Brynmawr’s Market Hall Cinema was surprised this week when puppeteer William Todd-Jones arrived with creatures from the BBC/HBO series, His Dark Materials.

“Todd” grew up watching films at the Market Hall Cinema before going on to perform for The Muppets and become Head of Creature Effects on the acclaimed adaptation of Philip Pullman’s novels. The visitors included the on-set puppet proxies for Stelmaria, Lord Asriel’s snow leopard dæmon, and Kaisa, Serafina Pekkala’s dæmon.

The visit was part of Todd’s continuing support for Market Hall Cinema as it develops its role not only as Wales’s oldest cinema, showing moving pictures since 1894, but as a vital cultural hub for Brynmawr, the Heads of the Valleys and future generations of young people interested in film, creativity and community.