I'm 51 years old, was having a little reminisce as I often do on RUclips. I found this and was absolutely enthralled at Johnny Ball's wonderful stortytelling! Quite delightful! He must have been great fun to have as a dad.😂
Absolutely. Brian Cant, Johnny Ball, Floella Benjamin, Derek Griffiths, Eric Thompson, Julie Stevens, Sarah Long, Diane Dorgan, Carol Chell, Don Spencer, etc. These are all fantastic presenters, and children's television needs more people like them.
I remember "Big Ben" - loved him. And Jonny Ball on Jonny Ball reveals all... such wonderful presenters. And the amazing Floella Benjamin... we were so lucky to have them on our tellies :)
My absolute favourite character on Play School was Brian Cant, who I confess I tuned in sometimes as a teenager mainly just to watch him. He was a very funny and warm character, very gifted, and much appreciated by adults and children alike, I think. It was hard not to smile when Brian grinned at something.
Sarah resigned as a Play School presenter in May 1986 after being diagnosed with cancer. She lost her battle against the disease in November 1987 aged 49.
I guess that this was at the time that Play School had transferred from BBC2 to BBC1 when Schools series became Daytime on Two on Monday 19th September 1983; although the 11.00am start time then became 10.30am for some reason; the series was repeated at either 3.55pm or 4.20pm on BBC1 until September 1985 though. The series then continued until October 1988 there; when it became Playbus or Playdays. Thank you!
Actually if I remember rightly, the last new edition of Play School was in March 1988, although it was then reshown until that October though later on of course so too.
I would have been thirteen and in my third year at senior school back then. Too old to watch Play School, though I well remember Johnny Ball on Think of a Number! My Play School era was 1973-75, as I am now aged fifty four.
The beginning of the end of a legendary era of children's television. After this week, kids of the 70s and 80s said their farewells to the "Play School" we all know and love. But we had some great presenters here, such as Sarah Long and Johnny Ball, who were both brilliant long-timers, and I must say that Ben Thomas is actually quite good a presenter as well. A lot of the 80s presenters were just as good as the classic presenters, Iain Lauchlan, Elizabeth Watts, Lucie Skeaping and Andrew Secombe being prime examples. It's just a shame that they're known for presenting the more crummy, rubbish revamp of the programme as supposed to the classic format. Unfortunately, at this time, also, many of the classic presenters had long left the programme, Derek Griffiths, Julie Stevens and Lionel Morton being prime examples, and the only thing that really made the 80s revamp memorable was the inclusion of some other classic presenters here and there, like Fred Harris, Floella Benjamin, Carol Chell, Stuart McGugan, Chloe Ashcroft and Brian Cant. These presenters are the ones who made "Play School" such a great programme, alongside others like Don Spencer, Rick Jones, Diane Dorgan, Eric Thompson, Toni Arthur, Gordon Rollings, Jon Glover, Carol Leader, Marla Landi, Chris Tranchell, Terence Holland, Miranda Connell, Carole Ward, Virginia Stride, Gordon Clyde and Phyllida Law. Without any of these many presenters I have listed, as well as Sarah and Johnny themselves, I don't think "Play School" would've made it until 1983. If it was just another "Watch With Mother" segment, it would've probably lasted until maybe 1967 or 1968 at most. All of these presenters I have listed were all revolutionary in their presenting styles. They weren't just televised nursery teachers anymore, they felt like your uncles and aunts, or sometimes, your friends, and what made it interesting was that you wouldn't see the same two faces every week, you could get Miranda Connell and Rick Jones one week, Sarah Long and Lionel Morton the next week, and Diane Dorgan and Brian Cant the week after that. The fact that there were always a random duo of presenters every week made the programme exciting and fresh, which is probably why it lasted for so long. Not only that, but the way these presenters would all talk down the camera at one child and one child only made them even more friendly and pleasant. The "Watch With Mother" presenters, whilst okay, didn't really have that same one-to-one connection with children, it was always, "What is Andy Pandy doing today, children?" It doesn't leave as much of an impression amongst children as supposed to the "Play School" regulars, who talked to individual children like they knew them. That's what made "Play School" so special in my eyes. Something that many children's presenters nowadays need to pick up on. The main reason as to why I cannot stomach "Tikkabilla" is because of the presenters. With the exception of some like Paul Ewing, Lorna Laidlaw and Beverly Hills, the "Tikkabilla" presenters all felt like characters as supposed to real people. Everything was always so exaggerated and loud that it looked like an act and felt like an act, especially with Justin Fletcher and Sarah-Jane Honeywell. The "Play School" presenters, like Brian Cant, Johnny Ball, Floella Benjamin, etc, all did rather stupid and ridiculous acts, but what made them all so loveable was that they knew how to be themselves and engage children without becoming quite bubbly and loud characters.
