You don’t get TV shows like this any more, though whether that’s a good thing or not I’m not quite sure! Emu’s Pink Windmill Show was aired during the 1980’s and in it’s prime pulled in millions of eager kids. It also appealed to those kids parents who boosted the viewing figures further, as Rod Hull and Emu had been around when they were growing up too!
The Pink Windmill Show was a happy pantomime of a show. Rod, resplendant in his camp pink suit and top hat, presided over the whole affair by generally being a little bit stupid and useless most of the time, with Emu always in tow. The most annoying aspect of the show was the hoard of singing and dancing kids who broke into a musical number at the drop of a hat, usually singing a song along the lines of “We’re busy doing nothing” or something about how great it is to be friends. You know the kind of thing.
Sharing the limelight was the witch Grotbags, who predictably was green skinned (just like Fenella from Chorlton and the Wheelies!). She was armed with her bazaza, a golden rod with a hand on the end that had the index finger sticking out. She used this to keep her cronies in line, who were Croc, a cowardly camp crocodile, and Redford, a know-it-all, camp, golden robot, basically a slightly overweight bloke wrapped in gold cardboard trying to be C-3PO. As you’re beginning to see, campness was one of the main tenets of the show. The bazaza was great, as Grotbags would hit someone with it, and a stupid springy sound effect would be played. Grotbags herself added to this by shouting bazazz! at the same time.
The show is also responsible for the catchphrase “There’s somebody at the door“, which would get endlessly chanted whenever the door to the Pink Windmill was knocked upon, and Rod and the kids would dance their way over to the door to see who it was. Most times it was Grotbags, whereupon everyone would run and hide.
Each episode then became an attempt by Grotbags to kidnap Emu from Rod. Quite why she wanted to do this I can’t exactly recall, but I think it was something to do with believing that having Emu would make her popular. Interspersed in all this mayhem some kids got the chance to win a few prizes, and I also recall there was an ongoing story about a magical kingdom trapped in a bubble of time, with Rod (minus Emu) playing the king of said kingdom and another character called Odd Job John usually ending up saving the day. Now, some of this may have been Emu’s World, but time has merged the two shows in my mind and I can’t quite remember what the differences between the two were.
Sadly Rod died when he fell off his roof in 1999 whilst trying to fix his TV aerial, but for all you Emu fans out there, news is that Toby Hull, Rod’s son, is to bring Emu back to our screens in a new Children’s ITV series, and if you want a reminder of just how silly The Pink Windmill Show was, then check out the following clip, which is a Grotbags-Croc-and-Redford-fest!
Search for Rod Hull and Emu items on Amazon.co.uk
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i absoulty loved this show but wish i could get some episodes on dvd does anyone know where to get any xxxx
[…] one of those variety acts that were forever cropping up on British TV, either in their own shows (The Pink Windmill Show being a prime example of Emu madness) or as guests on chat shows or other entertainment shows such […]
If anyone knows where i can get hold of episodes of emu’s world on dvd, i would be forever grateful. My favourite kids tv show of all time!!!!!!!
Sorry Dawn, I don’t think it has made its way to DVD at all, but I wonder if anyone out there might have a few episodes stashed away on VHS?
My uncle was in this show. He played the gold tin man but he was the original Crocodile. I will ask if the series is on DVD or not and will post my answer here. I too loved the show. Its a pity that we don’t have this kind of show now for the younger generation.
Ginnie
Oh wow! Ginnie, please say Hi to your Uncle Redford for me! Did he still provide the voice for Croc after he became Redford?
Do you still tease him by going “There’s somebody at the door” when you go to visit?
my mum was in that show ass welll 😀
Say Hi to her for us all as well! I’m assuming she was one of the Pink Windmill Kids?
i love is shown is wich thay would bring it bk on tv
Sadly this fabulous show is not on DVD but it really, really needs to be!
When myself and our beloved leader were doing time together in the Royal Holloway College Department of Computer Science, we had a friend who in one drunken moment admited she’d been a Pink Windmill Kid.
Denials later followed when sober.
Then some material was shown as part of a TV show that quite clearly showed her there.
Said material has since been uploaded to the interweb
i loved this show, my favorite was sarah, what ever happened to the pinkwindmill kids?
To all of you,
I just e-mailed ITV to ask them for emu’s stuff. Might hear back tomorow.
ITV says they don’t have any Emu productions on sale. Try U tube.
That is a bit of an odd thing for them to say. You would have thought they would want to steer you away from YouTube entirely!
I fear the chances of seeing any of this stuff ever again are pretty slim, unless somebody happens to have it all on VHS…
Thats odd as I remember a year ago asking ITV if they had any episodes and they said yes but they re 100 pounds per episode and I have to sign a contract about not redistributing them. I had to decline sadly.
Ginnie does your uncle have any episodes stashed away on VHS? I know some people are uploading clips on youtube but the people havent logged on in over 3 years so guess its impossible to contact them.
Funnily enough, I’ve just uncovered some VHS recording of this show – not much, but nevertheless two full episodes from 1987 and ’88, two partial episodes from ’88 and ’89, plus a few fragments. (There may be more, but that remains to be seen.) Just today I uploaded a handful of clips to YouTube. Start here if you like: http://youtu.be/hYemQ96HwLE
i was once in the audiance, it was a day that i will never forget. would love to ba able to get a copy
Fantastic show 
I was also lucky enough to watch an episode of the show being filmed. This was at central tv which at the time was based in Nottingham and I only lived 10mins away. 2 of my cousins got to go on the games they used to play on there 1 of them was (if I remember right) grotbags grotto. And she ended winning a skate board.
A cou
A couple of years ago I got talking to 1 of the lads that was 1 of the dances he had posted a few clips on you tube. So I’d ask him how he had got hold of them and that’s when he told me who he was. and that he had a few episodes on VHS. He did say he was transferring them to DVD and would let me know when he did. But sadly didn’t hear anything from him. But fingers crossed that 1 day they will get a release.
Anyone remember Abby? She was one of the youngest blondish hair was wondering what happened to her x
It’s high time this show was re-evaluated. Some people hated it, and even more loved to hate it, but here’s the (nearly) complete second series of Emu’s Wide World from 1987. The pantomime feel and the energy are just great! I genuinely think it deserves to be recognised as a high point in the history of kids’ television:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUeT8Sx4KSs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOY_gIyWjZc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhMF5B6Sb8Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrvW7y-8zj4 ***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dArXVIf3Bf0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWh7fXVKcGg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWLjs4U7eXY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7HlimksQG8
@Paul b: there’s a girl who wins a skateboard at 23:00 in the one I’ve marked with *** – your cousin, perhaps?
@Donna: Abbie’s in this series, along with her younger sister Cassie. Did you know her personally?
FTW you have made the past 20+ years. Yep it’s her alright. I couldn’t believe it when he said Lisa. I thought that it was lost for ever. the chances of that. Just shows ypu the power of the internet.Thankyou so so much for getting back to me about it. Brought back some cracking memory’s
Ive just sent a link through Facebook to her younger sister. can’t Thankyou enough. Superb nice1.
I remember the only reason I watched this show was Sarah. I thought she was very cute, charming and adorable. lol.