"And... As If By Magic, The Shopkeeper Appeared" Quiz

Answer: Captain Troy Tempest

'Stingray' was the third show produced using the 'Supermarionation' technique developed by Gerry Anderson; it was also the first of his shows to be filmed in colour. The show followed the heroic adventures of the 'World Aquanaut Security Patrol', or 'W.A.S.P', an organisation defending mankind from the evil plans of the 'Aquaphibians' led by an evil being known as Titan.

The show's heroic figure, Captain Troy Tempest, was accompanied in his adventures by 'Phones' Sheridan, his co-pilot, his superior officer, Commander Sam Shore and his daughter Atlanta and the apple of the eye of many pre-teen boys of the time, the beautiful Marina; who was a mute mermaid from a race known as the 'Pacificans' who were allies and friends of mankind.

The show was broadcast over 39 episodes during the mid 1960s and was the first in which the puppet characters were given actual facial expressions.

Answer: Cloudbase

'Captain Scarlet' was another television offering from the partnership of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and was, in fact, the first of their programmes in which the puppets were given more accurate human proportions. Cloudbase itself, the central control facility for SPECTRUM was a six hundred and thirty foot long airborne aircraft carrier held aloft by a total of four upward thrusting engines of immense power, the entire craft being powered by solar energy.

It was from Cloudbase that SPECTRUM operations were directed by Colonel White and Lieutenant Green.

The SPECTRUM air forces, provided by Harmony, Rhapsody, Melody, Symphony and Destiny; who were collectively known as 'The Angels', a team of female pilots, and who were also based at and launched from Cloudbase.

The first series of 'Captain Scarlet' was broadcast during 1967 and unlike previous programmes produced by Gerry Anderson; 'Captain Scarlet' lacked any real humour and was a grittier and darker series of stories... Exactly what we wanted as young boys!

Answer: Otto the Blott

First broadcast on BBC television during 1972, 'Sir Prancelot' tells the story, over thirty-one episodes, of a journey to the Holy Land by our brave hero, Sir Prancelot, and his small entourage... Actually it wasn't so much a crusade as an escape from his bank manager! 'Sir Prancelot' and his family, wife Lady Hysteria and their two children Sim and Sam along with his accomplices, soldiers Bert and 'Arry and his chamberlain, Girth, all live in Crumblecreek Castle from where they set out on their journey. During their travels, narrated by 'Sir Prancelot's' jester, they encounter and defeat their enemies, Otto the Blott and Duke Uglio often through the use of their leaders amazing inventions! The series was animated using a series of overlaid cardboard cut-outs, all beautifully drawn and coloured, which were then hinged and operated through a series of levers.

The other programme from the same studio and which used this animation technique, 'Captain Pugwash' was also hugely popular with both children and adults.

The 'Sir Prancelot' episodes were later broadcast by the British ITV (Independent Television) company, Granada, during the late 1970s.

Answer: False

This amazing machine was correctly designated 'Brain Impulse Galvanoscope Record And Transfer', otherwise known as 'Big Rat', and was the machine that gave the nine year old 'W.I.N.' (World Intelligence Network) special agent, Joe McClaine a.k.a 'Joe 90', his amazing powers.

The machine implanted the knowledge and experiences of the world's greatest experts by recording their brain patterns which were then transferred to Joe through 'Big Rat'. The programme was broadcast for the first time on the 29th of September 1968 and continued until the 20th of April 1969.

This offering, again from the partnership of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, was very well received initially but garnered some criticism over its use of what some saw as excessive violence in a programme aimed at children and whose central character was a child himself. 'Joe 90' has, over the decades since its original broadcast, been given a number of repeat airings on various television channels.

Answer: Lion

Written by Michael Bond of 'Paddington' fame, 'The Herbs' as a series consisted of twelve, fifteen minute episodes the first of which was broadcast on BBC 1 on the 12th of February 1968. The central idea behind the show, which was set in a walled and secret herb garden, was that the most commonly known and most popular herbs were personified and tales were told around the character normally attributed to each herb.

