Rainbow (television)
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''Rainbow'' is a British
children's television series Children's television series (or children's television shows) are Television show, television programs designed specifically for Child, children. They are typically characterised by easy-going content devoid of sensitive or adult themes and are ...
, created by Pamela Lonsdale, which ran from 16 October 1972 until 6 March 1992, made by
Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...
. The series was revived by
Tetra Films Tetra Films was a London-based independent production company, trading between 1992 and 2000. Films and television Tetra Films was founded by Alan Horrox in 1992, the same year when classic ITV series The Tomorrow People was revived. Prior to th ...
from 10 January 1994 until 24 March 1997, in two different formats from the original Thames Television series, with differing cast members. The series was originally conceived as a British equivalent of ''
Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...
''. The British series was developed in house by Thames Television, and had no input from the
Children's Television Workshop Sesame Workshop (SW), originally known as the Children's Television Workshop (CTW), is an American nonprofit organization and television company that has been responsible for the production of several educational children's programs—includin ...
. It was intended to develop language and social skills for pre-school children and went on to win the Society of Film and Television Arts Award for Best Children's Programme in 1975. It aired five times weekly, originally twice weekly on Mondays and Wednesdays, then switched to Tuesdays and Fridays, and finally once weekly at 12:10 on Fridays on the ITV network. The show had three producers over its lifetime – Pamela Lonsdale, Charles Warren and Joe Boyer. The original Thames series has gained cult status and continues to get frequent mentions on radio and television. A few DVDs have been produced, including one celebrating ''30 Years of Rainbow''.


Premise

Each episode of ''Rainbow'' revolved around a particular activity or situation that arose in the Rainbow House, where the main characters lived. Some episodes, particularly in the early years, were purely educational in format and consisted of a series of scenes involving the characters learning about that particular episode's subject. The puppet characters of Zippy, George and Bungle would take the role of inquisitive children asking about the episode's subject, with the presenter (initially David Cook, and from 1974 onwards Geoffrey Hayes) serving the role of teacher figure, educating them about the subject. From the 1980s onwards, most episodes were more story-driven and frequently involved some kind of squabble or dispute between the puppet characters of Zippy, George and Bungle, and Geoffrey's attempts to calm them down and keep the peace. The main story was interspersed with songs (most notably from
Rod, Jane and Freddy Rod, Jane and Freddy was a singing trio who appeared in children's programming on the British TV channel ITV in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. They starred both in the long-running series ''Rainbow'' and their own 15-minute show. The trio ...
, although the musicians on the show changed several times during its run), animations by Cosgrove Hall Productions and stories read from the ''Rainbow'' storybook, usually by Geoffrey (David before 1974). Some episodes focused on a particular topic, such as sounds or opposites, and consisted mainly of short sketches or exchanges between the main characters, rather than a consistent storyline.


