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You and Me (British TV series)

May 25, 2023

This article is about the British TV series. For the New Zealand series, see You and Me (New Zealand TV series).

You and Me is a BBC television programme for pre-school children broadcast from 1974 to 1992. The programmes consisted of various segments intended to educate and entertain young children and included elements for early literacy and numeracy. Although the programme ended in 1992, repeats of the programme continued until 1995.

You and Me
Opening title from 1970s
Presented byFrances Kay (Cosmo) and Francis Wright (Dibs) (1983-1992)
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Production
ProducerBBC
Running time15 minutes
Release
Original networkBBC1 1974-1983
BBC2 1983-1992
Picture format4:3
Original release14 January 1974 (1974-01-14) –
26 March 1992 (1992-03-26)

Background

The first programme, called "A New House", was broadcast at 10:45am 14 January 1974 on BBC1.[1][2] The series was influenced by the American series Sesame Street and the research done by the Children's Television Workshop, and was also influenced by the forerunners of other British children's education television series like Play School and Blue Peter. It also took guidance from the analysis of children's needs in The Warnock Report, 1978.[3][4] It aimed therefore, in the jargon of the time, to be very much a "child-centred series" with an emphasis on a child's independence, enjoyment, and understanding. Emotional and social education were held to be as important as more traditional school skills. Relationships with the presenters, who were surrogate parents and carers, were seen as central. There was an assumption that most children watching would be in the company of an adult.

Format

The series' original intention was to teach children safety, reading and emotional well-being.[5] The show featured a mixture of human actors and puppets. In 1979, new characters were introduced which included the actor Tony Hughes as Herbert The Handyman, along with puppet characters that included Mr Bits and Pieces, a marionette made from Household objects, and Purrfecta the Cat. Herbert was portrayed as a well-meaning but inept handyman, who invariably made a hopeless mess of any odd job he was called upon to do. Although only 5 episodes of Herbert the Handyman were made, they were repeated until 1983. Episodes were also introduced by either:

  • Two stop frame animations, called Alice (a hamster) and Crow.
  • a puppet dragon called Duncan and humans called Vicki (Jan-Feb 1979) and later Sam (Sept 1979-Feb 1982)
  • Purrfecta the Pussycat and a human called Stephen. (They only featured together in a Maths unit April–May 1980)

Cosmo and Dibs era

In January 1983,[6] two new puppets were introduced. They were a pair of friends of an uncategorisable animal species; Cosmo, a female, from the North East of England, and Dibs, male, a Londoner, both of whom lived in a street market.

The set was based on a street market in London’s Shepherd's Bush. Each programme featured a four-minute sketch with Cosmo and Dibs on an area of child interest: sharing, eating, arguing, bullying, sleeping, bereavement, dressing up, being silly, having a row, make-believe, making poetry – there were no limits, as long as the sketch was considered relevant and useful to the target audience.

The scripts aimed to inform, educate and entertain and see the world from a child’s point of view. Explicitly the aim was not to patronise. A successful group of sketches dealing with ‘Safety’ included the subject of child abuse, unusual in a series for this age group. It was welcomed by the charity Kidscape, and featured on the national news. Songs and stories were always included, with an emphasis on cultural diversity – You and Me was one of the few programmes at the time to do this. Short documentary films covered a wealth of subjects from farming to the Notting Hill Carnival. Through their experiences in short dramas, viewers were invited to share the lives of contemporary 4- to 5-year-olds; whenever possible, the two puppets would be left without adult intervention to make their discoveries and act out every human emotion - anger, love, jealousy, greed, and fear, amongst others. For the last two series in the early 90s, the street market disappeared and was replaced by a less adventurous, more adult-controlled domestic setting, and two additional characters (Baxter and Spike) were added. Simon Buckley and Richard Coombs puppeteered and voiced the newcomers.[7] The running time was also reduced by 5 minutes.

