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Animal Magic is yet another example of a BBC children’s TV show that ran for absolutely ages. It first came on air in 1962 and lasted 21 years, finishing in 1983. It came to an end because the BBC deemed it “not educational enough” which considering it was a programme telling kids about different kinds of animals I find quite amusing.
The programme will forever be linked to two things. One is Bristol Zoo, where a lot of segments were filmed, although Bristol Zoo was not the only place used. The other link is the late Johnny Morris, who was the main presenter of the show and the reason many watched. Most often dressed as a zookeeper he would introduce various animals, but more importantly would provide voices for them too, which always seemed to match the animals perfectly.
Johnny would have little conversations with the animals, for want of a better word considering he was doing all the actual talking, asking them how they felt about things and the animals replying with very humanised responses. I particularly liked the more stuck up animals, who would almost treat Johnny with contempt as he asked them what they thought were stupid questions.
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Some kids TV shows will forever remain stamped in your memory, but some end up buzzing around the a fly against a window, where the more you struggle to remember them the more annoyed you get with yourself. Cloppa Castle is a perfect example of just such a show for me.
One of the most successful series of children’s books I remember from my childhood was the 
You’ll need to be one of the older Children of the 1980’s to remember Fingerbobs, since it was actually a 1970’s kids show. I have very fond memories of sitting watching this excellent show, spellbound by it despite the fact it was so very simple. Even now the show oozes with a charm that is simply missing entirely from todays kids tv shows, and at the end of this post you can check out an episode for yourself. But first, what was Fingerbobs for those that don’t know?
Put simply, Star Fleet is the best puppet TV series never made by Gerry Anderson. Sure, I love Gerry’s stuff, but Thunderbirds, Joe 90, Stingray and the rest of them were not of my era – Star Fleet was and when the series first aired on Saturday morning British TV in 1982 I was hooked. Well, it featured space ships and giant robots! What more could a young boy want?
Supergran started as a series of childrens books written by Forrest Wilson. Unsurprisingly they were about Granny Smith, a grandmother who had super powers from the town of Chiselton. Her arch-enemy was the villainous Scunner Campbell, who ironically gave her the powers in the first place when she got hit by a beam from one of his strange contraptions.
Jimmy Saville really is one of the UK’s national treasures, and not just because he’s beginning to get on a bit now! Whether using eggs to demonstrate the perils of not using a seatbelt, hosting Top of the Pops or running the London Marathon whilst smoking a cigar, he is always supremely confident in anything he does.
Record Breakers is another BBC childrens TV show like 
