Picture Book (TV series) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Picture Book |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of episodes | 50 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 15 minutes (approximate) |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC 1 |
| Original release | 1955 – 1965 |
Picture Book was a fun BBC children's TV show. It first aired in 1955 and was created by Freda Lingstrom. This show was part of the Watch with Mother series, shown every Monday. It taught children how to make cool things.
Contents
What Was Picture Book About?
Picture Book encouraged children to be creative. Each episode showed how to make different crafts and items. The show's main goal was to inspire kids to try making things themselves. Its famous saying was, "Do you think you could do this? – I am sure you could if you tried."
Meet the Presenters
The first presenter was Patricia Driscoll. She hosted the show from 1955. Patricia left in 1957 to play Maid Marian in The Adventures of Robin Hood on ITV. Her episodes were shown again until 1963.
After Patricia, Vera McKechnie took over as the new presenter. She continued to host the show. Picture Book ran until December 1965. It was then replaced by another show called Camberwick Green.
The Show's Music
The opening music for Picture Book was a lively tune. It was called "Badinerie." This piece of music was the last part of a famous work by Johann Sebastian Bach. It came from his "Orchestral Suite No. 2 in B minor."
How the Show Worked
In each episode, the presenter would open a large "Picture Book." They would show a page related to the day's activity. Sometimes, the book was shown from far away. Other times, the presenter simply told the audience what they would be making. A still photo might be used to help explain.
Every week brought something new and different. In the 1963 series, a special character joined the show. This was Sausage, a puppet dachshund dog. Sausage could say a few words and often helped Vera McKechnie present the show.
Fun Activities and Characters
Later episodes of Picture Book featured many exciting things. A 1987 video release showed an episode with Sausage the puppet dog. It also included "The Adventures of the Jolly Jack Tars," who were a group of sailors.
Children learned how to make paper lanterns. They also saw how to grow mustard and cress plants. A regular cartoon in the show was about a little girl named Bizzy Lizzy. She had a magic flower. Maria Bird narrated the "Bizzy Lizzy" parts. She also narrated other popular children's shows like Andy Pandy and The Woodentops.
Another episode, released in 1989, showed how to create hills and a valley. This was done using a sand tray. The sand tray was a common item used in the program. Both of these later episodes were from the 1963 series, presented by Vera McKechnie.
