Compiled by Malcolm Batchelor from the pages of the Radio Times.
Verified at the BBC Written Archives Centre.
2 - The Programmes. A - F by title
Please note: the date given is the first screening date on BBC-1 in this slot,
not the production date.
THE ADVENTURES OF SPOT
Cartoon series following the adventures of a loveable mischievous puppy and his family. Created by Eric Hill. Narrated by Paul Nicholas, Jane Horrocks later. Animation by Leo Beltoff. Music by Duncan Lamont. Script Editor David McKee. Produced by Clive Juster for King Rollo Films Ltd.
(Still listed as a See-Saw programme in December 1988). (Two 25-minutes Specials were also made and a second series of 13 were made in 1992). From Thursday 9th April 1987. 13 original episodes.
ALONG THE RIVER
Wild creatures in their natural surroundings.
Devised and Produced by Dave Ellison and Roy Billings. From Friday 10th April 1970. 5 programmes. Repeated in October 1970.
ALONG THE SEASHORE
Some of the interesting things to be found by the edge of the sea and even under the sea.
Narrated by Tony Soper. Produced by Dave Ellison and Roy Billings. From Friday 15th May 1970. 2
programmes. Repeated in May 1971.
ALONG THE TRAIL
A look at Canadian wildlife.
Narrated by Rick Jones. Devised and Produced by Dave Ellison and Roy Billings. From Tuesday 16th May 1972. 6 programmes.
ANDY PANDY
The puppet adventures of Andy Pandy, Teddy and Looby Loo.
Narrated by Vera McKechnie. Created, written and music by Maria Bird. Songs sung by Gladys Whitred. Puppeteers Audrey Atterbury and Molly Gibson. Produced by Freda Lingstrom. From Tuesday 11th July 1950. 26 black-and-white episodes were shown repeatedly. From Monday 5th January 1970 a new colour series of 13 episodes were shown.
ANIMAL FAIR
A look at various animals with Don Spencer.
Musical Director Jonathan Cohen. Directed by Sheila Fraser. Produced by Barbara Roddam. Executive Producer Cynthia Felgate. From Wednesday 22nd October 1986. 13 programmes.
BAGPUSS
This puppet animation series was voted best BBC children's show ever in 1998. The stories of a pink and white striped cloth cat who lives in a shop with his various friends including The Toy Mice, Gabriel the Toad, Woodpecker Professor Yaffle and Madeline the Doll... "Once upon a time, not so long ago, there was a little girl and her name was Emily and she had a shop. It was rather an unusual shop, because it didn't sell anything. You see, everything in that shop window was a thing that somebody had once lost and Emily had found and brought home to Bagpuss. Emily's cat Bagpuss, the most important, the most beautiful, the most magical, saggy old cloth cat
in the whole wide world..." ...and that's how each episode started.
Only 13 episodes ever made: 1) Ship In A Bottle. 2) The Owls Of Athens. 3) The Frog Princess. 4) The Ballet Shoe. 5) The Hamish. 6) The Wise Man. 7) The Elephant. 8) The Mouse Mill. 9) The Giant. 10) The Old Man's Beard. 11) The Fiddle. 12) Flying. 13) Uncle Feedle.
Music by John Faulkner and Sandra Kerr. Written by Oliver Postgate. Directed by Peter Firmin. Created and Produced by Peter Firmin and Oliver Postgate. Smallfilms. From Tuesday 12th February 1974. 13 episodes.
BARNABY
Barnaby the bear and his adventures in the woods where the birds teach him to sing. He then joins Mr. Pimoulu's Circus where he makes lots of friends and becomes a great success as Barnaby the Singing Bear.
Voices of Colin Jeavons, Charles Collingwood and Gwendoline Owen. Series created by Albert Nahille. From Wednesday 4th April 1973. 13 episodes.
BERTHA
Woodland Animations created this series about Bertha, a special machine that could make anything as long as she was programmed correctly. Bertha lived at Spottiswood Factory, a small engineering
plant and although old looking in appearance she had been upgraded and made ully computerised. As Bertha was a little tempremental you could expect a crisis breaking out in every episode.
