Page 3 Profile: Giant Grandmother, Marionette

Giant Grandmother, Marionette (AFP/Getty)

Wow Grandma – haven’t you grown!

If you go down to Liverpool today, you’re be sure of a big surprise. At 7.5m high, Grandma is one of three giants who are to spend the weekend roaming the city’s streets.

Giants… in Liverpool?

Grandma is a puppet who needs 26 people to move her. She, and her two companions Little Girl and Xolo, come in peace. They’re in town to tell the story of Liverpudlian soldiers who lost their lives during the First World War.

What’s she got planned?

After waking up from a rather undignified slumber in St George’s Hall, during which 20,000 visitors came for a gawp, Grandma went for a stroll along the waterfront before hot-footing it to Newsham Park. Today, the giants will head back into the city centre to see the sights.

Who’s pulling the strings?

The show is put on by French theatre company Royal de Luxe. Taking the spectacle to destinations as far-flung as the Chilean capital Santiago and remote Chinese provinces, director Jean-Luc Courcoult claims to have created “a race of sleeping giants, who can come to life at any time, anywhere”.

Have they been seen here before?

Yes. The show came to town in 2012 to commemorate the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic. It was the city’s most successful event ever, bringing £12m to the local economy.

What’s the story this time?

The details are under close wraps. But Royal de Luxe has revealed that the puppets have come to Liverpool to tell the story of the King’s Regiment, which was made up of local men, many of whom perished during the First World War. The story will culminate on Sunday with the three giants sailing away up the River Mersey. Surely, a sight to behold.