Peter Firmin

Peter Firmin
Peter Arthur Firmin (11 December 1928 – 1 July 2018) was an English artist and puppet maker. He was the founder of Smallfilms, along with Oliver Postgate. Between them they created a number of popular children's TV programmes, The Saga of Noggin the Nog, Ivor the Engine, Clangers, Bagpuss and Pogles' Wood.
Early life
Born in Harwich, Essex, in 1928, Peter Firmin trained at the Colchester School of Art in Colchester. After National Service in the Royal Navy, he attended Central School of Art and Design in London from 1949–1952. He worked in a stained glass studio, as an illustrator and as a lecturer.
It was while he was teaching at Central School of Art that Oliver Postgate came looking for, as Firmin put it: "... someone to illustrate a television story – someone who was hard up and would do a lot of drawing for very little money". Postgate and Firmin went on to form Smallfilms.
Career
Firmin was best known as half of the Smallfilms production company, active from 1958 to the late 1980s. Most of Smallfilms' animation work was produced in a barn on Firmin's land in Blean near Canterbury in Kent. Firmin made the sets, puppets and backdrops for the programmes, often also contributing to making sound and visual effects during filming.
In addition to his work with Oliver Postgate, Firmin made other puppets and children's programmes. In 1959, with his wife Joan, he devised a programme of nursery rhymes for Associated-Rediffusion, called The Musical Box, which used live cardboard animation and puppets. It was presented by Rolf Harris and then by Wally Whyton.
In 1961, ITV commissioned another puppet. Olly Beak was a little owl made of chicken feathers stuck into a crocheted body. He appeared on Smalltime, and was joined in 1962 by Fred Barker (a shaggy dog made for Postgate/Firmin 1961 production The Dog Watch) and in 1963 by Whiffles, an otter puppet, and Penelope, another owl.
With Ivan Owen, Firmin co-created the TV puppet Basil Brush in 1962. He made the first puppet for The Three Scampies, using a real fox brush, lending the correct name for a fox’s tail to the puppet character.
For the UK's Decimal Day (15 February 1971), Muskit reappeared with Firmin and made a trip to the shops in a BBC TV schools' programme.
Firmin continued to work as an illustrator. He wrote and illustrated many books of Smallfilms characters, as well as children's books of his own devising and books for adults including Vita Sackville-West's poetry and Seeing Things, Postgate's autobiography.
Printmaker
Firmin, having retired from TV production, produced engravings and linocuts.
Noggin stamp
In 1994, Firmin provided an illustration for a British postage stamp, SG1804, featuring characters from Noggin the Nog. It was one of a set featuring characters from British children's literature. He produced further illustrations for the advertising campaign to publicise the stamps.
Recognition
He was awarded an honorary MA by the University of Kent on 17 July 1987 and an Honorary degree from the University of Essex in 2012. In 2011 Firmin was awarded the Freedom of the City of Canterbury in recognition of his "outstanding work".
He received the BAFTA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014.
Between 12 May and 29 July 2018, Firmin's work was featured in the exhibition Clangers, Bagpuss & Co, organised by the V&A Museum of Childhood at the Ferens Art Gallery in Hull.
Personal life
Firmin was married to Joan, who knitted the Clangers from vibrant pink wool. They met at the Central School of Art and Design in London, where Joan was studying bookbinding. They were married in 1952 and lived in London until moving to Kent in 1959. They had six daughters: One, Emily, appeared in the opening sequence of Bagpuss.
The Firmins lived on the farm in Blean, Kent, where Smallfilms produced their programmes.
Firmin died on 1 July 2018 at his home in Kent after a short illness at the age of 89. All the new episodes of Clangers made after this date were dedicated to his memory - the epitaph "In loving memory of Peter Firmin" can be seen at the end of the credits of these episodes.
Publications
Basil Brush Goes Flying, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Issue 8 of Edmund Ward Starting to Read Books) (Kaye & Ward Limited, 1969)
Stanley, the tale of the Lizard, Peter Meteyard; illustrated by Peter Firmin (Andre Deutsch, 1979)
The Last of the Dragons, E. Nesbit; illustrated by Peter Firmin (Macdonald, 1980)
Melisande, E. Nesbit; illustrated by Peter Firmin (MacDonald, 1980)
The Winter Diary of a Country Rat, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Kaye and Ward, 1981)
Chicken Stew, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Pelham Books, 1982)
Tricks & Tales, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Kaye and Ward, 1982)
The Midsummer Notebook of a Country Rat, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Kaye and Ward, 1983)
Pinny and the Bird and other Pinny tales, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Andre Deutsch, 1985)
Pinny and the Floppy Frog Pinny's Party , written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Andre Deutsch, 1987)
My Dog Sandy, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Andre Deutsch, 1988)
Making Faces, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Collins Pic- Lions Publishing, 1988)
Ziggy and the Ice Ogre, Chris Powling, illustrated by Peter Firmin (Heinemann, 1988)
The Jenius, Dick King Smith, illustrated by Peter Firmin (Victor Gollancz, 1988)
Nina's Machines, written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (A & C Black, 1988)
Boastful Mr Bear , Happy Miss Rat , Hungry Mr Fox , Foolish Miss Crow , written and illustrated by Peter Firmin (Bolitha Press & Dell of NY, 1989)
The Land and the Garden, Vita Sackville-West, illustrated by Peter Firmin (Webb & Bower, 1989)
Seeing Things: An Autobiography, Oliver Postgate; illustrated by Peter Firmin, 2000
References
External links
Peter Firmin at the British Film Institute
Article from Something about the Author (Volume 58) about Peter Firmin
The Smallfilms Treasury
The Dragons' Friendly Society
1928 births
2018 deaths
People from Harwich
Alumni of the Central School of Art and Design
English animators
British animated film producers
English illustrators
People from Blean