20 years ago - and The Teletubbuies arrive on television
IT’S hard to believe this bunch turn 20 today.
They’re old enough to drink, drive, smoke, vote and get married Heaven forbid!
The Teletubbies’ strange, entrancing colourful, alternative world first appeared on BBC2 TV on March 31, 1997.
And you may not know that the concept was dreamed up by County Durham-born Anne Wood, a former schoolteacher who turns 80 later this year.
If you were a child in the late 1990s onwards, or had kids or grandkids then, you’ll certainly remember the exploits of Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po.
Indeed, for those of us who had young children and watched the show then, it was a somewhat relaxing, undemanding television experience (although not a patch on Thomas the Tank Engine!)
Meanwhile, among the student fraternity, the series gained an unexpected cult following for what some saw as its almost psychedelic qualities.
The original show ran until 2001 - and a revived series kicked off in 2015.
Anne also worked in children’s book and TV production before Teletubbies became a worldwide hit.
It was screened in more than 100 countries, translated into 45 languages, and even notched up a number one single, Teletubbies Say Eh-Oh. There was also a whole range of merchandise.
But the show also had its critics, most notably when an American preacher claimed Tinky Winky – who carried a handbag – could be a gay role model!
Anne, who also co-produced In The Night Garden, was brought up in Spennymoor, County Durham.
She said: “It was the most extraordinary experience because I wanted to make a programme that had love in it, that was about big hugs.
“You’d have thought I’d started World War III, the response that happened. But there are people who are afraid of it for some reason. It’s innocent fun, that’s all it is.” ■■If you fancy a return trip to Tellytubbyland, the show airs on Cbeebies.