Production team

The first producer in the format with Cosmo and Dibs was Richard Callanan who remained with the show for three series, leaving to join schools' television at Thames TV. His place was taken by Nicci Crowther, who later developed a career as an independent producer and film maker, until her early death in 2008. Sue Aron, Adrian Mills, Diane Morgan, Pat Farrington, Julie Callanan and Cas Lester were among the regular producers and directors. Jill Wilson, Noreen Hunter and Hilary Hardaker were the regular production assistants. Robert Checksfield was the studio Floor Manager who most frequently worked on the show. Assistant Floor Managers included Wendy Pedley, Garry Boon, Simone Dawson, Terry Pettigrew, Sally Bates, Christine Crow and Donna Rolfe.

The first series of twenty programmes was begun at the BBC's Lime Grove Studios, part of which overlooked Shepherd's Bush Market. It was completed at BBC Television Centre in Wood Lane, which became the show's regular home for all but the last series. Additional puppet characters joined Cosmo and Dibs for the final two seasons, and the street market disappeared in favour of a brightly coloured domestic setting. in 1992, an independent production company, SFTV (the Production of BBC's Words and Pictures as well as the creators of CITV's The Funbox) took over and the final series of You and Me was produced by Sheila Fraser.

Presenters

The presenters who appeared were cast from a diverse range of age-groups and social and ethnic backgrounds;

Puppet characters

  • Crow and Alice [8]
  • Duncan the Dragon [9]
  • Mr Bits-and-Pieces
  • Purrfecta the Cat
  • Cosmo and Dibs

Cosmo and Dibs were played by Frances Kay and Francis Wright who puppeteered and voiced the characters throughout the series. The puppets were made by Muppet-maker and performer Tim Rose, and the scripts were written by members of the production team and cast.

Henry the Kangaroo

From 1981 until 1992 the show also included a regular item featuring Henry the Kangaroo, an animated cartoon incorporating live action. The item introduced 'social sight words' such as STOP and EXIT. Henry would say each time: 'I'm looking for the words in my book again...' His farewell line was: "Toodle-oo from the kangaroo, toodle-oo from me to you". Henry was voiced by Nigel Lambert.[7]

Theme tune

The theme was written by Charlie Dore, Julian Littman and Karl Johnson,[10] and was originally an acoustic version. In 1983 it was replaced with a reggae version performed by UB40[11] which lasted until the series finished in 1992:

You and me, me and you,
Lots and lots for you to do,
Lots and lots for you to see,
Me and you, you and me …

The lyrics were referenced in the Oasis song "She's Electric", "Cos I'll be you and you'll be me, there's lots and lots for us to see, lots and lots for us to do".

References

  1. ^ "You and Me - BBC One London - 14 January 1974 - BBC Genome". The Radio Times (2618): 12. 10 January 1974. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  2. ^ "Google News Archive Search". Retrieved 26 June 2015.[dead link]
  3. ^ . Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
  4. ^ Derek Gillard. "Warnock Report 1978 - notes on the text". Educationengland.org.uk. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  5. ^ "10 Nostalgic British Children's TV Classics - Page 8". Whatculture.com. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  6. ^ "You and Me". The Radio Times (3087): 48. 6 January 1983.
  7. ^ a b "YOU AND ME | Francis Wright's Weblog". Franciswright.wordpress.com. 13 May 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  8. ^ "TV Cream Crow". Tvcream.co.uk. 27 March 2007. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  9. ^ "TV Cream Duncan the Dragon". Tvcream.co.uk. 27 March 2007. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  10. ^ "Charlie Dore | Ralph, Albert & Sydney". Ralph-mctell.co.uk. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  11. ^ "You & Me Lyrics - UB40". Lyricsfreak.com. Retrieved 30 March 2016.

