| Tots TV | |
|---|---|
| Developed by | Ragdoll Productions |
| Directed by |
|
| Starring | Véronique Déroulède Claire Carre Alexandra Hogg Andrew Davenport Robin Stevens |
| Composer | Andrew McCrorie-Shand |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original languages | English, French (Spanish in the US version) |
| No. of episodes | 276[1] |
| Production | |
| Producer | Anne Wood |
| Cinematography |
|
| Editors |
|
| Running time | 10–25 minutes |
| Production companies | Ragdoll Productions Central Independent Television (1993–1995) Carlton UK Productions (1995–1998) |
| Original release | |
| Network | ITV |
| Release | 4 January 1993 – 27 April 1998 |
Tots TV is a British children's television programme, produced by Ragdoll Productions and Central. The series was first telecast in the UK on the ITV network (part of CITV) from 1993 to 1998.
Tots TV was written by two of its puppeteers, Robin Stevens (Tom) and Andrew Davenport (Tiny).
The series was filmed on location in a small cottage, on farmland near Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire. The cottage was purposely built for the series in the early 1990s and after production ended in 1998, the property was abandoned.[2] In the 2010s, the house drew public attention after being discovered by numerous urban explorers including YouTuber 'Lost with Lou', who was one of the first of many to visit the house.[3] In 2021, the house was destroyed by the landowners.[4]
The programme focuses on three puppets: Tilly, a French girl, with red hair, freckles and pale skin, who speaks in basic French (changed to English in French and Spanish broadcasts, and changed to Spanish in the US version), Tom, a blue-haired boy with glasses and dark skin, who is smart, and Tiny, the youngest Tot, who is smaller than the others and has green hair and pale skin. It also includes their pet Donkey who lives in a stable next to the Tots' secret house and a mischievous little dog named Furryboo that the Tots do not know about.
Often (although not always), the Tots would go out to explore an everyday area in the real world. This often involved them helping out a young child, visiting Jane Pardoe at Whipsnade Wild Animal Park, and watching Jack the Gardener who was always placing surprise items in a field for children to play with. This also sometimes involved them using their magic bag which they always took with them, Tiny always carried it and Tilly always operated it. When asked to help, it would always produce some items to help them in the situation.
In many other episodes, the Tots would do something in their secret house, including playing games and making exciting discoveries. Because the full titles featured the Tots leaving the house they were altered for such episodes. Often these episodes would feature one of the Tots reading the other two a story. These episodes always feature the reading Tot preparing to read using dolls of the characters in the story. Apparently, the other two were unaware they were preparing to read a story because they would always ring them up on their personal phone to ask if they wanted to listen to a story. This was despite the fact they all lived in the same house.
If the episode was a full-length double-bill (regularly the first half with Jane Pardoe and the second half an adventure in the secret house) in the earlier episodes, they would be joined with a two-minute animation of a 'Noah's Ark' story (based on the toy "Noah's Ark in the Secret House") or an animation of a picture that a viewer had sent into the program.
Episodes Included:
The series was first telecasted in the UK on the ITV network (part of CITV).
In April 2004, Ragdoll and Carlton International announced that they had secured a broadcast deal with the BBC to rebroadcast the series from that month, where it first aired on the CBeebies on BBC Two block as well as the CBeebies channel.[5][1]
Internationally, the series was also telecast in the United States on the PBS network from 1996 to 2002 with Tilly speaking Spanish, instead of French.[6] In 2000, Discovery Kids broadcast the series throughout Central and South America, the Caribbean and the Falkland Islands.[7] In Holland, the series is aired on Kindernet.
The series won two BAFTA awards for its producer Anne Wood and director Vic Finch.
A number of special episodes of the series were produced for both TV and VHS release, including a short series of episodes set in the USA, a 'Big Treasure Adventure' set on a pirate ship from England to Australia and several Christmas specials, including one filmed in Rovaniemi, Finland.
A series of educational Tots Video specials were originally released by Video Collection International in 1997 (later reprinted by Carlton in 2000) included hour-long episodes based on the alphabet, numbers, animals and basic French.
Videotapes of the series were originally released by Video Collection International under their Central Video imprint from 1993 until 1994, and transitioned off to Carlton Home Entertainment afterward and later Granada Ventures.
