Misplaced Pages

Let's Pretend (TV series)

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.

This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
Find sources: "Let's Pretend" TV series – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (December 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Let's Pretend was a 1980s children's television series aimed at preschool aged children in the United Kingdom.

It was shown across the ITV network at 12:10 on Tuesdays, then later on Mondays, replacing the popular Pipkins which had been cancelled at the end of 1981.

Like its predecessor, each edition was fifteen minutes long, and the programme was produced using many of the same personnel, such as the puppeteer Nigel Plaskitt and the producer Michael Jeans.

Each week the presenters would find a number of ordinary household items and contrive to produce a short story featuring them all. The first programme, "The Story Of The Broken Puppet", was shown on Tuesday 5 January 1982 by Central Television. The show was broadcast weekly until 1988.

The show's original opening titles showed items moving along a conveyor belt into the mouth of a large plastic whale, and later a puppet caterpillar moving along the screen. The actual story began with the rising of a curtain with the same puppet caterpillar on accompanied to the same bars of the song On Ilkla Moor Baht 'at that were used as the pre-programme ident of Yorkshire Television.

Transmission guide

Series 1 (1982)

  1. The Story of the Broken Puppet – 5 January 1982
  2. The Story of the Leaping Frog – 12 January 1982
  3. The Story of the Dancing Elephant – 19 January 1982
  4. The Hungry Pillar Box – 26 January 1982
  5. The Garden Bench – 2 February 1982
  6. The Shoe That Wanted to Go Its Own Way – 9 February 1982
  7. The Whistling Kettle – 16 February 1982
  8. The Teapot That Lost Its Lid – 23 February 1982
  9. The Zoo Keeper and the Giraffe – 2 March 1982
  10. The Story of the Cleaner and the Cook – 9 March 1982
  11. The Story of the Rabbit and the Mole – 16 March 1982
  12. The Tale of Two Bears – 23 March 1982
  13. The Story of How the Bus Got up the Hill – 30 March 1982
  14. The Story of the Sleepless Owl – 6 April 1982
  15. The Story of the King Who Loved Bananas – 13 April 1982
  16. The Umbrella That Didn't Like Rain – 20 April 1982
  17. The Cheesemaker and the Mouse – 27 April 1982
  18. The Story of the Giant's Boots – 4 May 1982

Series 2 (1982-1983)

  1. The King Who Liked Music – 24 August 1982
  2. The Snowman – 31 August 1982
  3. The Jack Who Wouldn't Come Out of His Box – 7 September 1982
  4. The Cat That Liked Mice – 14 September 1982
  5. The Sailors Who Lost Their Sail – 21 September 1982
  6. The Piggy Bank – 28 September 1982
  7. The Goldfish Who Swam Away from His Bowl – 5 October 1982
  8. The Clock That Forgot to Tock – 12 October 1982
  9. The Hole – 19 October 1982
  10. The Soldier and the Crown – 26 October 1982
  11. The Greedy Crocodile – 9 November 1982
  12. The Boat That Had No Paddle – 16 November 1982
  13. The Witch and the Sweeper – 23 November 1982
  14. The Old Man and the Duck – 30 November 1982
  15. The Fork-Lift Truck – 7 December 1982
  16. The Man Who Wanted His Milk – 14 December 1982
  17. The Cow That Wanted to Jump Over the Moon – 21 December 1982
  18. Worn Out Teddy – 28 December 1982
  19. The Smallest Circus in the World – 10 January 1983
  20. The Little Cloud That Cried – 17 January 1983
  21. The Stripy Deckchair – 24 January 1983
  22. Baby Hedgehog's Discovery – 31 January 1983
  23. The Two Parrots – 7 February 1983
  24. The Balloon That Lost Its Puff – 14 February 1983
  25. Colin the Court Jester – 21 February 1983
  26. The Caterpillar and the Butterfly – 28 February 1983
  27. The Sad Banana – 7 March 1983
  28. Henrietta's Tea Party – 14 March 1983
  29. The Band Got Smaller and Smaller – 21 March 1983
  30. The Rag Doll and the King – 28 March 1983
  31. The Scarecrow That Wanted to Look Smart – 11 April 1983
  32. The Hopping Kangaroo – 18 April 1983
  33. Tom Thumb and the Race – 25 April 1983
  34. The Dancing Dragon – 9 May 1983

Series 3 (1983-1984)