External links

May 25, 2023
british, series, this, article, about, british, series, zealand, series, zealand, series, television, programme, school, children, broadcast, from, 1974, 1992, programmes, consisted, various, segments, intended, educate, entertain, young, children, included, e. This article is about the British TV series For the New Zealand series see You and Me New Zealand TV series You and Me is a BBC television programme for pre school children broadcast from 1974 to 1992 The programmes consisted of various segments intended to educate and entertain young children and included elements for early literacy and numeracy Although the programme ended in 1992 repeats of the programme continued until 1995 You and MeOpening title from 1970sPresented byFrances Kay Cosmo and Francis Wright Dibs 1983 1992 Country of originUnited KingdomProductionProducerBBCRunning time15 minutesReleaseOriginal networkBBC1 1974 1983 BBC2 1983 1992Picture format4 3Original release14 January 1974 1974 01 14 26 March 1992 1992 03 26 Contents 1 Background 2 Format 2 1 Cosmo and Dibs era 3 Production team 4 Presenters 4 1 Puppet characters 4 2 Henry the Kangaroo 5 Theme tune 6 References 7 External linksBackground EditThe first programme called A New House was broadcast at 10 45am 14 January 1974 on BBC1 1 2 The series was influenced by the American series Sesame Street and the research done by the Children s Television Workshop and was also influenced by the forerunners of other British children s education television series like Play School and Blue Peter It also took guidance from the analysis of children s needs in The Warnock Report 1978 3 4 It aimed therefore in the jargon of the time to be very much a child centred series with an emphasis on a child s independence enjoyment and understanding Emotional and social education were held to be as important as more traditional school skills Relationships with the presenters who were surrogate parents and carers were seen as central There was an assumption that most children watching would be in the company of an adult Format EditThe series original intention was to teach children safety reading and emotional well being 5 The show featured a mixture of human actors and puppets In 1979 new characters were introduced which included the actor Tony Hughes as Herbert The Handyman along with puppet characters that included Mr Bits and Pieces a marionette made from Household objects and Purrfecta the Cat Herbert was portrayed as a well meaning but inept handyman who invariably made a hopeless mess of any odd job he was called upon to do Although only 5 episodes of Herbert the Handyman were made they were repeated until 1983 Episodes were also introduced by either Two stop frame animations called Alice a hamster and Crow a puppet dragon called Duncan and humans called Vicki Jan Feb 1979 and later Sam Sept 1979 Feb 1982 Purrfecta the Pussycat and a human called Stephen They only featured together in a Maths unit April May 1980 Cosmo and Dibs era Edit In January 1983 6 two new puppets were introduced They were a pair of friends of an uncategorisable animal species Cosmo a female from the North East of England and Dibs male a Londoner both of whom lived in a street market The set was based on a street market in London s Shepherd s Bush Each programme featured a four minute sketch with Cosmo and Dibs on an area of child interest sharing eating arguing bullying sleeping bereavement dressing up being silly having a row make believe making poetry there were no limits as long as the sketch was considered relevant and useful to the target audience The scripts aimed to inform educate and entertain and see the world from a child s point of view Explicitly the aim was not to patronise A successful group of sketches dealing with Safety included the subject of child abuse unusual in a series for this age group It was welcomed by the charity Kidscape and featured on the national news Songs and stories were always included with an emphasis on cultural diversity You and Me was one of the few programmes at the time to do this Short documentary films covered a wealth of subjects from farming to the Notting Hill Carnival Through their experiences in short dramas viewers were invited to share the lives of contemporary 4 to 5 year olds whenever possible the two puppets would be left without adult intervention to make their discoveries and act out every human emotion anger love jealousy greed and fear amongst others For the last two series in the early 90s the street market disappeared and was replaced by a less adventurous more adult controlled domestic setting and two additional characters Baxter and Spike were