(Camel, Beach, Fox)
(Trains, Hedgehog, Dress)
(Bike Ride, Owl, Donkey Ride)
(Peacock, Bus Ride, Rabbit)
(Horse, Baby Party, Elephant)
(Apple Picking, Kittens, Playground)
(Woodlouse, Cars, Dog)
(Lemur, Roller Skating, Snail)
(Rockpool, Giraffe, Dentist)
(How Does Your Garden Grow?, Wiggly Worms, Cleaning Windows)
(Penguin, Windy Day, The Hungry Nanny Goat)
(Dress, Bike Ride, Donkey Ride, Peacock, Cars, Dog)
(Mountain Climbing, The Funny Noises Band, Tiny's Storybook (Little Red Car), Fluffy Little Chicks, Dressing Up, Bubbles)
(Splashing in the Pool, Hippo in the Garden, Colours, Out to Sea, Tiny's Storybook, Bananas, Parcels)
(Sticky Disasters, A Watery Surprise, Trouble in the Bathroom, Washing the Car, Blowing Bubbles, Big Banana Tom)
(Lost Teddy, Lost Button, The Vegetable Nibbler, A Very Clever Monkey, The Disappearing Trousers, Cable Car, Where is That Phone?)
(Magical Secrets, Tots In A Box, Magic In The Woods, Magic Balloons, Music Factory, Magical Night Time Garden, Secret Treasure Map)
(Donkey Ride, At the Airport, Tiny's Storybook, Undersea Adventure, It's Only Thunder, Safety on the Beach, Fun on the Beach, Donkey Cake, Watering the Garden, Ants, Naughty Little Fly, Melon Cheese, Rainy Day, Koala)
(The Secret Magic Parcels, Fishes, A Noisy Surprise, Tom's Storybook, Looking in the Mirror, Feeding the Calves)
(Fluffy Little Chicks, It's a Cockerel, Milking a Cow, Raspberry Picking, Tom's Storybook, A Pool for the Ducks)
(Super Tiny, Laundrette, King of the Castle, Tom's Storybook, Naughty Mysterious Person, Iguana)
(Flying High, Tom's Storybook, The Village Band, Sticky Surprise, Tilly's Storybook, Sea Lions, Three Little Pigs, Doctor, Tiny's Storybook, A Special Party Cake)
(Lost In the Supermarket, Tilly's Storybook, Tiny Leaves Home, The Naughty Little Pig, A Sticky Mess, A Painting Surprise)
(The Runaway Horse, Tiny's Storybook, A Doughy Squeezy Surprise, Sausage Surprise, A Rainy Day, Sandcastles)
(The Lighthouse, Party Time, Tom's Storybook, Blowing Games, Song Window, Flamingoes)
(Sheep, Boing Boing, Tilly's Storybook, All Fall Down, Naughty Old Ball, Hopping Day)
(Birthday Surprise, Dress, Peacock)
(Cuddly Bunnies, Splish Splash Splosh, New Shoes, Spring Cleaning, Chinchilla, Smart Day, Flower Friend)
(The Naughty Puppies, Tom's Storybook, Accidents Will Happen, The Dirty Old Boat, Watering the Garden, A Watery Surprise)
(The Happy Hamster, Squashed Donkey, Guide Dog, Animal Concert, The Funny Furry Otter, A Cat Called Brian, Zebras)
(Penguin, Windy Day, The Hungry Nanny Goat, How Does Your Garden Grow, Wiggly Worms, Cleaning Windows)
(Wobbly Jellies, Feeding the Ducks, Tom's Fast Food Takeaway, A Special Cake, Tom's Storybook, Baking Bread, Hippo)
(Apple Picking, Kittens, Playground, Horse, Baby Party, Elephant)
(Dentist, Owl, Rockpool)
(Camping, Painting, Lovely Old Toad, The Big Wheel, Tom's Storybook, Balancing Surprise, Donkey Goes Missing, Paper Boats)
(At the Beach, Trains, Rockpool, Owl, Dentist, Hedgehog)
(Boing Boing, Lemur, Jumping Up and Down, Hopping Day)
(Naughty Little Pigs, Sheep, Feeding the Calves, Three Little Pigs)
(Tiny Leaves Home, Lost in the Supermarket, Dressing Up)
(Mountain Climbing, Tom's Storybook, Out to Sea)
(Fox, Roller-Skating, Camel, Giraffe, Snail, Woodlouse)
(Bubbles, A Rainy Day, Splashing in the Pool, A Watery Surprise)
(Fishes, Tom's Storybook, Looking in the Mirror)
(Furry Beat, Tom's Trumpet, Disco Machine, Grand Old Duke of York, Tom Sings La La La, Old McTom, Tilly's Flute)
(60-minute Special)
(Bedtime Stories, Bath, Far Away Star, Street Lamps, Night Time Teddy Adventure, Fun with Shadows, Time for Bed)
(Afternoon Adventure, Watching the Dolphins, Building a Playhouse, The Loch Ness Monster, Jumping Kangaroos, King of the Castle, Little Boats Big Boats)
(At the Beach, Donkey Ride, Rockpool)
(Camel, Elephant, Giraffe)
(Little Kittens, Cuddly Bunnies, A Happy Dog)
In 1997, four special VHS tapes were originally released under the name Tots Video. The four titles were re-released by Carlton Video in 2000 with the same titles. The four titles were:
