Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin
Do you remember looking forward to hearing those words on the wireless every weekday at 1.45 pm? Ah, those were the days - days when the wireless was your rather large, often wooden, radio and not your internet connection.Listen with Mother
The words were first spoken by Julia Lang in 1950 as she presented the first ever broadcast of Listen with Mother on the BBC Light Programme. Aimed at the under-five age group, children listened with delight to a daily selection of stories, nursery rhymes and songs, with popular favourites including Polly Put the Kettle On‚ and The Grand Old Duke of York. Of course, they didn't always listen with mother, because housewives in the 1950s were far too busy to sit down for 15 minutes!Watch with Mother
By 1953, and in no small way prompted by the televised coverage of the Queen's coronation, more homes in Britain had a TV set - albeit a rented one. Listen with Mother was now joined by Watch with Mother, and so began a cycle of children's TV shows that would continue until 1975. The programmes aired from 3.45 pm to 4 pm each weekday, switching to 1.30 pm in 1955, and it seems the classic line-up is fondly etched into the memories of those who watched them. Many members of the Spring Chicken community have commented: "Monday was Picture Book, Tuesday was Andy Pandy, Wednesday was Bill and Ben, Thursday was Rag, Tag and Bobtail, and Friday was The Woodentops," demonstrating just how important these shows were in their childhood. Which programme was your favourite? Of course, Daddy was at work at 1.30pm!
Picture Book
Patricia Driscoll Picture Book was all about making things, and original presenter Patricia Driscoll would say to viewers "Do you think you could do this? I am sure you could if you tried." In 1957, Patricia left Picture Book to play the role of Maid Marion in the TV series The Adventures of Robin Hood. New presenter Vera McKechnie was joined by a talking dachshund puppet named Sausage, and regular features included the Adventures of the Jolly Jack Tars and the story of Bizzy Lizzy with her magic flower and doll named Mo. But, did you ever join in and make hills and valleys in your own sand tray?
Andy Pandy
According to Spring Chicken Facebook followers, Andy Pandy was a bit like Marmite - you either loved it or you hated it! Everyone who remembers Watch with Mother remembers Andy Pandy, Teddy and Looby Loo, but not always fondly. Some say,"Lovely memories - I just loved Andy Pandy.While others say, "It was last ditch if I had to watch Andy Pandy; it was barmy!‚" So, what do you remember about the programme? The building blocks that turned over at the beginning of each programme to spell Andy Pandy; Andy's striped romper suit and hat; the picnic basket the characters lived in, or perhaps Looby Loo's "Here we go Looby Loo" song? Andy, Teddy and Looby Loo were clearly puppets, but as one Facebook follower said,
"As a child, I didn't see the strings."
Each episode would end with a song: ‚"Time to stop play, just for today, Andy and Teddy must now go away. Time to stop play, just for today, Andy is waving goodbye - goodbye‚ goodbye‚" with more than one Facebook comment saying, "I used to cry when they said Andy is saying goodbye- goodbye- When he and Teddy climbed into the basket, I sobbed every time!."
Bill and Ben
Bill and Ben were flowerpot men. They each lived in a flowerpot in the garden, and between them grew Little Weed. It's fair to say that not much actually happened in each episode, but everyone remembers Bill and Ben's Oddle Poddle or Flobbalob language, created and spoken by Peter Hawkins who also voiced the Daleks and Captain Pugwash, and Little Weed's answer to every question, Weeeeeed!‚ The memory of Bill and Ben lives on in gardens to this day.