@@VideotapeFTW Oh definitely. Something other programmes at that time, "Rainbow" and "Sooty" being two prime examples, didn't really do. Geoffrey Hayes and the Corbett duo would usually talk to plural audiences, and it didn't really leave a sticking impact.
@@VideotapeFTWhi I'm looking for a children's program that would air in the early 80 all I remember was it was set in a high school everyone's gone home but sum kids are in a music or drama room and two aliens on TV set that is in the room won't let them leave ,
@@Dinvadbhatmarathi98 That doesn't immediately ring a bell, but off the top of my head, I wonder if it could be either Chocky or a one-off Dramarama you're thinking of...? Sorry I can't be more help.
The Little Red Hen wow one of my favourite Ladybird books as a child! I loved Johnny Ball as a child too , on Think of a Number and Johnny Ball Reveals All and Play School
It's not always the best adage when it comes to actual progress but in this case 'If it ain't broke don't fix it' is very apt. What a great milestone of excellence at least. :)
Sarah remained with Play School until 1986 when she was forced to resign having been diagnosed with cancer which she sadly lost her battle against in 1987.
According to what I have been able to find out, this was the last week of the old set and was presented by Sarah & Ben all week, with Johnny (as guest story teller) on Monday & Friday and Don on Friday. The following week, Ben Thomas was the lead presenter with various other presenters including Sarah Long through the week.
Blimey, the clock looks a bit bare bones! Someone knocked that up in 5 minutes out of some leftover wood. Whatever happened to the lovely blue faced clock or the one with the cogs?!
This was the day I started at a posh school in Guildford, aged 11. Having come from the state system it was a shock. So it was all change for me and Play School. That school destroyed me. I went back to the state system less than 3 years later. Play school reverted even sooner. 🤷♂️🙈😳😂
Play school reminds me of being on the dole after being made redundant from t’mill in the early 80s for some reason. It’s insane because I was genuinely a little kid back then😂
Not quite the last new programme before the revamp. This was the beginning of the last week - the last new programme in this format was on the Friday, before the new look on Monday 19th September. Here’s a clip I found of a week later : ruclips.net/video/Wbn4qRgeKsE/видео.html
Ah, thank you very much indeed for that - I've changed the details in the description accordingly. So it looks like they had a week of 'house-moving' preparation before the big day. I _did_ think it was a bit odd to have launched the revamp on a Tuesday! Seriously, thanks for putting me straight on that. :-)
I remember hating the new sets and altered theme tune and wishing they would bring the old version back. I was resistant to change even then lol. To be fair I was becoming a bit old for the show by this point and stopped watching after the 1984 season. Still its comforting to know now that the revamp was widely hated by many.
Every time this sort of thing happened back then, for some reason I'd always assume they'd be changing back soon. I'm not sure I ever truly got over Rainbow changing from a rectangular table to a cloud-shaped one.
It's a shame that the *Cold Cold Cold BBC* were so hard up that rather hiring removal men to move materials they instead made the presenters of this show (during the last episode at the studio) pack up all the Play School materials and furniture they wished to relocate to the new studio instead to save a bit of dough!!
It was a long time ago i vaguely remember playschools toys i definitely remember the bbc1 programme screen saver their use to be a clock that would countdown with some superstore music playing.there was allso why dont you , no 73,the muppets,metal micky,jamie and the madgic torch,chips , mork and mindy,danger mouse ,thunderbirds. captain scarlet. stingray .battle of the planets .terrahawks.the fall guy. airwolf knight rider .the a team .space 1999
It’s hard to believe that this version of Play School didn’t have the song There’s A Bear In There like like The Australian version. It’s also hard to believe that this version is the original version, but it ceased years ago whereas the Australian version is still running today.
They messed up badly when they tried to relaunch the British version, and then messed up even more when, instead of fixing their mistakes, they ditched the show altogether. Good to hear that Australia didn't make the same blunders.
@@VideotapeFTW The BBC botched up the franchise even more with "Tikkabilla". Utterly pathetic, lazy, loud and overall lackluster attempt to relaunch "Play School" in the early 2000s. Horrible programme, it was, nothing like "Play School" whatsoever.
