Ventriloquist April Brucker dumps fiance after he tells her 'it's the dummies or me'

A woman who has splashed out $200,000 (£134,000) in the past 10 years on her puppets has revealed how her fiance made her choose between him and them.

Ventriloquist April Brucker, who lives in New York City, broke up with her partner after he gave her the ultimatum – and she picked the dummies.

The 30-year-old revealed that she considers her 16 puppets – who even have their own bedroom - to be her children, and she lives alone with them in her apartment.

April Brucker pictured with her puppet Mortimer - one of the 16 she considers to be her children

April's 'children' - her 16 puppets which live with her in her apartment in New York

April works 60 hours a week as a singer, comedian, promotional model and freelance writer so they can have the best of everything – even if it means she goes short.

She buys the puppets clothes, airfares – and dreams of touring the world with them.

'They are like my children,' she said. 'Yes, they are expensive, but if they need things, they need things.

'I will go without clothes for them. I'm a parent – that's what you do.'

She said her relationship failed when her fiancé – who she doesn't want to name - said her dolls were 'weird'.

April said she dumped her fiance because he made her choose between him and her puppets

April says she works up to 60 hours a week to make sure her 'children' are well looked after

April said: 'In the end, my puppet children are all I have. They have never disappointed me. Like men have'

'I'm from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,' she said. 'We met in New York City.

'I was not allowed to date growing up. My parents were strict and when I met him I fell in love.

'He became my boyfriend. He was very romantic.'

After their third date he proposed. 'My parents were engaged after their third date,' she said. 'And they've been together 40 years.

'He got down on one knee. I thought he was the one.'

But April - who has appeared on TV shows such as The Today Show and My Strange Addiction - revealed that things quickly become sour.

Single April Brucker broke up with her fiance after he gave her an ultimatum

April said she became interested in puppetry when she was 13

'He started becoming jealous of the puppets after four months,' she admitted. 'He started saying the puppets were weird.

'He said, "no wife of mine will ever have a puppet". Ultimately he felt jealous by the puppets.'

That is when he gave her an ultimatum.

'He said, "It's me or the puppets",' she said. 'I wanted to be with him, so I stayed with him.

'But after eight more months, I realised I had to stay with my puppets.

April, pictured at a Gay Pride festival, says she dreams of travelling the world with her puppets

'In the end, my puppet children are all I have. They have never disappointed me. Like men have.'

She said she considered her puppets her 'children.'

'They have their own room,' she said. 'They are like my family. We all do shows together.

'Sometimes I think, "yes, I dumped my boyfriend for a puppet".

April now lives alone with her 16 puppets in an apartment in New York City

'But then I think, "puppets are better". I love my puppets.'

She said she could not date a man who did not appreciate her puppets. 'I spend so much on them after all,' she said. 'I spend $20,000 (around £14,000) a year on them.

'That's for clothes, airfares, hair. I've been doing that for about ten years.'

April said she became interested in puppetry when she was 13.

'My first puppet was Groucho Marx,' she said. 'And it just went from there.

'My dream is to tour the world with my children.

'I might not have love with a man but I have 16 children and they need me.'

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pa3IpbCmmZmhe6S7ja6iaJ6Voq6quI6aqa2hk6Gybn%2BPbm5rbmRko6a606ugpaehqra0wIysp6WZo52ytHmRaWRpaGBixqat0WZob2WAip2RkbOMZJudlKe8sLmMnaymqKNis6qtzZycZqyVobm0edJmpJ5mmKm6rQ%3D%3D