Sooty

creator Harry Corbett bought the glove puppet from a stall in Blackpool. The Sooty Show and its spin-offs now hold the Guinness World Record for longestrunning children’s TV programme.

Sooty’s sidekick Sweep came fourth in the puppet poll, while panda girlfriend Soo and canine chum Butch also appeared in the top 20.

There was no place for Rod Hull’s Emu, Keith Harris’ Orville the Duck, Spit the Dog, Roland Rat and, surprisingly, Punch and Judy.

But six of Muppet master Jim Henson’s creations made the final cut, including Miss Piggy, Animal, Cookie Monster, Elmo and Bert and Ernie.

Zippy from Rainbow also has a place, as do Lady Penelope and Brains from the Thunderbirds.

Hotel chain Travelodge decided to survey 2,000 adults after its “Travelodgicals” advertising campaign proved a hit with viewers.

Spokeswoman Shakila Ahmed said: “We are amazed by the public reaction to the Travelodgicals, – the singing puppets who feature in our new television campaign.

“Since they launched in May this year, we have been inundated with customer enquiries on how they can get hold of the puppets.

“Especially family man Max, who people think looks like David Cameron. This likeness is a pure coincidence and was not intended.

“However this feedback clearly demonstrates that we have a huge fascination and great love for puppets which is why we undertook this poll.” The most famous Muppet has starred in films, TV and on stage. He shot to fame in Sesame Street before The Muppet Show. Recently split from girlfriend Miss Piggy. First appeared live on BBC TV in July 1950 and is the second oldest to make the list. The marionette lived in a picnic basket with pals Teddy and ragdoll Looby Loo. Naughty dog Butch is the villain in Sooty and Sweep. The dark brown bull dog was a neighbour of the more famous pair and has the edge over Sweep as he can talk. First appeared on TV in 1985 with presenter Phillip Schofield on The Broom Cupboard and later on the BBC’s Going Live. Gordon the Gopher later branched out with his own show. The best pals were created in 1969 and have starred in both The Muppets and Sesame Street. They share an apartment and bedroom but have separate beds. The sheep made from a sock was created by the late US comedian and ventriloquist Shari Lewis in 1957. After Shari died in 1998 her daughter Mallory Lewis took over. After a minor role, the karate chopping diva made her presence felt and became one of The Muppet Show’s top stars. She is in the new series which starts next week. The outspoken star of Rainbow would often find his zip shut if he let his mouth run away with him. When not constantly talking, he would fill his huge gob with lots of sweets. Teddy lived with Andy Pandy and Looby Loo in the much-loved series. The three puppets were the stars of BBC’s iconic Watch With Mother programme ‘Boom Boom’ Basil burst on to our screens in 1962 and in the 70s the well dressed upper class fox became a national treasure. Basil now has his own weekly YouTube show. The wild drummer of Dr Teeth and The Electric Mayhem, the Muppet Show band. It is said his character can be summed up in five words: sex, sleep, food, drums, and pain. Soo first appeared in 1964 as the girlfriend of Sooty, but their relationship cooled and they became friends. A calm and collected panda, she is the foil for Sooty and Sweep. Created in 1966, the Sesame Street puppet had few lines apart from: “Me want cookie!” and “Me eat cookie!”. But the hungry blue creature became a favourite. Sprung to life in 1883 in The Adventures of Pinocchio by the Italian writer Carlo Collodi. But it was the 1940 Disney film Pinocchio which made the character a favourite. The Flowerpot Men first appeared in 1952. Bill and Ben, who spoke a language called Oddle Poddle, lived at the bottom of a garden together with Little Weed. The red Sesame Street star (originally known as Baby Monster) has a falsetto voice and refers to himself in the third person. Been in two movies, Oprah and the West Wing. Full name Lady Penelope CreightonWard. Her crystal glass English voice was provided by Sylvia Anderson, wife of Thunderbirds creator Gerry. Thunderbirds boffin Brains was the nerd who regularly saved the day for the action heroes from International Rescue. Famed for his big glasses and stutter.