Iron Man

If you have ever read the Iron Man book, watched the musical or watched the movie (no, not the Marvel one, the other one), then you might want to have a visit to this amazing exhibit in Newcastle.

Nestled in the Black Swan Courtyard of the of the Arts Centre in Newcastle is a huge statue of Iron Man, just a few minutes walk from Central Station.

We gleaned the following from the information board.

This was not built as a sculpture, but is a giant stage puppet that was used in the production of the musical "The Iron Man" by The Who guitarist Pete Townshend.

The story is an adaptation of the Ted Hughes book with the same name. The stage version premiered at the Young Vic theatre in London in 1993. The musical tells the story of a boy and a metal-eating monster that had dropped out of the sky.

A boy named Hogarth befriends the Iron Man and when the world is threatened by the scary Star Spirit, the Iron Man defends the boy and his community. After the battle the Star Spirit realizes she can be a force for peace and harmony in the world.

Ted Hughes 1968 novel was further adapted to make the Iron Giant a 1999 animated science fiction fantasy action film produced by Warner Bros Animation and this massive puppet and can be seen as a prototype for the movie.

This original Iron Man stage puppet retired to a barn at the Hughes family home and was brought to Newcastle for the Centre for Children's Book Exhibition at Newcastle Arts Centre in 2001 and can still be seen in The Black Swan Courtyard of the Arts Centre.

It is popular with visitors of all ages and is a regular nesting site for Blackbirds and Collared Doves.

The Iron Man resides here by kind permission of Carol Hughes.