Camberwick Green facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Camberwick Green |
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Title card
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| Genre | Stop motion animation |
| Written by | Gordon Murray |
| Narrated by | Brian Cant |
| Theme music composer | Freddie Phillips |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Gordon Murray |
| Running time | 15 mins |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC1 |
| Original release | 3 January – 28 March 1966 |
| Chronology | |
| Followed by | Trumpton |
Camberwick Green is a classic British children's television series. It was shown on BBC1 from January to March 1966. The show uses stop motion puppets to tell its stories. Camberwick Green is the first part of the famous Trumptonshire trilogy. The other two shows in the series are Trumpton and Chigley.
Contents
About Camberwick Green
The series was created and produced by Gordon Murray. Bob Bura, John Hardwick, and Pasquale Ferrari did the animation. Freddie Phillips wrote the music, and Brian Cant was the narrator and sang the songs. There are thirteen episodes, each lasting fifteen minutes. The show was made in colour by Gordon Murray Pictures. The name "Camberwick Green" might have come from a real village in East Sussex called Wivelsfield Green.
How Each Episode Begins
Every episode starts with a shot of a musical box. It spins around and plays a tune. A voice then says:
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?
Next, the lid of the box slowly opens like a flower or a camera lens. A puppet character then rises up from inside. This character will be important in the story for that episode. After a short introduction, the background appears, and the story begins!
Life in Camberwick Green
The show is set in a small, pretty, made-up village called Camberwick Green. It's part of a larger area called Trumptonshire. You'll meet characters like Police Constable McGarry (Number 452) and the well-known Windy Miller. Windy Miller owns an old, noisy, but working windmill. He believes in traditional farming methods.
The series mixes modern ideas with older styles of clothing and ways of life. Most characters have their own special theme songs. There are also characters who are only seen in the opening and closing credits. This includes a clown or pierrot who turns a roller to show the show's opening and closing credits.
Each week, the villagers face small problems. These might be a lack of flour, a group of bees, or a water shortage. Sometimes, there are rumours about a new electrical substation being built. But don't worry, all problems are always solved happily by the end of the episode! The narrator then says goodbye to the main puppet character, who goes back into the musical box.
Camberwick Green doesn't have any obvious magic or fantasy. It's mostly about ordinary people doing everyday things. This might be why it's still so popular. The show and its two follow-ups were shown many times on the BBC until 1985. Then, they were shown on Channel 4 from 1994 to 2000.
Episode Guide
Here are the names of the episodes. These titles were listed in Radio Times but didn't appear on screen.
- "Peter the Postman" (3 January 1966)
- "Windy Miller" (10 January 1966)
- "Mr Crockett the Garage Man" (17 January 1966)
- "Dr Mopp" (24 January 1966)
- "Farmer Jonathan Bell" (31 January 1966)
- "Captain Snort" (7 February 1966)
- "Paddy Murphy" (14 February 1966)
- "Roger Varley the Sweep" (21 February 1966)
- "PC McGarry" (28 February 1966)
- "Mr Dagenham the Salesman" (7 March 1966)
- "Mr Carraway the Fishmonger" (14 March 1966)
- "Mickey Murphy the Baker" (21 March 1966)
- "Mrs Honeyman and Her Baby" (28 March 1966)
Who Lives in Camberwick Green?
Pippin Fort Soldiers
The soldiers and staff at Pippin Fort are often seen in Camberwick Green. They practice their foot drill, help the community, and respond to emergencies. Before Trumpton, they were also the local fire brigade with their bright red fire pump.
- Captain Snort - the leader; appears in every episode.
- Sergeant Major Grout - the second-in-command; appears in 12 episodes.
- Private Armitage - the best swimmer; appears in 12 episodes.
- Private Featherby - appears in 12 episodes.
- Private Higgins - the smartest soldier; appears in 12 episodes.
- Private Hopwood - appears in 12 episodes.
- Private Lumley - not a natural soldier, but good at baking; appears in 12 episodes.
- Private Meek - sometimes daydreams, but good at babysitting; appears in 12 episodes.
- The Sentry - a regular character and the fort's Bugler; appears in 11 episodes.
Other Villagers
- Mr 'Windy' Miller - an iconic character who runs Colley's Mill; appears in every episode.
- Dr Mopp - the village doctor; appears in 12 episodes.
- Mr Carraway - the fishmonger; appears in 12 episodes.
- Mrs Dingle - the postmistress, always with her puppy 'Packet'; appears in every episode.
- Mr Mickey Murphy - the village baker; appears in every episode.
- Mrs Murphy - the baker's wife; appears in 8 episodes.
- Paddy Murphy - the baker's son; appears in 9 episodes.
- Mary Murphy - the baker's daughter; appears in 9 episodes.
- Police Constable McGarry - Camberwick Green's policeman, known as "PC McGarry, number 452"; appears in 6 episodes.
- Farmer Jonathan Bell - runs a modern farm; appears in 11 episodes.
- Mr Peter Hazel - the village postman; appears in 10 episodes.
- Mrs Honeyman - a housewife who loves to share village news; appears in every episode.
- Baby Honeyman - Mrs Honeyman's baby boy; appears in every episode.
- Mr Thomas Tripp - the milkman; appears in 5 episodes.
- Mr Roger Varley - the chimney sweep; appears in 9 episodes.
- Mr Crockett - runs Crockett's Garage; appears in 5 episodes.
- Mr Dagenham - a salesman with a red sports car; appears in 1 episode.
- Water Board Foreman - supervises engineers; appears in the final episode.
- Water Board Engineer - has a key role in some episodes; appears in 4 episodes.
- Water Board Assistant Engineer - helps the engineer; appears in 2 episodes.
Other Characters
- Clown or Pierrot - appears in the opening and closing credits of every episode.
Credits
- Music: Freddie Phillips
- Narrator: Brian Cant
- Sets: Margaret Brownfoot and Andrew Brownfoot
- Animation: Bob Bura & John Hardwick
- Puppets: Gordon Murray
- Produced by Gordon Murray Puppets Ltd 1966.
