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Timbuctoo facts for kids

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This page is about the children's book series. For the city in Mali, see Timbuktu. For other uses of Timbuctoo or Timbuktu, see Timbuktu (disambiguation).
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Timbuctoo
Timbuctoo oink.jpg
Original 1978 edition of Oink. Other characters and books in the series had a similar appearance
Author Roger Hargreaves
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Published 1978–1979
No. of books 26

Timbuctoo is a fun series of 26 children's books. They were created by Roger Hargreaves, who also made the popular Mr Men books. These books came out between 1978 and 1979.

The stories are all about a group of animals. Each animal character is named after the sound it makes. For example, a dog is named Woof! Later, an animated TV show based on Timbuctoo was made. It was shown on CITV in the 1990s. The show was narrated by the famous Ronnie Corbett.

The Timbuctoo Books

The first 25 books were released in 1978 and 1979. Each book was named after its main animal character. There were also two special Timbuctoo Annuals published. More storybooks came out in 1979. In 1997, some books were printed again. They had new pictures to go along with the TV show. A new character, Bray, was also introduced then.

Books from 1978

  • Woof (a brown dog)
  • Meow (an orange cat)
  • Oink (a pink pig)
  • Chirp (a blue bird)
  • Trumpet (a grey elephant)
  • Squeak (a yellow mouse)
  • Moo (a brown and white cow)
  • Buzz (a brown and yellow bee)
  • Neigh (a red horse)
  • Roar (a yellow lion)
  • Snap (a green crocodile)
  • Hiss (a purple and green snake)

Four of these books were printed again in 1993. These were Woof, Trumpet, Buzz, and Oink.

Books from 1979

  • Croak (a green frog)
  • Cluck (an orange chicken)
  • Growl (a black and orange tiger)
  • Honk (a purple seal)
  • Chatter (an orange monkey)
  • Quack (a white duck)
  • Sniff (a blue rabbit)
  • Bleat (an orange goat)
  • Hoot (a brown owl)
  • Grizzle (a purple bear)
  • Puff (a black and white panda)
  • Squawk (a blue parrot)
  • Baa (a grey and white sheep)

There was also a set of 'Timbuctoo Shape Books'. These included Oink, Neigh, Growl, Roar, Squeak, Trumpet, Cluck, and Puff.

Books from 1997

  • Bray (a grey donkey)

Bray was added when all the older stories were reprinted. These new versions had fresh illustrations. They were released to go with the new TV series.

The Timbuctoo TV Show

The Timbuctoo TV show aired on CITV from early 1998 to 2000. It had two seasons and was based on the book characters. The first season was later released on VHS in March 1999. It was called Neigh Finds a New Home and Other Stories. The second season came out in February 2000. Its title was Woof Has Forgotten How to Bark and Other Stories.

The show was also shown again on Nick Jr. in 2001. It was broadcast alongside another ITV series, Mr. Men and Little Miss. Later, in 2003, it was shown on Tiny Living.

In the United States, Timbuctoo aired on Freeform from 1998 to 2002. It was also shown on V-me, Vme Kids, and Primo TV.

Season 1 (1998) Episodes

1. "Neigh Finds a New Home" (January 9, 1998) 2. "Honk Goes Swimming" (January 16, 1998) 3. "Snap Learns a New Game" (January 23, 1998) 4. "Cluck Gets a Letter" (January 30, 1998) 5. "Moo Has a Birthday Party" (February 6, 1998) 6. "Chirp Learns to Fly" (February 13, 1998) 7. "Croak Learns to Swim" (February 20, 1998) 8. "Oink and the Big Apple" (February 27, 1998) 9. "Squeak has a Big Day Out" (March 6, 1998) 10. "Bleat Takes the Ball By the Horns" (March 13, 1998) 11. "Grizzle Gets the Giggles" (March 20, 1998) 12. "Hoot Slips up at Question Time" (March 27, 1998) 13. "Meow Goes Fishing" (April 3, 1998)

Season 2 (1999-2000) Episodes

14. "Woof Has Forgotten How to Bark" (October 6, 1999) 15. "Hiss is Hopping Mad" (October 13, 1999) 16. "Chatter and His Long Tail" (October 20, 1999) 17. "Puff Buys Some Paint" (October 27, 1999) 18. "Roar Sets Out to Frighten Timbuctoo" (November 3, 1999) 19. "Trumpet Goes to the Seaside" (November 10, 1999) 20. "Quack Dreams of a New Beak" (November 17, 1999) 21. "Buzz is a Very Busy Bee" (November 24, 1999) 22. "Growl Has a Fright" (December 1, 1999) 23. "Baa Goes Shopping" (December 8, 1999) 24. "Sniff Runs Out of Carrots" (December 15, 1999) 25. "Bray Sleeps Through Christmas" (December 22, 1999) 26. "Squawk Joins the Choir" (January 5, 2000)

Timbuctoo Around the World

The Timbuctoo TV show was broadcast in many countries. Here are some of the places where kids could watch it:

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