  1. The Hippo, the Peacock and the Giraffe – 26 September 1983
  2. The Travelling Musician and the Missing Notes – 3 October 1983
  3. The Cat Who Wanted to Be a Lion – 10 October 1983
  4. The Oil Can – 17 October 1983
  5. The Roundabout Ostrich – 24 October 1983
  6. The Witch and Lazy Jack – 31 October 1983
  7. The Camel Who Got the Hump – 7 November 1983
  8. The Queen and the Tailor – 14 November 1983
  9. The Penguin and the Pig – 21 November 1983
  10. The Wind Finds Some Friends – 28 November 1983
  11. The Cock Who Crowed Too Much – 5 December 1983
  12. Granny in Space – 12 December 1983
  13. The Reindeer and the Rhinoceros – 19 December 1983
  14. The Naughty Reflection – 9 January 1984
  15. The Octopus Came Out of the Sea – 16 January 1984
  16. The Neglected Piano – 23 January 1984
  17. The Moving Bus Stop – 30 January 1984
  18. The Dirty Clean... Dirty Clean Sweep – 6 February 1984
  19. The Unneighbourly Neighbour – 13 February 1984
  20. The Sandwich Which Had a Quarrel – 20 February 1984
  21. The Messy Man – 27 February 1984
  22. The Adventures of a Jelly – 5 March 1984
  23. Bath Toys – 11 March 1984
  24. The Day Fred Lost His Glasses – 19 March 1984
  25. The Road Roller – 26 March 1984
  26. The Runaway Shoe – 2 April 1984
  27. The Invisible Friend – 9 April 1984
  28. The King Who Loved Sausages – 16 April 1984
  29. The Bee and the Bear – 30 April 1984
  30. The Television Set – 14 May 1984
  31. The Empty Eggcup – 21 May 1984
  32. The Sun Who Forgot to Set – 4 June 1984
  33. The Lion and the Leopard – 11 June 1984
  34. The Seaside Special – 18 June 1984
  35. What Father Christmas Does in the Summer – 25 June 1984

Series 4 (1984-1985)

  1. The Cuckoo Who Wanted to Sing Like the Sparrow – 15 October 1984
  2. Mr Woof the Guard Dog – 22 October 1984
  3. The Milk Float and the Racing Car – 29 October 1984
  4. Tortoise and Hare Make Friends – 5 November 1984
  5. The Garden Wall – 12 November 1984
  6. The Ghost Makes a Friend – 19 November 1984
  7. The Giants Who Came Down from the Beanstalk – 26 November 1984
  8. The Broom and the Vacuum Cleaner – 3 December 1984
  9. The Dragon Who Couldn't Help Breathing Fire – 10 December 1984
  10. The Soldier With Two Left Feet – 17 December 1984
  11. Dancing Daisy – 7 January 1985
  12. Little Red Riding Hood and the Pirate – 14 January 1985
  13. The Story of the Dirty Shirt – 21 January 1985
  14. The Fed Up Telephone – 28 January 1985
  15. The Friendly Tree – 4 February 1985
  16. The Man Who Was Always Late – 11 February 1985
  17. The Dancing Crab – 18 February 1985
  18. The Piano Movers – 25 February 1985
  19. The Mouse on the Moon – 4 March 1985
  20. Muddled Michael – 11 March 1985
  21. The Twin Sisters – 18 March 1985
  22. The Chicken and the Duck – 25 March 1985
  23. Cinderfella – 1 April 1985
  24. Old MacDonald's Farm – 15 April 1985
  25. The Elephant and the Weighing Machine – 22 April 1985
  26. The Disappearing Milk – 29 April 1985
  27. The Crane Who Couldn't Lift – 13 May 1985
  28. Helpful Harry – 20 May 1985
  29. The Train Spotter and the Train – 3 June 1985
  30. The Man Who Likes Surprises – 10 June 1985
  31. The Shopkeeper Who Didn't Want to Sell His Pets – 17 June 1985

Series 5 (1985-1986)

  1. The Cactus Who Wanted His Back Scratched – 14 October 1985
  2. Colonel Bigshot and the Crocodiles – 21 October 1985
  3. The Town That Liked to Argue – 28 October 1985
  4. The Wishing Well – 4 November 1985
  5. The Lemon Canary – 11 November 1985
  6. The Sheepdog and the Badger – 18 November 1985
  7. The Duck Who Wanted a Treat to Eat – 25 November 1985
  8. The Gardener and the Pirate – 2 December 1985
  9. The Hiccupping Lion – 9 December 1985
  10. The Lady Who Collected Junk – 16 December 1985
  11. The Postman Who Wanted Some Post – 23 December 1985
  12. The Doctor's Big Day – 30 December 1985
  13. The Grass Is Always Greener – 6 January 1986
  14. The Chimp Who Copied Everything – 13 January 1986
  15. The Double Bass Who Lost a String – 20 January 1986
  16. The Pretend Snowman – 27 January 1986
  17. The Two Sisters – 3 February 1986
  18. The Brother's Clothes – 10 February 1986
  19. The Rabbit and the Carrot – 17 February 1986
  20. Silly Dressmaker – 24 February 1986
  21. The Bulldozer with Toothache – 3 March 1986
  22. The Wolf Who Cried Wolf – 10 March 1986
  23. How Greedy Can You Be? – 17 March 1986
  24. The Singer Who Lost His Voice – 24 March 1986
  25. The Pumpkin and the Pumpkin Guard – 7 April 1986
  26. The Instrument Mender and the Noisemaker – 14 April 1986
  27. The Jelly Baby Jumble Sale – 21 April 1986
  28. The Train Who Was Frightened of the Dark – 28 April 1986
  29. Don't Wake the Baby – 12 May 1986
  30. The Playdough Statue – 19 May 1986
  31. Outside In, Inside Out – 2 June 1986
  32. The One-Puppet Puppet Show – 9 June 1986
Categories: