Fingerbobs
Encyclopedia
Fingerbobs was a British
children's television programme made by the BBC
in 1972. The first episode was broadcast on 14 February 1972 on BBC1
as part of Watch with Mother
. The show was created by Joanne and Michael Cole, who also created Bod
. Only thirteen episodes were ever made.
Presented by mime artist
"Yoffy" (played by Canadian
actor Rick Jones
), each ten-minute episode told a story centred around a paper finger puppet animal, and usually involved collecting various items (such as pebbles or feathers) to make up another object at the end. The finger puppets, each of whom had their own song, included:
Fingermouse gained his own series in 1985. In this series, the focus was more on musical instruments. One series was made of thirteen programmes.
The memorable theme tune went "Yoffy lifts a finger, and a mouse is there/Puts his hands together, and a seagull takes the air/Yoffy lifts a finger, and a scampi darts about/Yoffy bends another, and a tortoise head peeps out/These hands were made for making, and making they must do."
At the end of the series Jones was so sick of making the show that he destroyed the finger puppets while the camera was still rolling.
Fingerbobs was referenced in the video of 'A Town Called Hypocrisy
" by Lostprophets
.
Gulliver's Stories
Scampi's Stories
Fingermouse's Stories
Flash's Stories
Note: Episode titles were given in Radio Times, but were not shown on-screen.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
children's television programme made by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in 1972. The first episode was broadcast on 14 February 1972 on BBC1
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
as part of Watch with Mother
Watch with Mother
Watch With Mother was a cycle of children's programmes broadcast from 1952 by BBC Television which was created by Freda Lingstrom.It was the first BBC television programme specifically aimed at pre-school children, like its radio equivalent Listen with Mother that also started in 1950...
. The show was created by Joanne and Michael Cole, who also created Bod
Bod (series)
Bod was a BBC children's television programme first shown in 1975, with thirteen episodes, based on four original Bod books by Joanna and Michael Cole. It was an animated cartoon series narrated by John Le Mesurier & Maggie Henderson with music by Derek Griffiths and produced by David Yates...
. Only thirteen episodes were ever made.
Presented by mime artist
Mime artist
A mime artist is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or the acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. In earlier times, in English, such a performer was referred to as a mummer...
"Yoffy" (played by Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
actor Rick Jones
Rick Jones (television presenter)
Rick Jones was a presenter of BBC children's television programmes during the 1970s.-Biography:A Canadian by birth, Jones began his TV career as a co-presenter of Play School, a daily programme for pre-school age children, in which he played guitar and sang...
), each ten-minute episode told a story centred around a paper finger puppet animal, and usually involved collecting various items (such as pebbles or feathers) to make up another object at the end. The finger puppets, each of whom had their own song, included:
- FingermouseFingermouseFingermouse is the name of a British children's television programme made by the BBC in 1985. The first episode was broadcast on November 4, 1985 on BBC1. The eponymous star was a paper finger puppet in the form of a mouse, who would play various musical instruments with the help of Iain...
- a mouseMouseA mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
, consisting of a grey paper cone head with paper ears and whiskers with a grey glove for the body ("Fingermouse, Fingermouse/I am a sort of wondermouse"). Fingermouse later got his own show, with a new puppeteer, called "The Music Man". The Music Man would tell stories involving Fingermouse, using musical instruments.
- Gulliver - a seagullGullGulls are birds in the family Laridae. They are most closely related to the terns and only distantly related to auks, skimmers, and more distantly to the waders...
made from a white ping-pong ball (head) placed over a thumb and white gloves forming the body with outstretched fingers as the wings. ("I spread my wings.") - Scampi - several scampiScampiScampi is the term for a particular type of lobster, deriving originally from the Greek word κάμπη 'kampē' meaning a 'bending' or 'winding'. The name is sometimes used loosely to describe a style of preparation typically for seafood, and as a culinary name for some species of crustacean...
were made using purple gloves with red heads on each finger - Flash - a tortoiseTortoiseTortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...
, with a paper shell. ("Slowly, steadily, I move at my own pace/They call me Flash though I won't dash/Who wants to run a race?")
Fingermouse gained his own series in 1985. In this series, the focus was more on musical instruments. One series was made of thirteen programmes.
The memorable theme tune went "Yoffy lifts a finger, and a mouse is there/Puts his hands together, and a seagull takes the air/Yoffy lifts a finger, and a scampi darts about/Yoffy bends another, and a tortoise head peeps out/These hands were made for making, and making they must do."
At the end of the series Jones was so sick of making the show that he destroyed the finger puppets while the camera was still rolling.
Fingerbobs was referenced in the video of 'A Town Called Hypocrisy
A Town Called Hypocrisy
"A Town Called Hypocrisy" is the second single taken from Liberation Transmission, the third album by the Welsh alternative rock band Lostprophets.The single was released on 11 September 2006 in the United Kingdom...
" by Lostprophets
Lostprophets
Lostprophets is a Welsh rock band from Pontypridd, formed in 1997. Founded by vocalist Ian Watkins, bassist Mike Lewis, drummer Mike Chiplin and guitarist Lee Gaze, they were originally a side-project to hardcore punk band Public Disturbance. To date, Lostprophets have released four studio...
.
Episodes
The following information has been taken from the Kult Kidz Gold DVD release of the series.Gulliver's Stories
- Bumpy
- Stones
- Feathers
Scampi's Stories
- Sounds
- Wood
- Shiny
Fingermouse's Stories
- String
- Shadow
- Shapes
- Bricks
Flash's Stories
- Paint
- Seeds
- House
Note: Episode titles were given in Radio Times, but were not shown on-screen.