Interesting in the continuity at the beginning that Sarah and Ben's names were mentioned, but no Johnny even though he seemed to take as much of a part in the show as the other.
That clock before the story looked very makeshift. I always remember the one with the gears that moved around with the proper music to go with it! Mind you, by the time this came out, I'd long since lost interest in the programme being almost 15 at the time!
![Take Hart [BBC Children's TV 70s] whole episode](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/P0i8g0n6qGo/mqdefault.jpg)
![Noob To Max With DRAGON REWORK In Blox Fruits [FULL MOVIE]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LnBMOinoOvA/mqdefault.jpg)
I'm 51 years old, was having a little reminisce as I often do on RUclips. I found this and was absolutely enthralled at Johnny Ball's wonderful stortytelling! Quite delightful! He must have been great fun to have as a dad.😂
Johnny Ball's daughter Zoe is just five months younger than me!
@angelacooper2661 😃
Thank you for posting. Brilliant times when life was simpler
Playschool is a national success and the presenters who did this programme are national legends in the world of children's television.
Absolutely. Brian Cant, Johnny Ball, Floella Benjamin, Derek Griffiths, Eric Thompson, Julie Stevens, Sarah Long, Diane Dorgan, Carol Chell, Don Spencer, etc. These are all fantastic presenters, and children's television needs more people like them.
I remember "Big Ben" - loved him. And Jonny Ball on Jonny Ball reveals all... such wonderful presenters. And the amazing Floella Benjamin... we were so lucky to have them on our tellies :)
My absolute favourite character on Play School was Brian Cant, who I confess I tuned in sometimes as a teenager mainly just to watch him. He was a very funny and warm character, very gifted, and much appreciated by adults and children alike, I think. It was hard not to smile when Brian grinned at something.
The arched window was my favourite for some reason when I was little! 😆
Mine was the round window and I still feel like it never got its fair share of wins next to the others 😂
Sarah resigned as a Play School presenter in May 1986 after being diagnosed with cancer. She lost her battle against the disease in November 1987 aged 49.
That's so sad! I know she was married to Peter Baldwin who played Derek Wilton on Coronation Street and they had two sons!
Brings back memories 😄
an obvious 10/10 they love their work and it shows
😩 why do I remember this little red hen story at 39 🥹
The late Sarah Long was married to actor Peter Baldwin who played Derek in Coronation Street.
I guess that this was at the time that Play School had transferred from BBC2 to BBC1 when Schools series became Daytime on Two on Monday 19th September 1983; although the 11.00am start time then became 10.30am for some reason; the series was repeated at either 3.55pm or 4.20pm on BBC1 until September 1985 though. The series then continued until October 1988 there; when it became Playbus or Playdays. Thank you!
Thank you!
Actually if I remember rightly, the last new edition of Play School was in March 1988, although it was then reshown until that October though later on of course so too.
I would have been thirteen and in my third year at senior school back then. Too old to watch Play School, though I well remember Johnny Ball on Think of a Number! My Play School era was 1973-75, as I am now aged fifty four.
The beginning of the end of a legendary era of children's television. After this week, kids of the 70s and 80s said their farewells to the "Play School" we all know and love. But we had some great presenters here, such as Sarah Long and Johnny Ball, who were both brilliant long-timers, and I must say that Ben Thomas is actually quite good a presenter as well. A lot of the 80s presenters were just as good as the classic presenters, Iain Lauchlan, Elizabeth Watts, Lucie Skeaping and Andrew Secombe being prime examples. It's just a shame that they're known for presenting the more crummy, rubbish revamp of the programme as supposed to the classic format.
Unfortunately, at this time, also, many of the classic presenters had long left the programme, Derek Griffiths, Julie Stevens and Lionel Morton being prime examples, and the only thing that really made the 80s revamp memorable was the inclusion of some other classic presenters here and there, like Fred Harris, Floella Benjamin, Carol Chell, Stuart McGugan, Chloe Ashcroft and Brian Cant.
These presenters are the ones who made "Play School" such a great programme, alongside others like Don Spencer, Rick Jones, Diane Dorgan, Eric Thompson, Toni Arthur, Gordon Rollings, Jon Glover, Carol Leader, Marla Landi, Chris Tranchell, Terence Holland, Miranda Connell, Carole Ward, Virginia Stride, Gordon Clyde and Phyllida Law.