In the first ever episode, 'Parsley's Tail', the central characters were introduced; Aristocratic landowner and his wife portrayed as Sir Basil and Lady Rosemary respectively, Parsley the lion, Dill, an excitable little dog, Bayleaf the gardener and Sage, the wise old owl who, in later episodes was always ready to proffer 'sage' advice.

Other characters include police officer, Constable Knapweed, Auntie Mint and Tarragon the Dragon, who not unsurprisingly looked very much like the 'Soup Dragon', a character from contemporary animation programme 'The Clangers' The programme, produced under the direction of the now legendary animator Ivor Woods, used a stop-frame animation technique and three-dimensional models and sets.

A sequel series was produced under the title 'The Adventures of Parsley' which were broadcast in thirty-two, five minute episodes beginning in April 1970 and, although relatively popular; they never captured the imagination quite like the original series. It is unlikely that 'The Herbs' will ever appear on the BBC ever again due to an Indian character, Pashana Bedhi, being considered somewhat racist... Such a shame, I love 'The Herbs' as much now at fifty-three as I did as a nine year old child!

Answer: Frog

Consisting of a cast of only three characters, 'Hector's House' was actually produced in France; this fact is evident if you view the programme closely! It was first broadcast on the BBC on the 9th of September 1968 and continued until the 8th of January 1970 with a total of seventy-eight episodes being shown. 'Hector's House' was a true puppet show, each character being operated in the traditional manner.

The neighbour, Kiki, was a bright green frog who would appear, much to Hector's annoyance, at the top of the garden wall between hers and Hector and ZsaZsa's garden in every episode to offer advice or to help her neighbours in some way.

Many of you who might have watched 'Hector's House' will remember that at the end of each episode, Hector would express his catchphrase, "I'm a great big silly/confused/tired old Hector", the adjective always relating to the central plot behind each episode...

When I say 'plot', I use it in its loosest possible context!

Answer: There was no dialogue

One of the more unusual children's shows ever shown on British television, 'Crystal Tipps and Alistair' has no spoken dialogue whatsoever; all situations and emotion is represented musically. Crystal Tipps herself has distinctive purple hair and sometimes gets herself into trouble with her very talented and faithful dog Alistair always on hand to help get her out of any bother she might land herself in. Alistair is a very talented dog actually; he can ride a bike, read the newspaper and just loves to relax in the afternoon with a cup of tea! Crystal Tipps and Alistair both live in a lovely country cottage and share their many adventures with their best friends known simply as 'Bird' and 'Butterfly'.

The programme is a very colourful and 'happy' affair (Crystal hates to be sad) and the animation technique used by the production company, 'Q3', is very reminiscent of that used in the Beatles film 'Yellow Submarine'. Only one series of fifty, five minute episodes was ever produced and all were broadcast between 1971 and 1974 with a single twenty minute Christmas special being produced.

Interestingly, the same production team that worked on Crystal Tipps and Alistair were also responsible for producing many of the public information films broadcast on behalf of the UK government and which have taken on something resembling legendary status today, the band 'The Prodigy' sampling some of the soundtrack from one such film for their 1991 debut single, 'Charly'.

Answer: Music box

"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?"

And with this, from out of the box would appear the central character in the forthcoming tale. 'Camberwick Green' was the first of the series that became known as the 'Trumptonshire Trilogy'. First broadcast on the 3rd of January 1966, the very first episode was entitled 'Peter the Postman' and, as the postman carried out his round through the village, the viewers were introduced to each of the other characters as they received their mail; characters that have gone down in British television history such as Windy Miller, Doctor Mopp the local practitioner, Mr Carraway the fishmonger and Captain Snort and the soldiers based at Pippin Fort. At the end of the episode, as the postman is delivering the mail to Windy Miller at Colley's Mill, the postbag that the postman has leant against a sail becomes snagged and can only retrieved once the miller had stopped the sails from turning... Exciting stuff and the children loved it! Between its initial broadcast date and the 28th of March 1966, a total of thirteen episodes were broadcast. 'Camberwick Green' has become one of the best loved of all children's series produced during what many, myself included, consider to be the golden age of British children's television production.

