Toby Philpott facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Toby Philpott
Born	(1946-02-14) 14 February 1946 (age 79) London, England
Occupation	Clown, juggler, library technician, puppeteer, teacher, street performer
Known for	The Dark Crystal, Return of the Jedi, The Company of Wolves, Labyrinth, Little Shop of Horrors, Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Toby Philpott (born February 14, 1946) is an English puppeteer. He is famous for his work with animatronics in movies during the 1980s. These films include The Dark Crystal and Return of the Jedi.

Toby came from a family of performers. He left school and traveled the world in the 1960s. He earned money by being a street performer. His acts included juggling, fire eating, magic shows, clowning, and acrobatics. His film career began when Jim Henson chose him to work on the 1982 fantasy film The Dark Crystal. Toby worked closely with Jim Henson on this project.

The next year, Toby was asked to be one of the puppeteers for Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi. Toby controlled Jabba's left arm, head, tongue, and body. He also used his puppetry skills in other movies. These include The Company of Wolves (1984), Labyrinth (1986), Little Shop of Horrors (1986), and Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). After these films, he left the movie business. Toby Philpott describes himself as "a street juggler that got lucky."

Toby Philpott's Early Life and Journey

Growing Up and Discovering Performance

Toby Philpott during his childhood

Toby Philpott was born in London, England, on February 14, 1946. His family was full of performers and teachers. His father, A. R. Philpott, was a well-known puppeteer. He was also a writer and teacher about puppets. Toby's mother, Sheila Moriarty, was a singer and actress. She taught voice lessons and Shakespearian speaking.

From a young age, Toby loved performing arts, especially magic. He also became interested in puppetry. This was partly from reading his father's diary about using puppets during the Great Depression in the 1930s. However, his parents did not want him to become a performer.

In the 1960s, Toby joined the youth movement. He had strong feelings about money and capitalism. Toby left school and started traveling the world. He lived a "Bohemian" and "gypsy" life. In his late teens, he worked at archaeological sites and odd jobs at fairgrounds. By 1967, at age 21, he often stayed on other people's floors in London. He earned money by juggling on the streets.

Becoming a Street Performer

In the late 1960s, Toby worked at nightclubs in Soho, London. He met many musicians and performers there. He also continued working on archaeological digs. In 1970, he lived in Paris, France. He sold jewelry on the streets and lived in an atelier (a workshop). He spent two years visiting the United States and Mexico.

Toby returned to London in 1972. He went to a Le Grand Magic Circus show. This show made him want to perform again. He tried to join the circus in Paris but was not hired. He came back to the United Kingdom, determined to perform for a living. While juggling outside a theater, he was found by John and Crissie Trigger. They ran a traveling entertainment company called The Raree Show.

Toby Philpott in 1968, during a mining job at Sandal Castle in Wakefield, West Yorkshire.

For several years, Toby traveled and performed. He worked with Raree and did solo shows. He performed in places like Liverpool, Sweden, Germany, Mexico, and the United States. His acts included juggling, magic, fire eating, acrobatics, unicycling, and clowning. He performed in schools, theatres, Medieval festivals, and on children's television. He also taught theater workshops for children.

In the mid-1970s, Toby lived in London. He continued traveling across Europe as a street performer. He used props he made himself and invented his own tricks. He performed at places like the Royal Opera House. Toby also joined different fringe theatre groups. He learned stage management and other "techie stuff" at a cultural center in Amsterdam. He enjoyed learning "how things were done."

Toby Philpott's Film Career

Starting Animatronics Work

Toby Philpott's father passed away in 1978. This made Toby want to work more with others. His first movie experience was in the 1981 film Quest for Fire. He and other students from a mime class played neanderthals. He was later dropped from the film. But this experience showed him a new path in entertainment.

In 1981, his mime teacher told him about an audition. It was for acrobats, mimes, and dancers for The Dark Crystal. This 1982 fantasy film was directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz. The Dark Crystal used amazing animatronics. This is when electronics and robotics make puppets seem alive. The audition looked for different performers. This was because no one knew what skills would be needed for this new art form.