Voices of Roy Kinnear and Sheila Walker. Written by Eric Charles. Music by Bryan Daly. Title song sung by Guy Fletcher. Edited by Martin Bohan. Director of Animation: Derek Mogford. Designed and
Produced by Ivor Wood. From Monday 1st April 1985. 13 episodes.
BIZZY LIZZY
Originally part of "Picture Book", then made into a separate series of 13 episodes. Bizzy Lizzy was a little girl who wore a blue dress with a magic flower attached. She could have three wishes by touching her magic flower. Her first wish was to have Little Mo her Eskimo doll come to life.
Music by Maria Bird. Produced by Ursula Eason. Westerham Arts From Tuesday 4th April 1967. 13 black-and-white episodes. Films.
BOD
Bod is joined by his trusty friends, Frank the Postman, Farmer Barley Mow, Aunt Flo and PC Copper. Also featuring Alberta Frog and his
Amazing Animal Band.
Created by Joanne and Michael Cole. Narated by John Le Mesurier and Maggie Henderson. Music by Derek Griffiths. Animation by Denise Sherwell, Alan Rogers. Produced by David Yates. From Tuesday 23rd December 1975. 13 episodes.
BRIC-A-BRAC
Presented by Brian Cant, roaming around the curiosities in his junk shop. Designer Mary Penley-Edwards.
Written and Produced by Nick Wilson. From Wednesday 1st October 1980. 12 original programmes.
CAMBERWICK GREEN
"Here is a box, a musical box, wound up and ready to play. But this box can hide a secret inside. Can you guess what is in it today ?" Those words from Brian Cant and the Freddie Phillips sound from the musical box heralded the start of each programme focusing on the animated characters in the village of Camberwick Green, county of Trumptonshire. This was the first series in the Trumpton trilogy, see also Trumpton and Chigley. Here are the characters in chronological episode order: - 1) Peter Hazel, the postman. 2) Windy Miller. 3) Mr.Crockett, the garage man. 4) Dr.Mopp. 5) Farmer Jonathan Bell. 6) Captain Snort. 7) Paddy Murphy. 8) Roger Varley, the sweep. 9) PC McGarry (Number 452). 10) Mr.Dagenham, the salesman. 11) Mr.Carraway, the fishmonger. 12) Mickey the baker. 13) Mrs.Honeyman and her baby.
Narrated by Brian Cant. Music by Freddie Phillips. Animations by Bob Bura and John Hardwick. Designs by Andrew and Margaret Brownfoot. Created by Gordon Murray. Written by Gordon Murray and Alison Prince. From Monday 3rd January 1966. 13 episodes.
CHIGLEY
Brian Cant would ask one of the characters at the beginning of each episode where they were going to? And if we can go with them? Hence we would end up at Chigley, the third village and third series in the
Trumpton trilogy. See also Camberwick Green and Trumpton. This series was set around a biscuit factory, a pottery, Treddles Wharf and Winkstead Hall. The main characters were Lord Belborough who owned Winkstead Hall. Bessie, his steam engine and his staff Brackett the butler and Mr.Bilton the gardener. Then there was Mr.Cresswell, the biscuit factory manager. Harry Farthing and Winnie at the pottery and Mr.Swallow at Treddles Wharf. Mr.Rumpling, the barge owner. Mr.Clutterbuck, the builder. Mr.Gubbins and Mr.Sneed, the corporations dustmen. At the end of each episode the workers from the biscuit factory would head-off to Lord Belborough's grounds to enjoy the Dutch barrel organ music of the "six o'clock dance".
Narrated by Brian Cant. Music by Freddie Phillips. Animations
by Bob Bura and John Hardwick. Designs by Andrew and Margaret Brownfoot. Created by Gordon Murray. Written by Gordon Murray and Alison Prince. From Monday 6th October 1969. 13 episodes.
CHOCK-A-BLOCK
Alternating each week between Chock-a-bloke (Fred Harris) and Chock-a-girl (Carol Leader) They would arrive on the set in a small electric car. Fred or Carol would then choose a large coloured cartridge to slot into Chock-a-block, the big yellow computer, to activate various songs and stories to be shown on Chock-a-block's TV screen.
