Baden Prince Jr & Workshop - Bermondsey Puppet & Storytelling Festival 2026

Free family drop-in craft with storytelling. Listen to an Anansi with Storyteller Baden Prince Jr then create your own tiger puppet and find out how to bring it to life!

Families can make their own fearsome Big Cat hand puppet with Frog Morris to bring to our finale event on 12 July. All materials are provided.

Storytelling is suitable for all ages and lasts 20 minutes. Storytimes: 12.30pm, 1.30pm and 2.30pm

All puppets made at this event can be used at at our grand finale celebration in Bermondsey Spa Gardens on 12th July. Put the date in your diary!

• Storytimes: 12.30pm, 1.30pm and 2.30pm
• Free drop-in puppet workshop 12pm - 3pm
• All ages and abilities welcome
• Disabled accessible
• Seating available
• Market open with places to eat and drink nearby
• Free activities every Saturday 16th May - 11th July
• Finale Event Bermondsey Spa Gardens on Sunday 12 July, 12–5pm

A new family-friendly community festival is coming to Bermondsey in summer 2026. Bermondsey Puppet & Story Fest will feature free puppetry and storytelling workshops across local schools, community venues and public spaces, leading to a lively outdoor celebration in Bermondsey Spa Gardens on Sunday 12 July, 12–5pm.

The finale will showcase community-made puppets alongside headline performances from internationally renowned storytellers including Usifu Jalloh, Emily Hanna, Marrianna Portello and Bernadette Russell.

Find out more:https://bermondsey.london/events/puppet-storytelling-festival-2026-bermondsey/

All events are free and open to all ages.

Supported by Blue Bermondsey BID, Connection With Wonder and Southwark Cultural Celebration Fund, the festival is brought to you by the team behind London Dreamtime Storytelling and Illuminate Bermondsey & Rotherhithe.

Baden Prince Jnr is a dynamic poet, performer and storyteller with decades of experience in live literature and an impressive reputation. His repertoire incorporates “traditional” tales from the Caribbean and all over the world, as well as original, self-penned material. As a writer and performer Baden engages reader and audience with a style that is warm, self-assured with an entertaining blend of insight and humour. https://antiguanherald.com/articles/2026/02/27/antiguan-born-poet-baden-prince-earns-honorary-literary-recognition-in-uk.html

Frog Morris has run regular family activities in The Blue since 2016, including Illuminate Bermondsey Lantern Procession.

Free public workshops and performances will take place across local venues and outdoor spaces, including weekly sessions at The Blue Market from May - July. Led by professional storytellers and puppeteers, these hands-on sessions invite people of all ages to create puppets, share stories and learn the techniques that bring puppetry and storytelling to life. Participants can contribute ideas and creations towards the final community celebration. No experience is needed — just curiosity and imagination. Take home your creations and then bring them along to Bermondsey Spa Gardens on Sunday 12 July 12 - 5pm and join in with our finale show!

The Blue, Market Place, South Bermondsey SE16 3UQ

By bus 1, 381, P12

By train South Bermondsey, Canada Water

By tube Bermondsey

By car Free Parking on St James Road Car Park (2 hour maximum). Free street parking available at weekends, please check signs carefully for local restrictions.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

The Blue Market Bermondsey, Market Place, London, United Kingdom

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