added Simon Buckley and Richard Coombs puppeteered and voiced the newcomers 7 The running time was also reduced by 5 minutes Production team EditThe first producer in the format with Cosmo and Dibs was Richard Callanan who remained with the show for three series leaving to join schools television at Thames TV His place was taken by Nicci Crowther who later developed a career as an independent producer and film maker until her early death in 2008 Sue Aron Adrian Mills Diane Morgan Pat Farrington Julie Callanan and Cas Lester were among the regular producers and directors Jill Wilson Noreen Hunter and Hilary Hardaker were the regular production assistants Robert Checksfield was the studio Floor Manager who most frequently worked on the show Assistant Floor Managers included Wendy Pedley Garry Boon Simone Dawson Terry Pettigrew Sally Bates Christine Crow and Donna Rolfe The first series of twenty programmes was begun at the BBC s Lime Grove Studios part of which overlooked Shepherd s Bush Market It was completed at BBC Television Centre in Wood Lane which became the show s regular home for all but the last series Additional puppet characters joined Cosmo and Dibs for the final two seasons and the street market disappeared in favour of a brightly coloured domestic setting in 1992 an independent production company SFTV the Production of BBC s Words and Pictures as well as the creators of CITV s The Funbox took over and the final series of You and Me was produced by Sheila Fraser Presenters EditThe presenters who appeared were cast from a diverse range of age groups and social and ethnic backgrounds Annette Badland Michael Balfour Jeni Barnett Charubala Chokshi Tony Hughes who played the part of Herbert The Handyman Vicky Ireland Joe Barton Puppeteer and voice of Duncan the Dragon Isabelle Lucas Clive Mason also joined the cast for programmes relevant to the deaf community Bill Owen Anton Phillips Christopher Lillicrap Harry Towb Frances Kay Puppeteer and voice of Cosmo Michael Snelders Maggie Ollerenshaw Simon Buckley Puppeteer and voice of Baxter Richard Coombs Puppeteer and voice of Spike Bharti Patel Francis Wright Puppeteer and voice of Dibs Larrington Walker Gary Wilmot Wendy Padbury 1976 Shapes unit Puppet characters Edit Crow and Alice 8 Duncan the Dragon 9 Mr Bits and Pieces Purrfecta the Cat Cosmo and DibsCosmo and Dibs were played by Frances Kay and Francis Wright who puppeteered and voiced the characters throughout the series The puppets were made by Muppet maker and performer Tim Rose and the scripts were written by members of the production team and cast Henry the Kangaroo Edit From 1981 until 1992 the show also included a regular item featuring Henry the Kangaroo an animated cartoon incorporating live action The item introduced social sight words such as STOP and EXIT Henry would say each time I m looking for the words in my book again His farewell line was Toodle oo from the kangaroo toodle oo from me to you Henry was voiced by Nigel Lambert 7 Theme tune EditThe theme was written by Charlie Dore Julian Littman and Karl Johnson 10 and was originally an acoustic version In 1983 it was replaced with a reggae version performed by UB40 11 which lasted until the series finished in 1992 You and me me and you Lots and lots for you to do Lots and lots for you to see Me and you you and me The lyrics were referenced in the Oasis song She s Electric Cos I ll be you and you ll be me there s lots and lots for us to see lots and lots for us to do References Edit You and Me BBC One London 14 January 1974 BBC Genome The Radio Times 2618 12 10 January 1974 Retrieved 30 March 2016 Google News Archive Search Retrieved 26 June 2015 dead link Warnock Report 1978 Recommendations Archived from the original on 19 March 2012 Retrieved 7 September 2011 Derek Gillard Warnock Report 1978 notes on the text Educationengland org uk Retrieved 30 March 2016 10 Nostalgic British Children s TV Classics Page 8 Whatculture com 1 August 2013 Retrieved 30 March 2016 You and Me The Radio Times 3087 48 6 January 1983 a b YOU AND ME Francis Wright s Weblog Franciswright wordpress com 13 May 2015 Retrieved 30 March 2016 TV Cream Crow Tvcream co uk 27 March 2007 Retrieved 30 March 2016 TV Cream Duncan the Dragon Tvcream co uk 27 March 2007 Retrieved 30 March 2016 Charlie Dore Ralph Albert amp Sydney Ralph mctell co uk Retrieved 30 March 2016 You amp Me Lyrics UB40 Lyricsfreak com Retrieved 30 March 2016 External links EditYou and Me at IMDb Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title You and Me British TV series amp oldid 1156461778, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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