The Magical World of 'The Dreamstone' Quiz

Answer: Katie Melua

Katie Melua and Mike Batt had previously collaborated on several of her albums. Born in Georgia, Melua moved to the UK in 1993 and met Batt while studying at the BRIT School for the Performing Arts. Batt became her manager as well as writing songs for her. Batt, also known for writing 'Bright Eyes' from the 'Watership Down' soundtrack and the theme to 'The Wombles', wrote 'Better Than a Dream' as the theme tune for 'The Dreamstone', sung from the perspective of Rufus. Melua covered it for her fifth album, 'Secret Symphony'.

She and Batt parted ways in 2014 after their six-album deal came to an end.

Answer: The Mountain of Viltheed

Viltheed is the alternative name for the Land of Nightmares, which lies on the southern side of the Sleeping World, and the Mountain of Viltheed is its capital. It is an ominous black mountain with the Red Planet of Doom overhead, and is directly opposite Noopville.

Zordrak is a giant blue dragon-like creature who spends most of the series in his lair on the Mountain of Viltheed. He was formerly a Dream Maker who resembled a grey anthropomorphic goat, but was expelled from the Council of Dream Makers for using his powers for evil, and banished to Viltheed. He was originally going to be called Nasta Shelfim, an anagram of 'Satan himself', but the producers decided this was too dark and potentially offensive to religious groups.

Answer: Frazznats

The Frazznats are Zordrak's pets and resemble a cross between crocodiles and scorpions. They are yellow and black, and have sharp teeth and one red eye. In the pilot, Zordrak punishes Captain Crigg, the captain of the Urpneys, for not getting the Dreamstone by throwing him into the Pit of No Return. Crigg is then eaten alive by the Frazznats.

Answer: A candle factory

Rufus is a Noop, a green, furry rabbit-like creature with horns, who lives in Noopville. He is a daydreamer and it gets him into trouble at work. He is first shown floating around in a dream bubble, which pops when he wakes up. When we first meet him in the waking world, he's working for Mr Waks, a candle maker, and soon starts daydreaming and pretending he is in a circus, juggling candles and bowing to an imaginary audience. Mr Waks gets fed up with Rufus and fires him, and it turns out that this is his third job.

Answer: A town

Amberley has long ginger hair, is Rufus' best friend, and is more sensible than him, albeit hot-tempered. In 'The Dream Thief', a pilot for the series released in 1985, she and Rufus were squatters, with a resemblance to beavers and aquatic tails. Rufus goes to work for the Dream Maker, and he gives Rufus a tour of his workshop and explains about the Dreamstone, and how Zordrak is trying to steal it. When Amberley delivers the Dream Maker's candles, Rufus tells her about the Dreamstone, although he is supposed to keep it a secret. Unfortunately, the Urpneys arrive and steal it, and Amberley sneaks onboard their flying machine, while Rufus has to explain to the Dream Maker what happened.

Amberley is a town in West Sussex (and as a child, I'd heard of 'The Dreamstone' before the village, so my reaction on seeing the name of the village was "oh, like the girl out of 'The Dreamstone'"). Mike Jupp visited it regularly and named the character after it.

Answer: Argorribles

The Argorribles are purple mist creatures with sharp teeth, and give people nightmares by possessing them. They are vulnerable to light and the Dreamstone. In the pilot, once Zordrak has possession of the Dreamstone, he tosses it into the Pit of No Return and sends the Argorribles into the Sleeping World. Without the Dreamstone to ward them off, the Argorribles are free to attack; Rufus is possessed by one and has a horrible nightmare, until Pildit chases it away.

The Nightmare Stone, an evil counterpart to the Dreamstone, resembles an Argorrible made of purple crystal.

Answer: Leaves

The Wuts are tall dog-like creatures with spotted fur and floppy ears, who live in a forest and ride around on flying leaves. The most notable Wut in the show is Pildit, the leader of the Wuts, who helps Rufus travel to Viltheed to get the Dreamstone back.

He has green fur and an orange mane, and carries a staff with the globe, which he uses to communicate with the Dream Maker. He often helps the Noops when they get into trouble. One of his ancestors, also called Pildit, was turned into stone by Zordrak and made a part of his statue collection; in one of the later episodes, Zordrak wants to capture the current Pildit (the 8th) and add him to the collection, but Albert and the Noops rescue him.

Answer: He cries on her

Nug and Frizz frogmarch Amberley to the Pit of No Return. She angrily fights them off, and Zordrak turns her to stone. On the way to Viltheed, Zordrak shoots lighting out of his hands and causes a landslide. Rufus and Pildit are caught in the landslide and Pildit is trapped under the rocks. Thinking Pildit is dead, Rufus sneaks into Zordrak's lair and runs into a group of Urpneys, only to realise that they are all statues. Rufus sees a statue of Amberley and worries about where she is, not realising it's actually her. He hugs the statue and cries, and his tears land on Amberley and bring her back to life.

Rufus distracts the Frazznats by throwing an Urpney statue to them, and gets the Dreamstone back, but gives himself away to Zordrak and the Urpneys when he shouts, "I've got the Dreamstone!" Zordrak sends the Urpneys and the Argorribles after Rufus and Amberley, but Rufus uses the Dreamstone to fend them off, and Pildit flies in to rescue the Noops and take them home.

Answer: David Baddiel

'The War Song of the Urpneys' usually appeared at the beginning of each episode in the first season, albeit in a shortened form and sung by Batt, accompanied by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. The full version only appeared in one episode, 'Megattack', when Zordrak sends the Urpney army and the Argorribles to attack the Land of Dreams.

