Derbyshire Makes: the Lost Stories of Glossop
In April 2025, Creeping Toad has been working in local libraries and parks in the High Peak of Derbyshire. Encouraging imaginations to simply set off at a gallop, we worked from historic photos and the immediate environment to create the stories of what might, what could, what should and what should DEFINITELY NOT have happened in the streets of Glossop, Hadfield and Gamesley. There were old keys and buried cheese, stray skulls, rainbows and crystal trees. Coordinated by High Peak Community Arts, we worked with more than 200 people through workshops and drop-in events.
See more and find the full story texts here:
https://creepingtoad.blogspot.com/2025/04/lightbulb-trees.html
Toad was also featured on the Derby Museums’ Makory Bus at Cromford Mills, working with visitors to make pop-up cards of the rivers they would like to visit and the trees they would like to meet
new books from Creeping Toad!
moments of wonder, moments of sorrow, tales from the darkness of caves and the depths of a freezing Arctic night and ideas, inspirations and challenges for exploring your own relationships with the animal kingdoms… go to the Books page
STORYTELLING IN 2024: new information, new workshops, new laughter and wild imaginations. Find out more HERE
Shadows and wonders
Shadow Puppets: visit the Out and About page for a new workshop for schools or public events playing with light, shade, colour and excitement…..there might be dragons, forests of enchanted trees rotating across a ceiling, flying birds, running wolves….
Creeping Toad works with groups to find ways of celebrating the places where people live, work and play
Creeping Toad:
- tells old stories
- creates new stories with poems
- invites explorations
- creates celebrations
There are treasure chests and pirates and dragons
There might be lost tales, mouse maps, finger-tip elephants or fluttering butterflies
We might make wolf masks, processional fish, colourful flags or a woodland of dancing tree-people
There could be tiny bottle lanterns, giant lantern bumblebees or maybe just a simple winter woodland glow for a December tabletop
We might work with ponds and pools, rivers, gardens and parks
There might be trees, wood, moors, mosses and squelchy bogs,
fossils, stepping stones, sand and rock
crystals, caves, shadows and lights….
Creeping Toad celebrates people, places and wildlife
Try the Creeping Toad Youtube channel for stories, poems and cheerful wierdness
https://www.youtube.com/user/Creepingtoad
storytelling, story making, book building, pond-dipping, bug hunting, flower watching, tree chasing, puppets, processions,
lanterns, flags, masks, monsters and more,
who knows what may feature in a Toad project?
challenging, cheerful, inspiring, confidence raising, skills building,
Creeping Toad events, projects and training courses are also,
quite simply,
fun!
