Birthday People
Encyclopedia
Birthday People was a British children's television programme that ran for several years on the south west of England's regional channel Westcountry Television
. The programme, showcasing children's birthday cards and messages, was Westcountry's replacement for the highly successful Gus Honeybun
slots aired by the company's predecessors TSW and Westward
.
A number of different formats for Birthday People were tried out from 1993, including a nature theme presented by ex-Really Wild Show
host Nicola Davies. Chris Langmore one of Westcountry's two Continuity Announcers presented the show with science themes from a number of locations around the South West. From Plymouth City Airport he took the show high over the countryside presenting one of the sequences from a light aircraft. From Kent's Cavern in Torquay he dressed up as a caveman to show how hard life was in pre-historic times. Westcountry presenters were also sent out to read birthday cards from local tourist attractions. From around 2000, Birthday People was hosted by a pair of puppet characters called Flotsam and Jetsam.
Captain Flotsam lived in a lighthouse
on "Herringbone Rock" with his sidekick Jessie the Seagull. Here they would present "The Birthday Log", while having various, often surreal, adventures. The first episode was never aired as it was considered too rude. It was an Easter programme in which Jessie (the seagull) sprayed the lighthouse with eggs. It is believed it was pulled because these eggs came from her bottom. The decision of the Executives not to air this episode left most of ITV Westcountry baffled. It is not known if a tape of this programme remains.
They would occasionally be joined by other puppet characters - the pirates Salvador Swash and Buckle the Seadog, their cleaner Lighthouse Lil and their resident scientist The Eminent Professor, who would frequently be put through painful and humiliating experiments to test a silly theory or would answer emails from the viewers at home (who seemed to include a large number of students).
The programme was only two to three minutes long, but would often have an ongoing story or theme that would take them through the week.
The characters went on to star in their own half hour Christmas specials in 2002 and 2003, in which Flotsam and Jetsam rescued Father Christmas
from the clutches of Swash and Buckle and helped King Arthur
recover the Holy Grail
from marauding Viking
s in an adventure through time (involving a Doctor Who
pastiche). The programme aired until 2004.
The show's puppeteers and voices were: Dave Oliver, Austin Hackney and Adam Carter; they also wrote the scripts, along with Ian Searle (one of the technicians who worked on the show) who also script-edited the Christmas Special, 'Guardians of the Grail'. The programme was firstly produced by Tod Grimwade, Mike Geldard then took over and produced the weekly show and the two half hour Christmas specials, the final person to produce the three minute programmes was Leila Fletcher. Birthday people was filmed at Westcountry Television
in Plympton
, Plymouth
and on location.
More info about the show can be found on the internet movie database at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1109540/ and TV Ark at http://www2.tv-ark.org.uk/itvsouthwest/carlton_programmes.html
Westcountry Television
Westcountry Television, is the ITV franchise holder in the South West of England, replacing its predecessor, TSW , from the 1 January 1993...
. The programme, showcasing children's birthday cards and messages, was Westcountry's replacement for the highly successful Gus Honeybun
Gus Honeybun
Gus Honeybun was the station mascot for Westward Television, and later Television South West, from 1961 to 1992. A puppet rabbit, and star of Gus Honeybun's Magic Birthdays, he achieved a longevity for a TV puppet second only to Sooty....
slots aired by the company's predecessors TSW and Westward
Westward Television
Westward Television was the first ITV franchise holder for the South West of England from 29 April 1961 until 31 December 1981. After a difficult start, Westward provided a popular, distinctive and highly regarded service to its region, until public boardroom squabbles led to its franchise not...
.
A number of different formats for Birthday People were tried out from 1993, including a nature theme presented by ex-Really Wild Show
The Really Wild Show
The Really Wild Show was a long-running British television show about wildlife, broadcast by the BBC as part of their CBBC service to children. It also runs on Animal Planet in the USA.The show was broadcast continuously since January 21, 1986...
host Nicola Davies. Chris Langmore one of Westcountry's two Continuity Announcers presented the show with science themes from a number of locations around the South West. From Plymouth City Airport he took the show high over the countryside presenting one of the sequences from a light aircraft. From Kent's Cavern in Torquay he dressed up as a caveman to show how hard life was in pre-historic times. Westcountry presenters were also sent out to read birthday cards from local tourist attractions. From around 2000, Birthday People was hosted by a pair of puppet characters called Flotsam and Jetsam.
Captain Flotsam lived in a lighthouse
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
on "Herringbone Rock" with his sidekick Jessie the Seagull. Here they would present "The Birthday Log", while having various, often surreal, adventures. The first episode was never aired as it was considered too rude. It was an Easter programme in which Jessie (the seagull) sprayed the lighthouse with eggs. It is believed it was pulled because these eggs came from her bottom. The decision of the Executives not to air this episode left most of ITV Westcountry baffled. It is not known if a tape of this programme remains.
They would occasionally be joined by other puppet characters - the pirates Salvador Swash and Buckle the Seadog, their cleaner Lighthouse Lil and their resident scientist The Eminent Professor, who would frequently be put through painful and humiliating experiments to test a silly theory or would answer emails from the viewers at home (who seemed to include a large number of students).
The programme was only two to three minutes long, but would often have an ongoing story or theme that would take them through the week.
The characters went on to star in their own half hour Christmas specials in 2002 and 2003, in which Flotsam and Jetsam rescued Father Christmas
Father Christmas
Father Christmas is the name used in many English-speaking countries for a figure associated with Christmas. A similar figure with the same name exists in several other countries, including France , Spain , Brazil , Portugal , Italy , Armenia , India...
from the clutches of Swash and Buckle and helped King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
recover the Holy Grail
Holy Grail
The Holy Grail is a sacred object figuring in literature and certain Christian traditions, most often identified with the dish, plate, or cup used by Jesus at the Last Supper and said to possess miraculous powers...
from marauding Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
s in an adventure through time (involving a Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
pastiche). The programme aired until 2004.
The show's puppeteers and voices were: Dave Oliver, Austin Hackney and Adam Carter; they also wrote the scripts, along with Ian Searle (one of the technicians who worked on the show) who also script-edited the Christmas Special, 'Guardians of the Grail'. The programme was firstly produced by Tod Grimwade, Mike Geldard then took over and produced the weekly show and the two half hour Christmas specials, the final person to produce the three minute programmes was Leila Fletcher. Birthday people was filmed at Westcountry Television
Westcountry Television
Westcountry Television, is the ITV franchise holder in the South West of England, replacing its predecessor, TSW , from the 1 January 1993...
in Plympton
Plympton
Plympton, or Plympton Maurice or Plympton St Maurice or Plympton St Mary or Plympton Erle, in south-western Devon, England is an ancient stannary town: an important trading centre in the past for locally mined tin, and a former seaport...
, Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
and on location.
More info about the show can be found on the internet movie database at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1109540/ and TV Ark at http://www2.tv-ark.org.uk/itvsouthwest/carlton_programmes.html