History

In 1972, Pamela Lonsdale was asked to create a preschool series for
Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...
. She cast John Kane as presenter and
Tim Wylton Tim Wylton (born Timothy Higginson; 27 February 1940) is a British actor best known for his television roles as Stanley Dawkins in '' My Hero'', and Lol Ferris in '' As Time Goes By''. Career As a stage actor he appeared in Zeffirelli's noted 19 ...
as a bear named Rainbow. Violet Philpott was cast as the puppeteer of Zippy, with
Peter Hawkins Peter John Hawkins (3 April 1924 – 8 July 2006) was a British actor. From the 1950s to 1980s, he was one of the most sought-after voice artists for television. Early life Peter John Hawkins was born on 3 April 1924 in Hargwyne Street in Bri ...
providing his voice, as well as those of Sunshine, Bramble and Pillar, however policy changes after the pilot meant those latter characters were recast. No script was made for the pilot, which led to Hawkins attempting to rewrite gags, difficult for the preschool audience, and would lead to him departing the show after its first year, recommending
Roy Skelton Roy William Skelton (20 July 1931 – 8 June 2011) was a British actor most noted for his voice work. He was best known for playing Zippy and George in ''Rainbow'', and for voicing the Daleks and the Cybermen in ''Doctor Who''. Life and ca ...
to take over. For the first two filmed series, the show was presented by
David Cook David Cook may refer to: Entertainment * David Cook (game designer) (active since 1980s), American game designer for TSR * David Cook (singer) (born 1982), winner of the seventh season of ''American Idol'' ** ''David Cook'' (album) (released 2008) ...
, with
John Leeson John Francis Christopher Ducker (born 16 March 1943), known professionally as John Leeson, is an English actor. He is known for portraying Bungle in ''Rainbow'' and voicing K9 in ''Doctor Who'' and spin-offs '' The Sarah Jane Adventures'' a ...
as Rainbow, renamed Bungle, and featured songs by the group Telltale. Philpott would leave the series after its first year due to suffering a back injury from Zippy’s appearances all being through a window. She was replaced by John Thirtle for the second series, and
Ronnie Le Drew Ronnie Le Drew (born 23 October 1947) is a Canadian-born British puppeteer who was born in Toronto, Canada. He is best known for playing "Zippy" from the ITV children's show ''Rainbow'' since the early 1970s and trained at the Little Angel The ...
from 1974 onto the present day. Cook left afterwards due to focusing on his writing career, and was replaced by Geoffrey Hayes. John Leeson would also leave at this point, replaced as Bungle by
Stanley Bates Stanley Kevin Bates (born 8 October 1942 in East Finchley, London) is a British actor and screen writer best known for the role of Bungle, and as a scriptwriter, in the children's television programme, ''Rainbow'' between 1973 and 1989, serie ...
, and Telltale were replaced by the trio of
Charlie Dore Charlie Dore (born 1956) is an English singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and actress. Although best known as a singer-songwriter, Dore has a multi-faceted career that includes acting in film, TV and radio, comedy-improvisatio ...
, Julian Littman and Karl Johnson, who the following year were replaced by the trio that would eventually become
Rod, Jane and Freddy Rod, Jane and Freddy was a singing trio who appeared in children's programming on the British TV channel ITV in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. They starred both in the long-running series ''Rainbow'' and their own 15-minute show. The trio ...
. The second series would also introduce George, operated by Valerie Herberden and voiced by
Roy Skelton Roy William Skelton (20 July 1931 – 8 June 2011) was a British actor most noted for his voice work. He was best known for playing Zippy and George in ''Rainbow'', and for voicing the Daleks and the Cybermen in ''Doctor Who''. Life and ca ...
. Bungle's appearance was also changed significantly with a completely different head design, more like a teddy bear than the previous grizzly bear look. Herberden was replaced by Malcolm Lord as George’s puppeteer, who
Ronnie Le Drew Ronnie Le Drew (born 23 October 1947) is a Canadian-born British puppeteer who was born in Toronto, Canada. He is best known for playing "Zippy" from the ITV children's show ''Rainbow'' since the early 1970s and trained at the Little Angel The ...
recommended. The format of the show was significantly built upon during this era, with the scripts began to move beyond the educational format of the show and focus more on actual storylines, driven by character comedy rather than educational themes. More of the episodes were written by the cast members themselves, with
Roy Skelton Roy William Skelton (20 July 1931 – 8 June 2011) was a British actor most noted for his voice work. He was best known for playing Zippy and George in ''Rainbow'', and for voicing the Daleks and the Cybermen in ''Doctor Who''. Life and ca ...
,
