Animal Magic (TV series) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Animal Magic |
|
|---|---|
| Presented by | Johnny Morris |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of series | 42 |
| No. of episodes | 440 |
| Production | |
| Running time | various |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC One |
| Original release | 13 April 1962 – 8 March 1983 |
Animal Magic was a very popular British children's TV show. It ran on BBC One from 1962 to 1983. The show was filmed at Bristol Zoo. It taught kids about animals in a fun and engaging way.
Contents
What Was Animal Magic?
The main presenter of Animal Magic was Johnny Morris. He was famous for his funny voiceovers. He would pretend to be the animals talking! This made learning about them very entertaining. The show combined these funny parts with real facts about animals. It started every two weeks, then became a weekly show from 1964.
Meet the Presenters and Animal Stars
Over the years, Johnny Morris had many co-presenters. These included Gerald Durrell, Tony Soper, and Terry Nutkins. When Terry Nutkins joined in the early 1980s, the show tried new things. They used special video effects. This allowed them to "shrink" the presenters. They could then show what life was like from an ant's view. Or they could pretend to swim in a riverbed.
The show also had many animal stars. Dotty the ring-tailed lemur was a regular guest for eight years. Other animal friends included Gemini the sea lion. There were also two parrots, Cocky and Brolly.
Why the Show Ended
Animal Magic stopped being made in 1983. This was because people's ideas about animal shows changed. They wanted to see animals acting more naturally. They were less interested in shows where animals seemed to "talk" like humans.
A new children's wildlife show started in 1986. It was called The Really Wild Show. Interestingly, Terry Nutkins from Animal Magic became its main host.
Show Milestones and Lost Episodes
The 100th episode of Animal Magic was shown on January 4, 1967.
Sadly, many old episodes of the show were lost. The BBC removed them in the early 1990s. They thought these old recordings were no longer needed. Because of this, newer documentaries sometimes have to use clips. These clips come from old recordings made by people at home.
The Famous Theme Tune
The catchy theme song for Animal Magic was called "Las Vegas". It was played by the Group Forty Orchestra. Laurie Johnson wrote the music in 1960.
Around 1980, the original orchestra version changed. It became a funk version. This new version had an electric guitar with a special "wah wah" sound. More recently, the original "Las Vegas" tune was used again. It became the theme music for a BBC Two comedy show called W1A.
