Charlie Chalk facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Charlie Chalk |
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|---|---|
| Created by | Ivor Wood |
| Written by | Jocelyn Stevenson |
| Directed by | Derek Mogford |
| Starring | Michael Williams John Wells Barbara Leigh-Hunt |
| Opening theme | "Charlie Chalk" sung by Ken Barrie |
| Ending theme | "Charlie Chalk (Different Version)" sung by Ken Barrie |
| Composer(s) | Mike Redway |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Ivor Wood |
| Editor(s) | Martin Bohan |
| Running time | 15 minutes per episode (approx) |
| Production company(s) | Woodland Animations |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC1 |
| Original release | 20 October 1988 – 19 April 1989 |
Charlie Chalk is a fun stop-motion animated TV series from the United Kingdom. It was made in 1987 by Woodland Animations. This company also created other popular children's shows like Postman Pat, Gran, and Bertha. People really liked Charlie Chalk when it first came out. The show started airing on BBC One on October 20, 1988. Later episodes were shown on BBC Two.
Contents
Welcome to Merrytwit Island!
The series tells the story of Charlie Chalk, a happy clown. One day, he falls asleep while fishing in the sea. When he wakes up, he finds himself on a strange and wonderful island called Merrytwit. The show's opening song explains how he got there. On Merrytwit, everyone has to watch out for coconuts. They are always falling from the trees!
Charlie's New Home
In the very first episode, called 'Shipwrecked Charlie', Charlie arrives on Merrytwit. He quickly makes friends with some of the island's funny residents. He likes them so much that he decides to stay and build a home there. The rest of the episodes follow Charlie and his new friends. They go on exciting adventures all around the island.
Meet the Merrytwit Friends!
Here are some of the main characters you'll meet on Merrytwit Island:
- Charlie Chalk: He is a kind and friendly clown. Charlie was on a fishing trip when he ended up on Merrytwit Island. The theme song says he has "a funny way of walking and a wacky way of chalking." He often tumbles around like a circus performer to show how happy he is. Charlie can also do amazing magic tricks! Michael Williams was the voice of Charlie.
- Captain Mildred: She is the leader of Merrytwit Island. Captain Mildred loves to see everyone working hard. She often lists tasks that need to be done, like "a: do this; b: do that." She lives on her beached ship, which is named Buttercup.
- Mary the Hover Fairy: Mary is an old fairy who is very helpful. She can cast spells, but only if she can find her magic wand, Houdini! Mary is getting older and decided to live on Merrytwit. She lives on the Buttercup with Captain Mildred and helps her out.
- Lewis T. Duck: This is a small duck who can get a bit grumpy. He always thinks his ideas are the best. He loves to tell everyone that he is "always right." Lewis can be friendly, but he doesn't have much patience. The 'T' in his name stands for 'The'.
- Arnold the Elephant: Arnold is a pink elephant. He is usually very cheerful but also quite clumsy. This often annoys Lewis, who seems to always be in the way of Arnold's accidents!
- Edward: Edward is a monkey who loves to sleep. He really dislikes doing any work.
- Trader Jones: Trader is the island's handyman. He drives a special bike that works as both a taxi and a delivery truck. He also owns a general store on the island. If you need something, Trader Jones probably has it! He never takes money. Instead, he trades things, like bananas for a day of beachcombing.
- Bert: Bert is an ogre. Charlie, Arnold, and Lewis found him in the episode 'The Mountain that Moaned'. He lives inside a cave. Bert is very friendly, but he isn't the smartest.
- Litterbug: This is a tiny bug whose job is to clean up litter all over the island. He often complains about how much litter there is. But he doesn't realize that his own sack has a hole in it, which makes more mess! Because he is so small, people don't always notice him, which makes him even more frustrated.