Toby saw this film as a chance to use his performing skills in a "new and exciting field." He felt he could learn from the audition even if he didn't get the job. He was chosen from about 200 people. Toby went through workshops that taught basic puppetry. He was among the 10 people chosen to work on the film. Jim Henson himself was very involved in choosing the team. Toby described Henson as "the nicest millionaire I ever met." Toby had some back problems, so he joined the second team of six. They worked on the film in the spring of 1982. Before filming, Toby learned lip-synch and practiced with different puppets.

Working on The Dark Crystal

Toby Philpott juggling.

The work for The Dark Crystal happened at Jim Henson's Creature Shop. Toby Philpott trained in bodywork and puppeteering. He worked with early versions of the puppet characters. Each main puppeteer was given a team. They worked on the eyes, eyebrows, and arms of specific puppets. Jim Henson chose Toby and Robbie Barnett for his support team. Toby often controlled the right arm of the characters Jim Henson animated.

Filming took place at Elstree Studios. Toby and his team often had quick run-throughs before filming. This was because Jim Henson was very busy. The teams worked hard to make the puppets move and act together. They experimented a lot and watched video playback to improve. Toby said Jim Henson was very patient. He never got angry when Toby made mistakes.

Toby's main character in The Dark Crystal was urTih the Alchemist. He was one of the urRu. Toby said this was his favorite character to puppet. He also played other characters like the Garthim and Pod People. Toby felt the puppet designs helped him prepare for the roles. He found peace while wearing the tall Mystic suits. The suits for the large Garthims made the actors feel "wired up and raring to go." The puppeteers needed honest feedback from each other and the filmmakers. It was hard to know how they looked while wearing the suits.

Toby's most disappointing moment was on the first day of filming. He played a mystic in a scene. The costume's jaw was stuck open. No one told Toby, and he was unhappy with how it looked in the movie. Still, Toby said the team was "very happy and engaged." The techniques were so new that he had a lot of hands-on involvement. This was not matched in his later movies.

His Role in Return of the Jedi

While working on The Dark Crystal, rumors spread. People said alien characters for Return of the Jedi were being made at the same studio. Many puppeteers wanted to work on that film. David Barclay, who built puppets for The Dark Crystal, was chosen for the huge Jabba the Hutt puppet. He asked for Toby Philpott to be his partner. Toby was surprised by the job offer and happily accepted.

Barclay was the main Jabba puppeteer. He planned all the movements. Toby controlled Jabba's left arm. With this arm, he made Jabba eat frogs, smoke a Hookah pipe, and grab Bib Fortuna and C-3PO. Toby also used his right hand to control Jabba's tongue and head. He moved Jabba's body by swiveling his seat with his legs. Cables allowed him to move the head and make Jabba's mouth snarl.

A blueprint of the Jabba the Hutt puppet from Return of the Jedi.

The rest of the puppet team included Barclay on the right arm and mouth. Mike Edmonds controlled the tail. John Coppinger controlled the eyes with a remote. He also gave feedback to the others. Toby said sitting inside the Jabba puppet with Barclay was "like a two-man submarine." It was very hot, cramped, and uncomfortable. A monitor inside showed a general view of Jabba. This helped the puppeteers, but they couldn't see the exact camera shot. The team relied on each other's feedback. Their training with Jim Henson helped them work together.

Toby and Barclay stayed inside the puppet for almost the entire nine-and-a-half hours of filming each day. Other cast and crew members didn't even know who they were during breaks. They rarely left the suit. They preferred to stay in character. Toby and Barclay took direction while in character. Director Richard Marquand talked to Jabba as if the puppet was a real actor. They talked back as if the puppet itself was performing.

It took about three weeks to film the Jabba's Palace scenes. Another week was spent on the Sail Barge scenes. Toby and the puppeteers had few problems. This was thanks to the great design work by Phil Tippett, Stuart Freeborn, and John Coppinger. Toby's experience with The Dark Crystal prepared him for Jabba. He said the experience was "great fun." He enjoyed being the center of attention among many puppets and actors.

