Comments on: Classic British Children's TV

Classic British Children's TV

hurdy gurdy girl — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:45:17 -0800

"Well you know my name is Simon/ And the things I draw come true/ Oh, pictures take me over, over / Across the ladder with you." Little Gems is an extensive collection of information (including downloadable theme songs) about (mostly) British children's TV from the 1960s to 1980s. Simon In The Land of Chalk Drawings, The Moomins [previously on MeFi], Cockleshell Bay, Belle and Sebastian, The Herbs, and Hattytown Tales are just a few.

By: Artw

Artw — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:49:22 -0800

Oh lordy... that takes me back a bit.

By: Artw

Artw — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:53:25 -0800

The way Larry the Lamb spoke used to freak me the hell out.

By: aramaic

aramaic — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:56:08 -0800

Ooo, downloadable theme songs! Much nicer than Youtube.

By: Brocktoon

Brocktoon — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:56:20 -0800

And here I thought the Mike Myer's "Simon" skit was an entirely original concept. What's next, Soylent Green is somehow NOT made from high energy plankton?

By: ceri richard

ceri richard — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:08:57 -0800

Belle and Sebastien! Great post, thank you muchly hurdy gurdy girl!

By: never used baby shoes

never used baby shoes — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:10:07 -0800

I loved Simon as a kid; just seeing the words from the song took me back. Thanks for this.

By: Ambrosia Voyeur

Ambrosia Voyeur — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:37:34 -0800

Well you know my name is Simon, and I like to do draaaawerings. Cheeky monkey!

By: tkchrist

tkchrist — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:41:14 -0800

And here I thought the Mike Myer's "Simon" skit was an entirely original concept. You could not in one sitting behold all the stuff that Mike Meyers ripped off... er... drew homage from I mean. When that "Simon" bit came out I tried to explain to people in the US where it came from but just met with blank stares followed by "But Mike Meyers is a GENIUS!"

By: absalom

absalom — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:56:08 -0800

Simon was fantastic! I expected the B&S link to be from the cartoon. Can't have it all, I guess. Wonderful post!

By: absalom

absalom — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:58:58 -0800

In retrospect, I should have known better, because I think the Belle and Sebastian cartoon was French.

By: Lucinda

Lucinda — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:07:22 -0800

Man, I remember Hattytown Tales from Pinwheel, back when that's all that Nickelodeon would broadcast. I'm old.

By: fearfulsymmetry

fearfulsymmetry — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:18:16 -0800

The Changes was awsome... I wish they'd shove it out on DVD.

By: Dave Faris

Dave Faris — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:22:37 -0800

Simon aired in the US for awhile. Maybe it had something to do with Captain Kangaroo? I remember watching it as a kid, probably a little too old to be doing it.

By: daveleck

daveleck — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:26:00 -0800

Yes, Simon was shown on Captain Kangaroo in the US.

By: gurple

gurple — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:34:09 -0800

Wow, Belle and Sebastian was a live action show before it was a cartoon? Huh! Learn something new every day.

By: jtron

jtron — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:39:41 -0800

Simon was also shown on Pinwheel, if memory serves. And hurdy gurdy girl, thanks for the post! I've never been to Britain but the kids' entertainment has struck a chord with me since I was, uh, a kid. also if anyone has any Pinwheel on VHS, Beta, or DVD please let me know kthxbye

By: rocket88

rocket88 — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:42:52 -0800

Bill and Ben, the Flowerpot Men.

By: phytage

phytage — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 13:08:38 -0800

Are any of these programs available on VHS or DVD in the US?

By: oflinkey

oflinkey — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 13:30:58 -0800

Anyone remember Charlie's Climbing Tree? I think that was it...it was another non-US cartoon where the young man lived with his grandfather. I distinctly remember an episode where he was to on on holiday and he kept forgetting things (like turning off the bathwater). I can hear the theme music in my head-- and the final scenes of the ending credits were a pullback from his house in the city. This has some Pinwheel snippets.

By: jtron

jtron — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 13:45:33 -0800

Phytage: amazon.co.uk might be worth trying. I order from them fairly regularly and even with the terrible exchange rate it's really not all that bad, provided what you're ordering is something you want bad enough.

By: Artw

Artw — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 13:50:18 -0800

I bought a Region 2 DVD box set of the entirety of the Moomins that way. It worked out pretty reasonable, though it's both German and Englidh and the actual DVDs themselves all have "DIE MOOMINS" printed on them. My 4 year old neice pretty much demands to watch it whenever she comes around and sits hypnotised in front of it, so my work is done.

By: absalom

absalom — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:49:36 -0800

Dave: I want to say I saw it on Cartoon Express, but they also showed go-bots, so it's hard to believe that's where it was.

By: scruss

scruss — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:58:04 -0800

whoa, memories: Ludwig, Think of a Number (which was probably the major reason I went with maths and science in grammar school), The Mole (Jennifer Shiman's bunnies look a lot like The Rabbit), and scariest of all, Animal Kwackers - I mean, children were allowed to watch that? And yeah, The Changes scared the crap out of me as a wee 'un.

By: amyms

amyms — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 20:48:51 -0800

Brocktoon said: And here I thought the Mike Myer's "Simon" skit was an entirely original concept. Dave Faris said: Simon aired in the US for awhile. Maybe it had something to do with Captain Kangaroo? daveleck said: Yes, Simon was shown on Captain Kangaroo in the US. Wow, I too thought the Mike Myers skit was original, and I watched Captain Kangaroo faithfully and don't remember Simon at all (I must have been hypnotized by my preschool crush on Mr. Green Jeans - please don't laugh, I can't explain it)... Very cool post, thanks hurdy gurdy girl!

By: ZachsMind

ZachsMind — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 21:08:59 -0800

I can also bare witness to Simon being on Captain Kangaroo here in the states. I still tuned in to watch The Captain perhaps a couple years longer than I should have, largely cuz I still got a kick out of the Simon cartoons. Awesome work.

By: JHarris

JHarris — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 02:42:38 -0800

Oh, for the days when kids programming didn't give adults a rash just from hearing the theme song.