Noddy jigsaw by Arrow

[Moonraker]

Also good to see that Tony has come out of the closet and finally admitted his love and devotion for the little nodding man.

[Eddie Muir]

[Tony Summerfield]

Also good to see that Tony has come out of the closet and finally admitted his love and devotion for the little nodding man.

That's a bit OTT as I have honestly admitted in the past to not reading a single Noddy book. I do, however, try to make the Cave as good as I can and if I ever have the energy there is a great deal more to be added in the Toys and Games section for Noddy.

[Rob Houghton]

That TV series was the first time I ever came across Richard Briers...and I always enjoyed whatever he appeared in.

[Katharine]

I don't think I ever saw it.

[Rob Houghton]

It was the early 1970's. I have two videos of it I found in a charity shop. Richard Briers narrated it and whenever I hear his voice now it reminds me of Noddy!

[Courtenay]

Definitely before my time - this is the one I remember (1990s, I think): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaHMyvqwU84" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Incidentally, to hark back to the modernisation debate, it strikes me that this song includes the line "It's sixpence an adventure..." Why has this not been updated to today's currency?

[Rob Houghton]

The earlier version -

http://youtu.be/zxEi2X1i0l0

1975!

I remember the 1990's version well, as my oldest niece was mad on Noddy!

[Courtenay]

Awww, very cute - and quite a cool '70s theme tune! Did that version feature golliwogs??

[Rob Houghton]

I don't think it did!

[Anita Bensoussane]

It's strange that the 1975 Noddy TV series didn't feature golliwogs, because at the time golliwogs still appeared on TV in other series (e.g. in the opening credits of the children's cartoon series Mary, Mungo and Midge) and in adverts for Robertson's marmalade.

There had been an earlier Noddy TV series in 1955, complete with golliwogs. I believe it was one of the first programmes to be broadcast when ITV was launched towards the end of 1955. Enid Blyton wrote excitedly about it in Enid Blyton's Magazine Volume 3 Number 21, October 12th - 25th, 1955:

How many of you have seen my Noddy Puppets on Commercial Television? Do you like them? I expect you think it's wonderful the way little Noddy speeds through the countryside in his car. I certainly do! I wish you could see the puppeteer working the little puppets on the long strings. It is like magic.

[Moonraker]

I really feel sad the golliwogs have been ethnically cleansed from Enid's work. Only racists could possibly see a connection with humans. Do people also think goblins or even Noddy himself is offensive - or is it only black toys/dolls that allegedly cause offence?

[Rob Houghton]

This is exactly my point - as a child I never realized Golliwogs were 'meant' to represent black people. I thought a Golliwog was a creature, like an imp, brownie, wizard, etc. It wasn't until politically correct flag-wavers pointed out that I was being racist in my liking for Gollies that I even realised they were meant to be human figures.

It's a bit like when I was doing teacher training in 2006 and sat in a classroom where the teacher was busy explaining that one of the boys in the class was 'different' and asked children to point out what was different - the fact he had black skin but that basically he was the same as all the other children. I actually thought words I wouldn't write on this forum! This is awareness is supposed to be better than just thinking a black boy is the same as a white boy? Growing up, the black boy in our class was interesting because he had black skin...but we didn't look on him as different to us. Nowadays children are taught the differences.

[Courtenay]

This is what I really appreciated about the talk I went to recently by David Rudd (in Canterbury): he emphasised very strongly that golliwogs in Enid's books are nearly always good, or at least neutral - sometimes tricksters, but never outright wicked, except for that one infamous episode in one single Noddy book (Here Comes Noddy Again) where four of them mug Noddy and steal his car. David pointed out that it's precisely because gollies in Blyton are normally not bad characters that this scene is a surprise and shock to the reader. The modern version, in which the gollies are replaced with goblins, only makes Noddy look a fool for giving one a ride, because goblins are always wicked!

David also related how some years ago, for his thesis on Blyton, he interviewed numerous school children from around Britain, including those of ethnic minorities, and none of them, when shown a golliwog, thought of it as a black human being. Not surprising - I had a golly as a child too, and don't recall ever making a connection between him and black people.

[Rob Houghton]

I agree - as a child I had several black friends, and never, ever did I think they had anything to do with Golliwogs. Sometimes I think all this PC stuff actually makes people more racist, as things are brought to their attention that previously they hadn't even considered. I loved my Golliwog and always thought he was very posh and well dressed - much more important than my other toys, in his bow-tie, waistcoat and tailed coat. It's true that Noddy was much more likely to give a Golliwog a lift in his car than a bunch of Goblins - surely even Noddy wasn't that stupid!