In the scene where Princess Leia meets Jabba, the director asked Toby to try to lick Carrie Fisher's face. Toby was hesitant because the tongue, covered in jelly, was hard to control. But the director convinced him. During the attempt, Toby accidentally poked the tongue into Fisher's ear. This caused a stir on set. Toby didn't know what happened until he came out of the costume.

The short scene where Jabba eats frogs took several tries. It was hard for Toby to reach Jabba's mouth with the left arm. They first tried a real frog, but it kept escaping. The last scene Toby filmed was Jabba's death. He and the other puppeteers "trashed around and went crazy." Toby said once Carrie Fisher realized she couldn't hurt them, "she really went for it." Toby described actor Harrison Ford as "funny." He said actress Carrie Fisher was playful but also a bit annoyed by her long contract. Actor Mark Hamill was "a bit insecure." Like most small actors in the original Star Wars movies, Toby was paid a one-time fee in 1983. He does not receive ongoing payments for his work in the film.

More Film Work: Labyrinth and Little Shop of Horrors

Toby Philpott was president of the International Jugglers' Association from 1982 to 1983. He also did animatronic work for the 1984 film, The Company of Wolves. By 1985, Toby was out of work and needed money. He called The Jim Henson Company to ask about jobs. He had missed the audition for Jim Henson's new movie, Labyrinth. But Toby was immediately called in for a job.

Toby Philpott juggling.

Toby operated several characters in Labyrinth. He played a goblin puppet sitting at the throne of Jareth the Goblin King (played by David Bowie). He also played one of the Fireys. These are wild goblins with body parts that come apart. Toby controlled different body parts with puppeteers Kevin Clash and David Barclay. He also controlled the eyes of the Junk Lady character. And he was one of the many hands of the Helping Hands. These were hand-shaped goblins that came out of walls. They worked together to make talking faces.

Toby's favorite memory from Labyrinth was taking his six-year-old son, Keili, on a tour of the Goblin Village set. Toby did not enjoy working on Labyrinth much. He had a back injury from playing soccer before getting the job. The strain of puppeteering caused him great pain. He tried different ways to heal but nothing worked. His back problem was solved by a clinic in London. The therapy was so good that Toby could walk up a mountain in Spain after filming. He went there to organize a juggling convention.

Toby Philpott was also called to work on the 1986 Frank Oz film Little Shop of Horrors. He was part of a team that operated the animatronic plant. This plant in the movie eats human blood. The plant's limbs were moved by gimbals. Toby controlled the plant's right-hand leaf. He said this was "quite heavy work." Toby also learned to be a backup for the puppeteers who moved the plant's lips. The plant grew bigger throughout the movie. In its largest form, Toby controlled one of its tentacles. However, that part was cut from the movie. Audiences didn't like the ending where the plant ate all the main characters. Filmmakers made a new, happier ending. Toby was out of town and couldn't work on the new scenes.

Leaving the Film Industry

Toby Philpott auditioned for Return to Oz (1985). This was a follow-up to The Wizard of Oz. Toby was almost chosen for the film. But for reasons he didn't know, he didn't get the job. Toby's film career mostly ended in the late 1980s. He said this was due to changes in the film industry. Animatronics were becoming less common. Also, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher stopped giving tax breaks to films. This made foreign film productions leave the United Kingdom. He also felt that after Jim Henson died in 1990, a younger staff took over. This broke his ties with the Jim Henson Company.

Toby went through a difficult time in his life. He was working at a circus school and teaching juggling. He met people who started their own traveling circus company in 1986, called the Nofit State Circus. Toby left the school to join NoFit. At first, he helped set up the big top tent. He found that building and taking down the tent drew crowds. He later became a stage manager and performed with the circus. He traveled with them for several summer tours until the mid-1990s.

