MALVERN Museum staff are delighted after being given an antique puppet which is part of the town's history - no strings attached.

The two-and-a-half-foot high "tramp clown" marionette - said to bear a passing resemblance to Charlie Chaplin - was donated to Malvern Museum, in Abbey Road, by the Polka Theatre for Children, in Wimbledon.

The black-clothed puppet has a long association with the town, stretching back over 70 years.

It was one of a number used by the 50-seat Lanchester Marionette Theatre in Malvern's Worcester Road.

The theatre, which is now the premises of Foley House Antiques, was opened by Waldo and Muriel Lanchester in 1936 and ran until 1952.

It was one of the country's prime puppet theatres and also toured various venues around the country during the Second World War, even putting on a show for the Royal Family at Buckingham Palace.

After the war, marionette cabaret increased in popularity, with performers operating for the first time in full view of the audience, instead of pulling the strings .

The Malvern puppet has now gone on display at the museum.

Derek Lewis, one of the museum directors, said he was delighted the marionette had returned to the town.

"The great thing about being connected with a museum like this is that local things always turn up," he said.

"The fact that Malvern has a fairly large elderly population also means that this sort of thing may bring back memories for them."

Mrs Lanchester was also a renowned potter, operating St Ann's Pottery in Malvern, and the museum has also been donated two examples of her work, both of which have also gone on display.

The pieces are a small bust and a caricature of the playwright George Bernard-Shaw, who had a close association with Malvern Theatres for many years.