets, Inc. in 1958 by puppeteer Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets. The Muppets helped the company gain worldwide acclaim in family entertainment for more than four decades... |
| 1987 | Ultragorgan, little Gorgan | Monster Maker | The Jim Henson Company The Jim Henson Company The Jim Henson Company, an American entertainment organization, traces its origins to the founding of Muppets, Inc. in 1958 by puppeteer Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets. The Muppets helped the company gain worldwide acclaim in family entertainment for more than four decades... |
| 1988 | Dog | Playbox | Ragdoll Productions Ragdoll Productions Ragdoll Productions is a UK company that produces children's television shows. It was founded in 1984 by Anne Wood, who later devised many of their television series, seen in 111 countries and translated into 41 languages.Before 1984, Ragdoll's founder Anne Wood made children's programmes for... |
| 1989 | Hotdog | Hotdog/Treasure Box | Thames Television Thames Television Thames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992.... |
| 1990 | Dapple, Millie, Stubble | Dappledown Farm Dappledown Farm Dappledown Farm was a British children's television programme, starring Brian Cant and a series of puppets.-Puppet characters:Puppet characters in the show included: Dapple the Horse, Mabel the Cow, Stubble and Straw, the two mice, Columbus the Cockerel, Lucky Ducky, Colin the Coot, Millie the Moor... |
Clear Idea Television |
| 1991 | Crabtree | Tricky Business | BBC Television BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television... |
| 1995 | Void the Android, Hopper, Dreeb | Children's Channel On-Air Presentation | Starstream Productions |
| 1996 | Sid | WoW | ITV ITV ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK... |
| 1997 | Venus | Venus on the Hard Drive | Fox Broadcasting Company Fox Broadcasting Company Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the... |
| 1997 | Johnny Chimes | Here's Johnny Chimes | NBC NBC The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago... |
| 1998 | Buzz | Dottie and Buzz | Prospect Pictures Prospect Pictures Prospect Pictures is an independent TV production company specializing in factual programming from daytime features to cinema documentaries.Founded in 1988, Prospect built its reputation through being one of the UK ’s largest suppliers of lifestyle and cookery programming, most notably with ITV1's... |
| 1999 | Patch | Tickle Patch and Friends Series 1 | Channel 5 (UK) |
| 1999 | Bird | Tenth Kingdom | Carnival Films Carnival Films Carnival Films is a British television production company, founded by Brian Eastman in 1978 as Picture Partnership Productions Limited and run by Gareth Neame since 2005. The company swiftly built up a strong reputation as an independent production company of theatre, film and television drama... |
| 1999 | Bag | Big Bag | Sesame Workshop Sesame Workshop Sesame Workshop, formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop , is a Worldwide American non-profit organization behind the production of several educational children's programs that have run on public broadcasting around the world... |
| 2000 | Doogy Dog | Smarteenies | CBeebies CBeebies CBeebies is the brand used by the BBC for programming aimed at children 6 years and under. It is used as a themed strand in the UK on terrestrial television, as a separate free-to-air domestic British channel and used for international varients supported by advertising, subscription or both... |
| 2000 | Bird | 10th Kingdom | |
| 2003 | Cosy | The Softies | Channel 5 (UK) |
| 2003 | PJ | PJ's Bedtime | Playhouse Disney Playhouse Disney Playhouse Disney was Disney Channel's television block for programs aimed at entertaining preschool aged children, often airing as its own channel outside the United States. It was introduced in 1997 after Disney Channel's move to basic cable from premium cable, with a target audience of children... |
| 2003 | Dusty | A House That's Just Like Yours | Channel 5 (UK) |
| 2004 | PJ | PJ's Storytime | Playhouse Disney Playhouse Disney Playhouse Disney was Disney Channel's television block for programs aimed at entertaining preschool aged children, often airing as its own channel outside the United States. It was introduced in 1997 after Disney Channel's move to basic cable from premium cable, with a target audience of children... |
| 2005 | Mr.Flapper | Sandy and Mr. Flapper | Two Hand Productions |
| 2005 | Patch | Christmas Milkshake | Channel 5 (UK) |
| 2005 | Ant Vent | Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway | Granada Television Granada Television Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful.... |
| 2006–2007 | Patch | Tickle Patch and Friends 1 & 2 | Two Hand Productions |
| 2007–2008 | Milky | The Milkshake Show | Channel 5 (UK) |
| 2008, 2010 | Bookaboo Bookaboo Bookaboo is a British children's television series for young children created and produced by Lucy Goodman of Happy Films, co-directed by Lucy with Ian Emes and commissioned by Emma Tennant for CITV. The 26 episode show features puppets, celebrities, picture books, songs and animation... |
Bookaboo Bookaboo Bookaboo is a British children's television series for young children created and produced by Lucy Goodman of Happy Films, co-directed by Lucy with Ian Emes and commissioned by Emma Tennant for CITV. The 26 episode show features puppets, celebrities, picture books, songs and animation... (series 1 and 2) |
ITV ITV ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK... |
| 2009 | Producer Director and Performer | Clayfields House Film | |
| 2009 | Body Guard, Minder, Bouncer, Heavy | This Morning | ITV ITV ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK... |
| 2009 | Salty Ticketmaster | Monkey | Channel 5 (UK) |
| 2010 | Puppetry Consultant | BBC Learning Zone | GameLab London GameLab London Gamelab London is an enterprise and action research initiative of London Metropolitan University Department of Computing. Their directors are all senior or principal lecturers in the department's multimedia group, and all three have previous careers and on-going consultancy roles in industry... |