Answer: True

Created by David McKee, 'Mr Benn' has also appeared in a number of children's books as well as the animated children's television show for which he is best remembered. Only a single series was ever produced and consisted of fourteen, 15 minute episodes, transmitted during 1971 and 1972. 'Mr Benn', dressed in his conservative black suit and bowler hat, would leave his home at 52 Festive Road each day and travel into town; it was in town that he would visit a mysterious fancy dress shop attended by a strange shopkeeper in a fez who would invite Mr Benn to put on an outfit and after dressing, he would pass through a magic door at the back of the shop and embark on some amazing adventures. Characters included a cook, a big-game hunter, a spaceman and a wizard.

At the end of each adventure, Mr Benn would always travel back to his home with a special souvenir from his adventure. In 2001, a poll conducted by British Television Company Channel 4, resulted in 'Mr Benn' being voted the sixth most popular children's television series of all time.

Answer: A tower block

First shown in the 1970s and narrated by a popular newsreader of the time, Richard Baker, 'Mary, Mungo and Midge' became a children's programme that achieved cult status over a very brief period of time. The central characters, a young girl, Mary, and her companions, Mungo the dog and Midge, a mouse, all lived together with Mary's parents in a flat on the seventh floor of a tower block in the city centre and it was from here that their adventures began.

A total of thirteen 15 minute episodes were made using a flat-cut animation technique.

At the beginning of the show, the children were introduced to each character; as the camera closed in on the window to Mary's play room, she would appear waving, closely followed by Mungo also waving but Midge is nowhere to be seen... Until, peering between the flowers in the family's window box, there is Midge waving from behind an orange coloured flower. Like Alistair in 'Crystal Tipps and Alistair', Midge is a very talented mouse and often accompanies his friends on their adventures playing music on his flute!

Answer: False

'Trumpton' was, in fact, the filling in this trilogy sandwich. Like 'Camberwick Green', the full series of 'Trumpton' consisted of just thirteen instalments. The very first episode of 'Trumpton' was broadcast on the 3rd of January 1967 and tells a sad tale of the dramatic events that surround the attempt to post a number of posters around the town advertising a forthcoming band concert being staged in Trumpton Park by the band of the Trumpton Fire Brigade. Suffice to say, everybody gets covered in paste and the concert looks as if it might be a failure; until Trumpton's professional bill poster, Nick Fisher, arrives to save the day... Hooray! Not surprisingly, BBC children's television stalwart, Brian Cant, provided all of the narration and singing in all three series of the 'Trumptonshire Trilogy'; Mr Cant, an essential contributor to BBC children's television began his career in 1964 and contributed to virtually every BBC children's television programme during the 60s, 70s and 1980s.

In 2007 Brian Cant was voted as having the 'best-loved voice' in children's television, relegating both Oliver Postgate ('Bagpuss') and David Jason ('Dangermouse') into second and third places respectively.

Answer: Richard Briers

'Roobarb and Custard' found its inspiration when writer, Grange Calvely, and his wife Hanny moved into a new house and adopted a Border Collie that they named Roobarb; after his habit of urinating on a rhubarb patch in their garden, whilst the cat character, Custard was based on a lazy cat that lived in the house next door.

The strange 'boiling' animation effect in which 'Roobarb and Custard' was filmed harkened back to the days when Calvely was working on his idea for the show and used magic markers to produce his initial drawings.

After being initially rejected by the BBC, it was eventually agreed that Calvely would be contracted to produce thirty, five minute films; 'Roobarb and Custard' would become the first ever cartoon animated television series produced wholly in Britain.

