This is one of thirty-five marionettes known as of the Tiller-Clowes troupe, one of the last remaining Victorian marionette troupes in England. Marionette shows were a popular form of entertainment for adults in the 19th century. Many troupes were family concerns which travelled round the country long before the advent of film or television, presenting shortened versions of London's latest popular entertainment including melodramas, dramas, pantomimes, minstrel shows and music hall. In the 18th and early 19th centuries their theatres were relatively makeshift, but after about 1860 many became considerably elaborate, with walls constructed from wooden shutters, seating made from tiered planks of wood, and canvas roofs.
The figures were carved, painted, dressed and performed by members of the company. With his goatee beard and moustache, this figure represents the famous wire-walker Blondin, or Jean Fancois Gravelet (1824-1897) who first walked across Niagara Gorge on a tightrope in 1859 and who drew crowds to his performances in Britain after his first appearance in 1862. He is wearing his original costume including velvet boots.