A treasure trove of wonders awaits visitors to a gallery

buried deep in the heart of the Forest of Dean where potter

Mary Rose Young works away to create her fairytale pieces.

Her fabulous range of brightly-coloured crockery has

attracted a legion of global fans and her pieces can be found

on the tables of the rich and famous both here and abroad.

Ozzy Osbourne was seen drinking from one of her over-sized

teacups in his reality television show The Osbournes, while

both Demi Moore and Ruby Wax are also customers.

From humble beginnings selling her wares from a barrow at

Bristol's Watershed arts centre, Mary Rose has risen to the

giddy heights of having her pieces displayed on the shelves of

the likes of Barneys department store in New York and Harrods

in London.

Although she spends most of her time working at home, Mary

Rose sometimes travels to promote her pottery and this month

sees her in New York at the annual craft fair, where her work

has always been very popular.

"I seem to have lots of fans in America," she said. "My

stuff is also particularly popular in the southern states."

But life wasn't always so exotic for this London-born,

Forest-bred artist.

After an early nomadic childhood – she even spent one year

living in a remote fishing village in Menorca – her family

moved to Gloucestershire, where she has remained ever

since.

"We moved to the Forest to live near my grandmother and as

both she and my mother had a love of handmade stuff they took

me to lots of craft centres," she said.

"There were also a lot of people based in St Briavels who

were into the Arts & Crafts movement and I was intrigued by

their work.

"When I went to art college I developed a love of ceramics

and found it much less pretentious than fine art. I've always

enjoyed working with clay and creating three dimensional

images."

Moving into an old farmhouse, Mary Rose had lots of

mantelpieces and windowsills to fill and she needed something

glamorous to brighten the place up.

The bright colours from her newly thrown pots gave her the

look she was searching for and her sense of fun spilled over on

to the shapes and designs she produced.

Mary Rose began selling her wares from a barrow in Bristol,

with early designs including the rose motif, which developed

into a three-dimensional form on the rims of vases and handles

of mugs.

She began attending craft fairs and it was at the Chelsea

shows that she met a Barneys representative, who became her

biggest customer for a decade and began a new era in her

life.

"Now I sell from Harrods and other galleries and shops

around the world, including D'Arcy's gallery in Cheltenham, and

the Made in Gloucestershire shop in Gloucester," she said.

"My inspiration is to make life more glamorous. I have a

childlike love of things that are wonderful and pretty,

fairytale and a love of life, which translates into my work."

This probably explains why she can count so many celebrities as

fans.

"People often come in and buy a piece but aren't quite sure

about it. When they get it home it fits in so well that they

come back for more.

"I like to think my pottery is easy to live with. I like to

make things that are friendly and easy, not difficult or

clever."

In 1996 Mary Rose Young became Mary Rose Butcher when she

married Phil, a musician who was bassist in Iggy Pop's band for

a while and later as part of the much-acclaimed comic trio The

Tiger Lillies.

And this year Mary Rose celebrated her 50th birthday with a

big party for friends and acquaintances.

"I enjoyed it more than any other birthday I've had," she

said. "Mind you, I'm not so sure how I'll feel about 51."

Still happy at her Forest home, Mary Rose continues to

produce the pottery that first brought her success years

ago.

And, despite her work having found its way to the four

corners of the earth, she doesn't travel much – her brightly

coloured home is where her heart is.

n Take a look at Mary Rose's pottery at

www.maryroseyoung.com or call 01594 563425.