A Brief Return for Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Toby Philpott (back, middle) with the other Who Framed Roger Rabbit puppeteers, including Star Wars alums David Barclay (front, middle) and Mike Quinn (front, right).

Toby Philpott briefly returned to movies for the 1988 film, Who Framed Roger Rabbit. This comedy combined live-action film with animation. David Barclay put together a team of puppeteers for the movie. He contacted Toby, who was living in Spain at the time. Toby became one of six puppeteers. They were a "troubleshooting team." They handled simple puppet tasks with real objects. These were things the SFX crew couldn't or didn't want to do. The other puppeteers were Barclay, Ian Tregonning, Christopher Leith, Geoff Felix, and Mike Quinn. Mike Quinn had played characters like Nien Nunb in Return of the Jedi.

Toby and the puppet crew used strings to move objects. These included items handled by cartoon characters. For example, they moved things an octopus bartender scuffled. Or the gun aimed at actor Bob Hoskins by a weasel character. Other tasks were simple, like wobbling boxes where cartoon characters stood. In a scene where Roger Rabbit flushes himself down a toilet, Toby spent an afternoon under the fake toilet. He used an invisible string to pull the flusher. He spun around to make water come up from the bowl. Barclay said the experience was fun. But he felt the computer-effects crew didn't take the puppeteers seriously. He sensed that his art form was fading. He knew he probably wouldn't work in movies again. However, Toby did appear as a juggler in the background of the 1989 romantic comedy The Tall Guy.

Later Life and Reflections

Toby Philpott and John Coppinger, Jabba the Hutt sculptor.

In August 1997, Toby Philpott took part in a public art show. It was called The X-Factor: Close Encounters of a Different Kind. Toby played Norman Nesbitt, a geeky man who believed UFOs contacted him. He was in a room full of maps, cardboard spaceships, and notebooks. Other characters included his girlfriend and "Men in White Coats." Toby was not paid for this one-day, improvised performance.

In December 1997, after more than 30 years of working for himself, Toby Philpott took a job. He became a library technician at Cardiff Central Library. He helps with information technology and computer support. Toby said this was a logical step for him. He realized it was needed to stay employed in the new century. He said, "Finding Jabba the Hutt working in a library is no more unusual than the rest of my life."

Toby is on the board of the NoFit State Circus. He is also a long-term student at the Maybe Logic Academy. This is an online study group. Toby is still known for his animatronics work, especially for Return of the Jedi. He attends science fiction conventions to meet fans and sign autographs. He said he didn't know how big the Star Wars fanbase was until he started using the Internet in 1999. Years later, Toby Philpott described himself as "a street juggler that got lucky." He has thought about writing a book about his life. In November 2007, Toby wrote a 50,000-word novel in one month. This was part of a writing project. The book, Foolproof, is about young people living in modern Spain.

Jabba the Hutt sculptor John Coppinger with Jabba puppeteers Mike Edmonds, David Barclay and Toby Philpott at a Star Wars fan convention.

After the 1997 A New Hope re-release, Toby said he didn't like the new animated Jabba the Hutt. This Jabba was in a scene that was cut before. He was interested in computer-generated imagery (CGI). But he was sad about the increased use of computer animation instead of animatronics. Toby didn't completely dislike CGI. He thought it looked good in Steven Spielberg's 1994 film, Jurassic Park. However, he felt puppetry and animatronics often looked more real. He said they were better than the "slick hyper-reality" of some computer effects. He believes puppeteers can improvise and interact with actors. CGI images cannot do this. Toby later admitted that the animated Jabbas in the 2004 Return of the Jedi DVD and the 1999 The Phantom Menace were much better.

Toby Philpott lives with his long-time girlfriend, the artist Julie Shackson. He has a son named Keili and a daughter named Yo. Yo has a daughter named Matilda, who is Toby's granddaughter. Toby's favorite band is The Grateful Dead. His favorite books include The Illuminatus! Trilogy and Catch-22. His favorite writers are Kurt Vonnegut and Robert Anton Wilson.

Filmography