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The man making globes for world leaders and Hollywood

Tony Fisherin Much Hadham
Tony Fisher/BBC A man stands in a bright workshop beside a large, detailed globe mounted on a wooden base, with one hand resting on it. The workspace is filled with tools, brushes, and circular frames used in globe-making, neatly arranged on a wall and surrounding tables. Several partially completed globes and spherical models are visible, indicating an active craft or restoration process. Large windows in the background let in natural light and reveal a green outdoor landscape.Tony Fisher/BBC
It took Jonathan Wright four months to make one globe, which sold recently at auction for £10,000

A globe maker who has made orbs for world leaders in North America and Hollywood actors has described his job as a "privilege".

Jonathan Wright, 38, has been making globes for 15 years, but said he could not name any of his famous clients.

He carries out new commissions and also restores old and antique globes at Grandey's Place, near Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire.

He is among only six globe makers in the UK, according to Heritage Crafts, the advocacy body for traditional crafts.

Tony Fisher/BBC A man in a workshop leans closely over a large globe, carefully applying detail with a small tool or brush. The globe, mounted in a wooden frame, shows an antique-style map with warm earth tones and fine lines. Around the workspace are paints, brushes, and a palette, along with shelves of books and neatly arranged tools on a wall. A large window behind the work area lets in daylight and reveals a green rural landscape outside.Tony Fisher/BBC
He said his craft "is such a specialised area that draws on so many different skills"

Wright said his craft became endangered "as it relied on so many different skills coming together to create this beautiful object".

He added: "To know that what I am doing now brings value to both older globes and also carries on the tradition through new globes... and that I am part of that important history is what makes it so rewarding."

He is currently working on a pair of globes from the early 1800s by an English maker called Newton, who was a relative of Sir Isaac Newton.

Wright said they would have sat in a library and would have been used for learning about geography, astronomy, trigonometry and maths.

Tony Fisher/BBC A decorative globe sits on a wooden stand in a workshop, surrounded by tools, materials, and other partially assembled globes. The globe’s surface features intricate illustrations of plants, animals, and constellation-like figures, along with detailed labels. A brass meridian ring arcs over the top, while a circular calendar base beneath shows months such as “August,” “September,” and “October.” In the background, a wall displays neatly arranged tools, books, and reference materials used in crafting and designing globes.Tony Fisher/BBC
Wright has made a bespoke celestial globe with some Winnie the Pooh imagery, which involved plotting 5,000 stars in the night sky, "so you can still use it as a navigational globe"

Wright, who studied engineering design at university, said he "fell into it by accident" after he saw the job of a globe maker apprenticeship advertised.

This caught his imagination as "it was the mystery and the unknown... I could not work out how these objects which were so familiar had been made".

While "fundamentally, the process of making globes has not changed in 400 to 500 years", modern-day creations are the "most accurate that have ever been made" thanks to modern technology.

The profession also allowed him to think while he created and he added: "The world is so much ocean, and that is something you don't get to appreciate looking at an atlas," he added.

Tony Fisher/BBC A man works at a crowded workshop bench, shaping a large white spherical form held in a metal frame with clamps. The surface appears to be coated in a plaster-like material, with tools, brushes, and containers scattered across the table. Another similar sphere sits nearby, suggesting multiple stages of globe construction. Behind the workspace, neatly arranged woodworking tools and measuring instruments hang on the wall, emphasizing a precise, hands-on craft environment.Tony Fisher/BBC
Wright makes globes of "all sorts" of sizes using papier-mâché, from 7.5cm (3 inches) in diameter right up to huge exhibition-style globes of more than 2m (6ft 6in).

Wright was awarded a Fellowship of the Royal Geographical Society in 2016 in recognition of his contributions to globe-making and has also appeared on the BBC's Repair Shop.

He specialises in "bespoke globes" for "individuals who are interested in exploring their own story through the cartography", but he also undertakes work for institutions and museums.

He is working on a globe from the 1700s, which is "quite special" and "found in someone's attic". However, he said it would take him years to restore, as "every little detail is so important".

"We think we know about most globes that are still surviving, but occasionally a rare one appears, and that is always very exciting," he added.

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