Scottish comedian and singer Billy Connolly, Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne, and boxer Frank Bruno all provided guest vocals on the full-length version on the OST. Comedian David Baddiel did not appear on it, though he did team up with Frank Skinner and the Lightning Seeds for 'Three Lions', the England team's theme song for Euro '96, later that decade. An alternative version featured vocals from cast members as the Biker Knights of the Square Table.

Answer: Urpgor

Most Urpneys have spiked tails and blue or purple spots on their noses. The main Urpneys in 'The Dreamstone' are Sergeant Blob, the leader of the Urpney army, and his two minions, Corporal Nug (the short one with the blue hair and the Brummie accent) and Frizz (the tall, purple-haired one, played by Melvyn Hayes of 'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum'), and they are usually deployed on missions to steal the Dreamstone, often involving one of Urpgor's inventions. Urpgor, unlike the majority of Urpneys, has green skin and pink hair, buck teeth, wears glasses and a lab coat, and spits when he talks. He often tests his inventions on Blob - his main rival for Zordrak's attentions, at least until Zarag appears - Nug and Frizz.

Urpgor has a niece, Urpip, and an unnamed aunt who is also a mad scientist and lives on the planet Tempus Fugit.

Answer: A dogfish

Albert is a literal dogfish - he's a cross between a dog and a fish! He is a yellow fish with a dog-like face who barks and 'swims' in the air, and wears a red collar with an A plate. He was created from the dream of a fisherman Noop, the Dream Maker being so charmed by the strange creature that he brought him to life. Albert acts as a guard of sorts for the Dream Maker, and sometimes accompanies Rufus and Amberley on missions. Ironically, despite being a hybrid of a dog and a fish - two animals known for loving water - he is terrified of water.

He later became the mascot for Martin Gates Productions; their logo shows Albert carrying a paintbrush in his mouth.

Answer: Amberley

The Knitted Balloon is one of Urpgor's creations, a hot air balloon powered by Nug and Frizz burping fire. In his mist form, Zordrak possesses Amberley, causing her eyes to become blank and purple, and her teeth to become fangs. He uses her to get the Dreamstone and hand it over to Blob; however, Rufus and Albert stop the Urpneys by unraveling the balloon and take the Dreamstone back. Rufus uses the Dreamstone to force Zordrak out of Amberley's body, and he has to return to Viltheed.

Zordrak's mist form is played for laughs later in the series when he leaves his body and takes a shortcut through a whirlpool that causes him to turn good. He orders Urpgor to return the Dreamstone to Rufus, along with flowers and an apology. However, Sergeant Blob accidentally hits Zordrak on the head and makes him return to his evil self, and he is not happy to find out that Urpgor has returned the Dreamstone.

Answer: Spildit

Wildit is the leader of the Wut flying squadron and Spildit is her niece, despite being younger than her grandson Pildit. She originally had yellow fur, but it was changed to turquoise, and her bow was changed from pink to purple. While on a picnic with the Noops, Spildit flies away with the picnic basket - which, unfortunately, contains the Dreamstone - and meets Blob, Nug, and Frizz, and ends up playing with them. Not realising that they are enemies, she shows them the Dreamstone and Blob steals it, along with Spildit's leaf. The Noops get the Dreamstone back after Zordrak temporarily turns good.

Another Wut who appears in 'The Dreamstone' is Mr Blossom, a grumpy old Wut who works for the Dream Maker as a gardener and has to put up with the Urpneys constantly ruining his garden.

Answer: Zarag

Zarag is normal-sized rather than a giant like Zordrak, and has purple fur and green hair. She shares both his reptilian features and the more goat-like characteristics he had before his transformation. She is very vain and often clashes with Urpgor, and wants to steal the Dreamstone to wear in her hair. Zordrak sealed her in a bottle for 500 years after a row, but Nug accidentally let her out while holidaying on a beach.

When Zarag steals the Dreamstone, the Noops, and the Urpneys hold a ball in order to get it back.

The Dream Maker attends the ball in disguise and dances with Zarag, and steals the Dreamstone back after she faints.

Answer: Bimble's Bucket

'Bimble's Bucket' was set in a different universe to 'The Dreamstone', but had similar traits, such as a race of cute creatures (the Squonks) versus a race of ugly humanoids (the Sleazians) who are trying to steal a magical object, and a ditzy male character accompanied by a more intelligent, if bossy, female character. In this instance, Rufus' counterpart is Bimble, who finds a man with a bucket stuck on his head and removes it. The man allows him to keep the bucket and Bimble discovers that it can grant wishes, and meets Teeny Weeny, a tiny green elf-like creature who acts as the guardian of the bucket. The caveat is that anything created by the wishes only lasts for 24 hours. Bimble can also shrink down and enter the world inside the bucket.

Queen Kak, a morbidly obese green humanoid who spends most of her time sitting on her throne and eating, is the main antagonist, with her minions Bilge (the male one) and Oiler (the female one) acting as the Frizz and Nug analogs. Dolly Clackhanger, a witch with a habit of making things explode, bears some similarities with Urpgor, although she has an assistant, a dopey little blue creature called Sploot. She is constantly competing for Queen Kak's attention with Mudge, the royal tax collector.

'Bimble's Bucket' was not as successful as 'The Dreamstone'; the animation is notably poorer quality, and the series is more whimsical and lighter compared to 'The Dreamstone', which could be quite dark at times. However, the episodes have been uploaded onto YouTube.