Without any of these many presenters I have listed, as well as Sarah and Johnny themselves, I don't think "Play School" would've made it until 1983. If it was just another "Watch With Mother" segment, it would've probably lasted until maybe 1967 or 1968 at most. All of these presenters I have listed were all revolutionary in their presenting styles. They weren't just televised nursery teachers anymore, they felt like your uncles and aunts, or sometimes, your friends, and what made it interesting was that you wouldn't see the same two faces every week, you could get Miranda Connell and Rick Jones one week, Sarah Long and Lionel Morton the next week, and Diane Dorgan and Brian Cant the week after that. The fact that there were always a random duo of presenters every week made the programme exciting and fresh, which is probably why it lasted for so long.
Not only that, but the way these presenters would all talk down the camera at one child and one child only made them even more friendly and pleasant. The "Watch With Mother" presenters, whilst okay, didn't really have that same one-to-one connection with children, it was always, "What is Andy Pandy doing today, children?" It doesn't leave as much of an impression amongst children as supposed to the "Play School" regulars, who talked to individual children like they knew them. That's what made "Play School" so special in my eyes. Something that many children's presenters nowadays need to pick up on.
The main reason as to why I cannot stomach "Tikkabilla" is because of the presenters. With the exception of some like Paul Ewing, Lorna Laidlaw and Beverly Hills, the "Tikkabilla" presenters all felt like characters as supposed to real people. Everything was always so exaggerated and loud that it looked like an act and felt like an act, especially with Justin Fletcher and Sarah-Jane Honeywell. The "Play School" presenters, like Brian Cant, Johnny Ball, Floella Benjamin, etc, all did rather stupid and ridiculous acts, but what made them all so loveable was that they knew how to be themselves and engage children without becoming quite bubbly and loud characters.
That's a great observation in particular about addressing the viewer one-to-one, as opposed to like a classroom full.
@@VideotapeFTW Oh definitely. Something other programmes at that time, "Rainbow" and "Sooty" being two prime examples, didn't really do. Geoffrey Hayes and the Corbett duo would usually talk to plural audiences, and it didn't really leave a sticking impact.
@@VideotapeFTWhi I'm looking for a children's program that would air in the early 80 all I remember was it was set in a high school everyone's gone home but sum kids are in a music or drama room and two aliens on TV set that is in the room won't let them leave ,
@@Dinvadbhatmarathi98 That doesn't immediately ring a bell, but off the top of my head, I wonder if it could be either Chocky or a one-off Dramarama you're thinking of...? Sorry I can't be more help.
My childhood ❤
Rainbow,Hartley hare, Rod Jane and Freddie. 🇬🇧🇯🇲😊
The Original Humpty Dumpty Sold for £6,250 for the BBC in 2014. I always wanted the Arched Window and a Humpty Dumpty!
Wow.
The Little Red Hen wow one of my favourite Ladybird books as a child! I loved Johnny Ball as a child too , on Think of a Number and Johnny Ball Reveals All and Play School
Yeah, Johnny Ball's shows were always great. He was unbelievably engaging and entertaining, even though his programmes were obviously educational.
Ben Thomas played a painter and decorator in series 8 of Grange Hill.
Anything pre-Broom Cupboard is always a good find.
This was broadcast 5 days before I was born. How strange. I loved play school and I was very upset when they took it off the air.
The “somethings fit” song sounds like something from a jazz club
It's not always the best adage when it comes to actual progress but in this case 'If it ain't broke don't fix it' is very apt. What a great milestone of excellence at least. :)
Thanks this rocks
Glad you liked it!
@@VideotapeFTW I do they don't make great children's television like this now do they?
I know what you mean! It's all so different now, and there's a good chance that linear kids' TV may not last much longer, which is a great shame.
Sarah Long was married to Peter Baldwin, who played Derek Wilton in Coronation street, long may they both Rest in Peace together
Sarah remained with Play School until 1986 when she was forced to resign having been diagnosed with cancer which she sadly lost her battle against in 1987.
She was great i watched the program in this era . rip
@@grahampearson5670 she was using a wig even in this episode so sad rip she was great
@@grahampearson5670 That's so tragic i never knew she'd past.
Yes indeed that was so-I am sure they were very well suited to each other and I hope that they are now together somewhere of course too.
According to what I have been able to find out, this was the last week of the old set and was presented by Sarah & Ben all week, with Johnny (as guest story teller) on Monday & Friday and Don on Friday. The following week, Ben Thomas was the lead presenter with various other presenters including Sarah Long through the week.