Directed by Nick Wilson. Produced by Michael Cole. From Thursday 21st May 1981. 13 original episodes.
FINGERBOBS
"Yoffy lifts a finger and a mouse is there Puts his hands together and a seagull takes the air Yoffy lifts a finger and a scampi darts about Puts his hands together and a tortoise head peeps out His
hands were made for making And making they must do! I am a mouse called
Fingermouse, A mouse with guts and verve. I get past cats so easily with my famous bodyswerve..." The song which introduced the adventures of paper puppets Fingermouse, Scampi, Gulliver the Seagull and Flush the Tortoise. Created by "Yoffy" (Rick Jones) who sat at a wooden table in front of a blue background and talked with the various characters he created from gloves and pieces of card, ping-pong balls, etc.
Story and Design by Joanne and Michael Cole. Music by Michael Jessett. Directed by Michael Grafton-Robinson. From Monday 14th February 1972. 13 episodes.
FINGERMOUSE
Presented by Iain Lauchlan who played various musical
instruments, with Jane Hardy.
Music by Richard Brown. Puppets by Joanne Cole. Designed by Richard Brackenberry. Written and Produced by Michael Cole. From Wednesday 25th September 1985. 13 episodes.
FIREMAN SAM
A few episodes were originally shown on the Welsh Channel S4C in 1986. Animated series in the style of Postman Pat with the Fireman from the fictional village of Pontypandy in Wales who is always ready to help and share his adventures. Other characters included Trevor Evans, a minibus driver. Bella, an Italian who ran a restaurant. Norman Price, a naughty boy with a skateboard. James and Sarah and Cridlington a fellow fireman who was a good cook.
Narrated by John Alderton. From an original idea by Dave Gingell and Dave Jones. Developed by Mike Young. Illustrated and created by Rob Lee. From Tuesday 17th November 1987. 32 episodes.
THE FLOWERPOT MEN (BILL AND BEN)
Puppet series with a regular format which proved so popular with children even though the language of Bill and Ben left a little to be desired... "Flobba-dobba-flobba-lob". The man who worked in the garden went home for his lunch and in the potting shed at the bottom of the garden lived a little weed who sat between two big flowerpots. In the flowerpots lived the flowerpot men Bill & Ben and when it was safe to come out to play they would pop-up from their flowerpots, say hello to the little weed and proceed to have fun and get up to mischief with their friends, including Slowcoach the tortoise. Towards the end of each programme a question asked… "Was it Bill or was it Ben ? Did that mischievious act just then. Which of those two flowerpot men Was it Bill or was it Ben ?" …the viewer guesses the answer. The culprit owns up, then the little weed hears the footsteps of the man coming back from lunch down the garden path. So the pair hurry back into their flowerpots, saying goodbye to the little weed and to each other. Silence returns to the shed and everyone sleeps in the afternoon sun as nothing had happened at all! "Nobody knew about the flowerpot men. Only YOU saw them playing. The little weed knew about them and we think the little house may have known something too!!!"
Creators Freda Lingstrom and Maria Bird. Music by Maria Bird. Puppeteers Audrey Atterbury and Molly Gibson. Voices by Peter Hawkins, Gladys Whitred and Julia Williams. From Thursday 18th December 1952. 26 black-and-white episodes shown repeatedly.
A new 13 episode colour series was made in 2000.
THE FLUMPS
Animated adventure tales of a family of six strange furry people called Flumps, consisting of Grandfather Flump, Father Flump, Mother Flump, Perkin, Posie and Baby Pootle. Father Flump usually spent most of his time doing DIY and digging in the allotment. Mother Flump was always in the kitchen baking, cooking and cleaning. Grandfather Flump spent most of his time asleep! The three children who had most of the adventures were Perkin, the eldest boy, a girl called Posie and baby Pootle who was just growing up and asking daft questions!
Theme tune by Paul Reade. Made by David Yates Productions. From Monday 14th February 1977. 13 episodes.
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