The innate kindness of Harry Corbett – the inventor of children’s puppet Sooty – has come to light thanks to the discovery of a set of vintage Sooty, Sweep and Soo TV puppets.
They were given to a brother and sister whose mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in the early 1970s. Not only that, Corbett put on personal Sooty shows to entertain the youngsters when they were aged around four and six in 1974 – at their house.
Now, more than 40 years later, the puppets, which are thought to date back to the 1960s, are set to be sold at Derbyshire’s Hansons Auctioneers in November with a guide price of £5,000-£7,000.
The people who reaped the benefits of Harry’s kindness decades ago are retail business owner Vicky Golding, 49, and her brother Max Jowett, 51, a retired police officer, who both live north of Leeds.
They believe Harry Corbett reached out to help their family due to their mother’s illness and the fact that he knew their father well.
Mrs Golding, a mother of two, said: “My father, Derek Jowett, was Harry Corbett’s independent financial advisor for many years and they became good friends. I think they got to know each other in the 1960s. I have a photo of them together.
“We lived in Otley, West Yorkshire, and Harry lived in nearby Guiseley. My dad earned a good reputation as a financial expert and worked with a few people connected to the showbiz industry. I also met Harry’s son, Matthew Corbett.
“I remember Harry coming to our house in Otley and entertaining us with Sooty shows. Knowing dad so well, he must have been touched by our plight. Max and I were only small when mum became poorly.
“He also gave us a set of vintage puppets. I played with Soo all the time. Max used to play with Sooty a lot. Sweep got a bit left out. Harry told us the puppets had been on the Sooty TV show.
“I was only nine and my brother was 11 when we lost our mum, Jackie Jowett, to breast cancer. She was diagnosed with the illness in her late 30s back in the early 1970s and died from it at the age of 46 in 1980. Sadly, my dad is no longer around to ask as he died in 1999, but I imagine Harry wanted to cheer us up due to mum’s illness.
Derek Jowett, right, with Harry Corbett and Sooty.
“Breast cancer has claimed the lives of a few women in my family – in fact I was diagnosed with it at 46. But I was carefully monitored after losing mum and was successfully treated thanks to radical surgery.
“The puppets have been stuck in a box for around 45 years and we thought it would be nice for them to go to someone who would treasure them or even go on display in a museum. They deserve to be seen and enjoyed.
“I’ll be making a donation to Macmillan Cancer Care from the proceeds of the sale.”
Hansons Auctioneers has had major success with the sale of original Harry Corbett Sooty puppets. In 2018 the firm achieved a world-record when an original Sooty puppet sold for a total price of £14,500. Plus, in 2008, Hansons sold a vintage Sooty puppet to Richard Cadell, magician and presenter of The Sooty Show, for £3,100.
Vicky and Max, front, with mum Jackie on their last family holiday before she died.
However, this is the first time the auction house has placed a full set of original vintage Harry Corbett puppets – Sooty, Sweep and Soo – up for auction.
Charles Hanson, owner of Hansons, said: “What an amazing story and set of puppets to own. The discovery has revealed a fine example of Harry Corbett’s kindness. His heart must have gone out to this fellow Yorkshire family when he heard about their mother’s illness.
“Imagine Harry Corbett himself entertaining you with a private Sooty show in your own house as a child. What a treat, and what a wonderful way to deliver a bit of happiness.
Vicky and Max Jowett, aged three and five.
“Another uplifting aspect of this story is that Vicky has beaten breast cancer, an illness women in her family are genetically prone to, due to advances in treatment and monitoring. That’s something to celebrate in October which is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.”
Harry Corbett invented Sooty in 1948 after buying a puppet for 7/6 (37p) during a holiday in Blackpool to entertain his children. He passed away at the age of 71 in 1989 but left a legacy that lives on. The Sooty Show has a place in the Guinness Book Of Records as the longest-running children’s television show ever.
The Harry Corbett Sooty, Sweep and Soo puppets will be sold on November 19 at Hansons, Heage Lane, Etwall, Derbyhire, DE65 6LS. To find out more, email [email protected]NAON