The first ever 'Roobarb' film, 'When Roobarb made a Spike', was selected by the 'International Exhibition of Animated Films' as being among the best films made during the 1972-73 period; the film was also shown at the Annecy Film Festival during November 1973. Richard Briers, already a household name through his performances in the BBC comedy series 'The Good Life', provided the voices for all the characters in the programme which eventually ran to a total of 69 films in two series, the first ever episode being broadcast on the 21st of October 1974.

Interestingly, and sadly, both Richard Briers and the animator of the original 1974 programmes, Bob Godfrey, died within three days of each other in February 2013.

Answer: A fluffy white caterpillar

"He's the best
He's the greatest
He's the greatest secret agent in the world!
He the ace- He's amazing
He's the strongest... He's the quickest... He's the best
Dangermoooouse!"

The dastardly Baron Greenback, like many arch-criminals of his ilk was bent on world domination and it was the task of 'Dangermouse', aided and abetted by his short-sighted accomplice Penfold, to prevent him from doing so. 'Nero' was the name of Baron Greenback's pet caterpillar and is a homage to the criminal in the James Bond films who owned a white Persian cat, Ernst Stavro Blofeld. The programme was produced by 'Cosgrove Hall Productions' and was first broadcast on the 28th of September 1982 and ran for ten series, a total of 161 episodes only finally coming to an end with the broadcast of the final episode on the 19th of March 1992! The voices of 'Dangermouse' and Penfold were provided by actors David Jason and Terry Scott, with the voice of Baron Greenback being provided by Edward Kelsey. The Baron's pet, Nero, never spoke but his laugh was provided by David Jason, the recordings of his voice being sped up to make Nero's laugh sound squeaky.

Answer: Steam Engines

The last in the 'Trumptonshire Trilogy', the hamlet known as 'Chigley' was believed to lie between the town of 'Trumpton' and the village of 'Camberwick Green'. Centred on the stately home of Lord Belborough, the hamlet consisted of Treddles Wharf, The Biscuit Factory and Chigley Pottery with much of the action taking place between these locations on Lord Belborough's private railway. Which brings us comfortably to Bessie; she was a small steam locomotive and was her owner's principle form of transport. Unlike Bessie, Binnie was a static steam engine and was responsible for providing most of the power used at Wickstead Hall. Again, broadcast as a series of thirteen episodes, the first was broadcast on the 6th of October 1969 and continued until the 29th of December 1969 with each episode being ended by a blast on the whistle at the biscuit factory and the workforce leaving to go to the six o'clock dance! The team that produced the trilogy were a marvellously talented group; Gordon Murray, the animator, is credited with 'creating an entire counties worth of characters', Freddie Phillips provided every song and every note of music in every episode and Brian Cant provided the voices for every character and all narration.

Although 'Chigley' was a success it never matched the achievements of its predecessors and unlike the others, is rarely seen today. There has also been some research into where the villages that the trilogy was based on may be and most of those who have investigated this seem to agree that it was inspired by a group of villages in the county of East Sussex.

Answer: Oliver Postgate

Oliver Postgate was born in Middlesex on the 12th of April 1925 and was related to the actress, Angela Lansbury. In 1942 he became a member of the Home Guard and after becoming liable to call-up for military service he registered himself as a conscientious object.

This resulted in him being court-martialled and, after being exempted from military service by a legal body known as the 'Apellate Tribunal', he was required to work for the war effort on the land, which he did right up until the end of hostilities in 1945.

After the war he worked overseas in occupied Germany until his return home in 1948. His last appearance in the media was on the 15th of July 2007 when he appeared as a guest on the BBC radio programme 'Desert Island Discs'. Oliver Postgate had, during his long career, given British television some of its most popular programmes and most loved characters; these include the previously mentioned 'Bagpuss', which in 1999 was voted the most popular children's programme, surprising when you consider that only thirteen episodes were ever made, 'Noggin the Nog' and, one of my personal favourites, the wonderful 'Ivor the Engine'. Sadly, on the 8th of December 2008, Oliver Postgate passed away at Broadstairs, Kent at the age of 83, and to my mind, children's television has never been the same since.