For The Children is a British television

British television

Public television broadcasting started in the United Kingdom in 1936, and now has a collection of free and subscription services over a variety of distribution media, through which there are over 480 channelsTaking the base Sky EPG TV Channels. A breakdown is impossible due to a) the number of...

 programme, the first to be designed especially for young children of school age. First broadcast on the BBC Television Service

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...

 at 3pm on Saturday 24 April 1937, for its first two years the series was only ten minutes in length. Suspended along with the rest of BBC Television for the duration of the Second World War in 1939, it returned on 7 July 1946, now running on Sunday afternoons and expanded to twenty minutes in length.

The series featured a variety of different presenters and acts – story readings, puppet shows, songs. Of particular note is the edition broadcast on 4 August 1946, which saw the debut of famous children's television puppet Muffin the Mule

Muffin the Mule

Muffin the Mule is a puppet character in British television programmes for children. The original programmes featuring the character were presented by Annette Mills, sister of John Mills, & aunt to Hayley Mills, and broadcast live by the BBC from their studios at Alexandra Palace from 1946 to 1952...

, accompanied by his "friend" Annette Mills

Annette Mills

Annette Mills was an English actress, dancer and broadcaster.She was born Edith Mabel Mills in Wandsworth, London. She had originally intended to become a concert pianist and organist, before becoming a dancer, subsequently finding fame as an international exhibition dancer...

, sister of John Mills

John Mills

Sir John Mills CBE , born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills, was an English actor who made more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades.-Life and career:...

. The duo would go on to have their own programme and become extremely popular – Muffin was revived in a new animated series in 2005.

For The Children was last broadcast in 1950, when it was superseded by other BBC children's television programmes, including Watch with Mother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...

.

It is probable no episodes exist of For The Children.