Episodes of Charlie Chalk
The series has 13 exciting episodes. Here is a list of them:
| # | Title | Summary | Broadcast Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shipwrecked Charlie | Charlie Chalk lands on Merrytwit and meets Edward, Trader Jones, Captain Mildred, Arnold and Lewis T. Duck. They all agree that the first thing Charlie must do is build a house but choosing the best location proves difficult. | 20 October 1988 |
| 2 | Arnold's Night Out | Charlie finds a treasure map and he, Lewis and Arnold decide to go looking for the treasure but become confused and fall out with each other. Arnold ends up finding the treasure after walking through the night. | 27 October 1988 |
| 3 | The Coconut Harvest | In the middle of the coconut harvest, Trader Jones makes a wish and, before anyone knows what has happened, Mary the Hover Fairy appears. She grants Trader's wish but he discovers that the magic may not be the best way to harvest coconuts. | 3 November 1988 |
| 4 | The Sneezes | Charlie unfortunately has to cancel the big expedition to find the Bye Bye Beast because he has got the sneezes. But when Trader Jones' cure for the dread disease happens to include the elusive Beast's favourite food, Charlie's luck changes. | 10 November 1988 |
| 5 | Jumping Bananas | Litterbug, on his constant quest for tidiness, picks up Mary the Hover Fairy's wand when she puts it down halfway through a spell. When the poor creature is chased by a crowd of jumping bananas, he finds out that there could be such a thing as being too tidy. | 17 November 1988 |
| 6 | The Mountain That Moaned | One day Arnold claims that the mountain moaned and no one believes him. So Charlie and Lewis decide to set off and see why the mountain moans. The mountain leads them to a new friend. | 24 November 1988 |
| 7 | Edward Keeps Fit | It is inspection day on Merrytwit and Captain Mildred decides it is time lazy Edward took some exercise. | 1 December 1988 |
| 8 | The Feast | Charlie is helping Trader Jones beach combing when they stumble upon a cookery book. Trader decides to prepare the first Merrytwit feast, but when coconuts and bananas are the only ingredients available, the feast does not quite work out as planned. | 8 December 1988 |
| 9 | There Are No Roads On Merrytwit | Lewis T. Duck, who is always right, is dismayed to discover that there are no roads on Merrytwit. So he decides to build one. | 15 December 1988 |
| 10 | Mildred's Day Off | Captain Mildred is becoming bored of her day-to-day life of living on her boat she calls a home, so she decided to take her best friend Mary the Hover Fairy with her on a short holiday. | 22 December 1988 |
| 11 | Bert's Boring Day | The cave monster Bert is having a boring day, he has run out of interesting things to do in Merrytwit, but his day soon livens up when his friends plan a day full of fun. | 5 April 1989 |
| 12 | Return Of The Litter | It will soon be Litterbug's birthday; Charlie and the other inhabitants of Merrytwit cannot think of a gift to give Litterbug for his birthday, they decide to explore the island for the perfect gift. | 12 April 1989 |
| 13 | Goodbye, Hello | Although Charlie is enjoying his new life on Merrytwit, he also misses the circus and his old friends back home, so Charlie decides to say goodbye to Merrytwit and his newfound friends and go back to his old life as a clown, but in the end decides to stay on Merrytwit. Clips from previous episodes are shown. | 19 April 1989 |
Charlie Chalk Merchandise
You might have seen Charlie Chalk on video or even as a mascot!
Videos and DVDs
All 13 episodes of Charlie Chalk were released on three VHS tapes in the UK between 1988 and 1991 by BBC Videos. Later, Tempo Video and Contender Entertainment also released some episodes on VHS. In 2005, a DVD called "Charlie Chalk - The Complete Series" was released. It included all 13 episodes.
Other Fun Stuff
- In 1994, Redrock Records released a Charlie Chalk LP (a type of record). It had songs from the show and the full theme song.
- A new Charlie Chalk CD has also been made in America.
- The restaurant chain Brewers Fayre in the UK used Charlie Chalk as their mascot for a while.
- "Charlie Chalk Fun Factory" was a play area for young children. You could find these in large pubs across the United Kingdom. Today, they are mostly found around Aberdeen.
Where the Show Aired
Charlie Chalk was first shown in the United Kingdom on BBC One starting October 20, 1988. The last few episodes moved to BBC Two.
Around the World
The series also aired on cable television in the UK. It was shown on Sky One as part of The DJ Kat Show and later on The Children's Channel. Charlie Chalk was also sold to many other countries, including:
- ABC in Australia
- YTV in Canada
- RTÉ One and RTÉ Two in the Irish Republic
- TVNZ 1 and TVNZ 2 in New Zealand
- TVB in Hong Kong
- NRK in Norway
The show was even translated into Scottish Gaelic and called Callum an Cailc by BBC Scotland.
Voice Actors
Here are the talented people who gave voices to the characters:
- Michael Williams as Charlie Chalk, Lewis T. Duck, Trader Jones, Litterbug, and Rabbit
- Barbara Leigh-Hunt as Captain Mildred, Mary the Hover Fairy, and Ponka the Toucan
- John Wells as Arnold the Elephant, Edward, and Bert
- Ken Barrie as Song vocals
- Joan Baxter as Song vocals
- Mike Redway as Song vocals
