Round The Roundabout Once More...

[Pip Madeley]

Roundabout carousels back to TV

Cult children's programme The Magic Roundabout is to return to TV screens with 52 new computer-animated episodes.

Dougal and Zebedee have been revived by TV channel Nick Jr, which is basing the cartoon on the 2005 film starring Kylie Minogue and Sir Ian McKellen. The stars will not be lending their voices to the 52-episode series, which has no transmission date as yet.

The new series will not have a narrator, but director Graham Ralph says he intends to make the show "true to the spirit" of the original. "We're trying to bring it back to Dougal being the anti-hero, instead of the rather bland character he was in the film," he says. "He's the Blackadder of children's TV, with a bit of Victor Meldrew thrown in. He's really grumpy all the time. And Zebedee has sort of been based on Ken Dodd. He's more like an impish little pixie."

Permission for the latest re-make was granted by the estate of the late Serge Danot. It is being animated in France using the same character models as the feature film, with scripts and voices originating in the UK. The programme, which is aimed at pre-school audiences, has already been sold to several countries including Germany, Australia and France. "We wanted to re-create the spirit of the show for kids, not for TV executives in their forties," said Mr Ralph. "I'm having a wonderful time. It's like playing with great legends, great actors."

I never saw the film, but I hope they get Tom for the series.

[Carol Baynes]

Never mind the film, Pip, have you seen the original '60s and '70s TV series?

[Pip Madeley]

Very occasionally, on clip shows and the like.

[SiHart]

The film was terrible, absoluetly dire.

The original TV series was a thing of wonder though.

Si xx

[Dirk Gently]

And so speaks the truth giver.

[Carol Baynes]

"The Magic Roundabout" was wonderfully relaxing and surreal. It all seems to take place in a white void....somewhere.
There was one episode where Dougal glides (man) into a cavern of sugarcubes and eats them all. Sugar...cubes... in a series made in the '60s.... and early '70s.... Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm :d Dylan the rabbit always looked stoned that's for sure.


The Americans just didn't get "The Magic roundabout" did they? I don't think it was shown over there in the '60s. The 2005 film certainly didn't do very well over there. It was also inexplicably given the title "Doogal" (which wasn't even spelt right). Most of the voice overs were then apparently replaced by American actors. Pop cultural references and flatulance jokes (!) were also added.

Time for bed.

[Paul Monk]

It was a series bought by the BBC from Switzerland iirc and they didn't bother getting it translated. Eric "Dad of Emma" Thompson apparently watched the shows without sound and wrote new scripts based on what was happening on screen.

[Andrew Curnow]

I knew he'd done the voices, but I didn't realise before that Eric Thompson had written the (English) stories from scratch. How interesting - I wonder if the originals were as drug-induced!!

My father-in-law (who's 52 on Tuesday) is a big fan of The Magic Roundabout, particularly Dylan.

[Pip Madeley]

My father-in-law (who's 52 on Tuesday) is a big fan of The Magic Roundabout, particularly Dylan.

Is he a member of the Magic Roundabout Appreciation Society? Or Outpost Roundabout?

[Dirk Gently]

It was a series bought by the BBC from Switzerland iirc and they didn't bother getting it translated. Eric "Dad of Emma" Thompson apparently watched the shows without sound and wrote new scripts based on what was happening on screen.

I thought it came from France?

[Lord President]

The Magic Roundabout was a major part of my childhood, mostly due to the fact that my nickname in primary school was Brian the Snail! The series' creators, as well as Eric Thompson always denied that there were any drugs references in the series, despite the fact that Dylan was permanently stoned on weed, Zebedee was on speed, Dougal took LSD on sugarlumps and Ermentrude was obviously on mushrooms!

[Paul Monk]

It may have been france, Tim. I was going from memory and I always thought it was in Flemish.

I always had a soft spot for Dougal and co particularly as one of the characters was called Paul!