Definitely sounds plausible - thanks very much for that. :-)
SSoñyà taaylor
.XE
Blimey, the clock looks a bit bare bones! Someone knocked that up in 5 minutes out of some leftover wood. Whatever happened to the lovely blue faced clock or the one with the cogs?!
This was the day I started at a posh school in Guildford, aged 11. Having come from the state system it was a shock. So it was all change for me and Play School.
That school destroyed me. I went back to the state system less than 3 years later. Play school reverted even sooner. 🤷♂️🙈😳😂
The poem is The Three Foxes by A A Milne and appeared in When Were Very Young, the book of poems that introduced Christopher Robin (1924).
Ah, thank you very much! I've been both enlightened _and_ exposed for the culture-less barbarian that I am. ;-)
Not sure I would fancy eating those hundreds and thousands if Johnny had counted out each one!
I was well excited the first time she fished hahaha. That guitar was ropey :D
Play school reminds me of being on the dole after being made redundant from t’mill in the early 80s for some reason. It’s insane because I was genuinely a little kid back then😂
Not quite the last new programme before the revamp. This was the beginning of the last week - the last new programme in this format was on the Friday, before the new look on Monday 19th September.
Here’s a clip I found of a week later :
ruclips.net/video/Wbn4qRgeKsE/видео.html
Ah, thank you very much indeed for that - I've changed the details in the description accordingly. So it looks like they had a week of 'house-moving' preparation before the big day. I _did_ think it was a bit odd to have launched the revamp on a Tuesday! Seriously, thanks for putting me straight on that. :-)
I remember hating the new sets and altered theme tune and wishing they would bring the old version back. I was resistant to change even then lol. To be fair I was becoming a bit old for the show by this point and stopped watching after the 1984 season. Still its comforting to know now that the revamp was widely hated by many.
Every time this sort of thing happened back then, for some reason I'd always assume they'd be changing back soon. I'm not sure I ever truly got over Rainbow changing from a rectangular table to a cloud-shaped one.
It's a shame that the *Cold Cold Cold BBC* were so hard up that rather hiring removal men to move materials they instead made the presenters of this show (during the last episode at the studio) pack up all the Play School materials and furniture they wished to relocate to the new studio instead to save a bit of dough!!
It was a long time ago i vaguely remember playschools toys i definitely remember the bbc1 programme screen saver their use to be a clock that would countdown with some superstore music playing.there was allso why dont you , no 73,the muppets,metal micky,jamie and the madgic torch,chips , mork and mindy,danger mouse ,thunderbirds. captain scarlet. stingray .battle of the planets .terrahawks.the fall guy. airwolf knight rider .the a team .space 1999
It’s hard to believe that this version of Play School didn’t have the song There’s A Bear In There like like The Australian version. It’s also hard to believe that this version is the original version, but it ceased years ago whereas the Australian version is still running today.
They messed up badly when they tried to relaunch the British version, and then messed up even more when, instead of fixing their mistakes, they ditched the show altogether. Good to hear that Australia didn't make the same blunders.
@@VideotapeFTW The BBC botched up the franchise even more with "Tikkabilla". Utterly pathetic, lazy, loud and overall lackluster attempt to relaunch "Play School" in the early 2000s. Horrible programme, it was, nothing like "Play School" whatsoever.
Interesting in the continuity at the beginning that Sarah and Ben's names were mentioned, but no Johnny even though he seemed to take as much of a part in the show as the other.
Yeah, I noticed that as well - I think he's technically down as a guest, even though he does a lot of the presenting. Strange.
God bless Sarah Long (and her husband, Peter Baldwin, who played Derek Wilton in Coronation Street ).
Time for us to go now But I've just been.
ish more of these were on you tube.,...aw memories.
I remember Ben Thomas well. I wonder what he's doing these days?
My mum looks like the female presenter
With a Nick nack paddy whack give the kid a sweet or something like that.
do You have any taped tvz play school episodes You can upload if Tou do please upload them
That clock before the story looked very makeshift. I always remember the one with the gears that moved around with the proper music to go with it! Mind you, by the time this came out, I'd long since lost interest in the programme being almost 15 at the time!
Legend has it that there was a dispute between the electricians' union and the grips' union has to what members may touch the clock.
What is this entire playschool show???
a British institution loved by millions of kids from the 60s right up until the late 80s that is what is is .
What worked is good right?
0:21
I was 15 then
99999999999999 th NEW EPISODE??????????
La familla P Luche. TV 14 DL
Nottciero Univision