7 /10 1 Votes
6.3/10 TV Original language(s) English Final episode date 29 December 1969 Number of seasons 1 | 7.8/10 IMDb Country of origin United Kingdom First episode date 6 October 1969 Network BBC One Number of episodes 13 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Similar Camberwick Green, Clangers, Rastamouse, Raa Raa the Noisy Lion, Bagpuss | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chigley bbc tv 1969 bbc childrens programme bbc1 bbc2 hd 1080p
Chigley (1969) is the third and final stop-motion children's television series in Gordon Murray's Trumptonshire trilogy. Production details are identical to Camberwick Green.
Contents
- Chigley bbc tv 1969 bbc childrens programme bbc1 bbc2 hd 1080p
- Chigley time flies by when i m the driver of a train
- Characters
- Episodes
- VHS and DVD releases
- References
As in Camberwick Green and Trumpton, the action centres on a small community, in this case the fictitious village or hamlet of Chigley, near Camberwick Green in Trumptonshire. Chigley is more of an industrial area, and according to Gordon Murray, the three communities are at the corners of an equilateral triangle. The names of the places in the series have been based on real villages in East Sussex: Camberwick Green from Wivelsfield Green, Trumpton from Plumpton and Chigley from Chailey. A digitally restored version of the series from the rediscovered original film masters emerged in 2012.
Chigley time flies by when i m the driver of a train
Characters
Unlike Trumpton, Chigley includes many guest appearances by characters from the previous two series, including Windy Miller of Camberwick Green and the Trumpton fire brigade, complete with their famous roll-call. This was at least partly for economic reasons, as it allowed the established characters' theme songs to be re-used, thus saving money on recording.
Notable new characters include Mr Swallow of Treddle's Wharf, Mr Rumpling the barge captain, Mr Cresswell, owner of Cresswell's Chigley Biscuit factory, Harry Farthing the potter and his daughter Winnie, Willie Munn, Mr Clamp's nephew, who is employed at the biscuit factory, Mr Bilton, the Winkstead Hall gardener, and, last but not least, the aristocratic Lord Belborough of Winkstead Hall and his butler Brackett, who also operate a private railway that seems to run through most of Trumptonshire. The pair are called on to transport or collect goods in every episode, much to Lord Belborough's delight, as he loves driving the engine, which is named Bessie. Another character frequently delighted by these excursions is Winnie Farthing, whom Lord Belborough and Brackett nearly always invite to join them for a ride on Bessie. The notable song unique to Chigley, "Time flies by while I'm the driver of a train", was always sung during these sequences.
As with the other series, everybody's problems appear to be sorted out by the end of each episode. However, eccentric feudal landowner Lord Belborough orders everyone to the grounds of Winkstead Hall after the 6 o'clock whistle which sounds the end of the day's work at the local biscuit factory. Belborough plays his vintage organ, while the workers gather for a dance and the episode fades out.
Episodes
- "Lord Belborough's Secret" (6 October 1969) Dr Mopp
- "Bessie to the Rescue" (13 October 1969) Farmer Bell
- "The Balloon" (20 October 1969) The Mayor
- "The Fountain" (27 October 1969) PC McGarry
- "The Garden Wall" (3 November 1969) Mr Crockett
- "Binnie and Bessie" (10 November 1969) Roger Varley
- "Lord Belborough's Lucky Day" (17 November 1969) Thomas Tripp
- "The Broken Bridge" (24 November 1969) Mr Carraway
- "Clay for Mr Farthing" (1 December 1969) Mr Wantage and Fred
- "Trouble with the Crane" (8 December 1969) Mr Rumpling
- "Apples Galore" (15 December 1969) Mickey Murphy
- "Willie Munn" (22 December 1969) Mr Clamp
- "A Present for Lord Belborough" (29 December 1969) Mr Antonio
Episode titles were given in Radio Times but were not shown on-screen.
VHS and DVD releases
in 1984, 15 years after its broadcast on the BBC in 1969. Longman Video released one video with the first four episodes as part of its 'Children's Treasury' collection.
5 years later, in 1989, the BBC released a video with the three more episodes (ep.13 A Present for Lord Belborough, ep.11 Apples Garlore and ep.10 Trouble with the Crane).
And in 1996-1997, Telstar Home Entertainment released two videos as part of its 'Star Kids' range.
In 2011, Chigley and the two earlier series Camberwick Green and Trumpton were digitally-restored from the rediscovered original film masters.