Stanley Bates Stanley Kevin Bates (born 8 October 1942 in East Finchley, London) is a British actor and screen writer best known for the role of Bungle, and as a scriptwriter, in the children's television programme, ''Rainbow'' between 1973 and 1989, serie ...
, Geoffrey Hayes and
Freddy Marks Frederick Marks (10 September 1949 – 20 May 2021) was an English actor, singer and entertainer. He was best known for being part of the musical trio Rod, Jane and Freddy which appeared in children's programming in the 1980s and 1990s. Earl ...
all contributing a significant number of episodes to the show. In 1989, Rod, Jane & Freddy left the show to concentrate on their own TV series and their touring. Rather than replace them, most episodes ditched the song feature altogether and the episodes became increasingly storyline-driven. Stanley Bates also left the show at this time although he continued to contribute as a scriptwriter, with George's puppeteer Malcolm Lord replacing him in the role of Bungle. George was now operated by Tony Holtham. Although the show remained extremely popular with both children and adults, it finally came to an end in 1992 when
Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...
lost the London weekday ITV franchise to
Carlton Television Carlton Television (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV franchise holder for London and the surrounding counties from 9.25am every Monday to 5.15pm every Friday. The company is now managed with London Weekend Tele ...
. Despite this, the cast continued to make frequent TV appearances throughout 1993, guesting on numerous talk shows as well as promoting the release of the "Raynboe" dance single by Eurobop (a mix of the theme tune set to a techno dance beat) and launching a newspaper campaign for the show to be brought back on air. Following the nationwide newspaper campaign to bring ''Rainbow'' back on air, a reboot of the show was announced by
Tetra Films Tetra Films was a London-based independent production company, trading between 1992 and 2000. Films and television Tetra Films was founded by Alan Horrox in 1992, the same year when classic ITV series The Tomorrow People was revived. Prior to th ...
in late 1993 and debuted on Children's ITV in on 10 January 1994. The reboot of the show reworked the format enormously as well as replacing nearly all of the cast members. Geoffrey's presenter role was scrapped altogether and the show instead focused on the characters of Zippy, George and Bungle, now independent of Geoffrey, running a toy shop for an unseen boss called Mr Top. Tetra could not afford
Roy Skelton Roy William Skelton (20 July 1931 – 8 June 2011) was a British actor most noted for his voice work. He was best known for playing Zippy and George in ''Rainbow'', and for voicing the Daleks and the Cybermen in ''Doctor Who''. Life and ca ...
to voice Zippy as well as hiring
Ronnie Le Drew Ronnie Le Drew (born 23 October 1947) is a Canadian-born British puppeteer who was born in Toronto, Canada. He is best known for playing "Zippy" from the ITV children's show ''Rainbow'' since the early 1970s and trained at the Little Angel The ...
to operate him, so Ronnie became Zippy’s voice, while George was operated and voiced by Craig Crane. Bungle's appearance was changed radically and he was now played by Richard Robinson. An additional puppet character was also introduced in the form of Cleo, a blue female rabbit voiced and operated by Gillian Robic. Cleo's role was unclear, with some episodes portraying her as a mere customer to the shop, others as a nosy neighbour and others as a playmate for Zippy and George. After the poor reception to the first reboot, Tetra Films attempted a second reboot in 1996 in association with HTV, reworking the format again into a form closer to that of the original series. Now titled ''Rainbow Days'', the new show ditched the toy shop setting and brought the characters back into a house environment, and reintroduced the role of the presenter, with Dale Superville now presenting the show. The character of Cleo was scrapped entirely, and Bungle's role was now played by Paul Cullinan. ''Rainbow Days'' re-embraced the 'variety show' format of the original series, generally focusing on an educational subject and consisting of scenes with Dale educating the puppet characters about the episode's subject, interspersed with comedic exchanges between Zippy and George in a similar style to the 'Sunshine and Moony' sketches from the earliest seasons, and songs performed by the whole cast, led by Dale. Although
Roy Skelton Roy William Skelton (20 July 1931 – 8 June 2011) was a British actor most noted for his voice work. He was best known for playing Zippy and George in ''Rainbow'', and for voicing the Daleks and the Cybermen in ''Doctor Who''. Life and ca ...
and Geoffrey Hayes died in 2011 and 2018 respectively, the characters of Zippy, George and Bungle still make the occasional TV appearances to the present day.


Theme song

The
theme song Theme music is a musical composition which is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...
for the show was actually a small part of the full version, also called "Rainbow" and written by Hugh Portnow, Lady Hornsbrie, Hugh Fraser and Tim Thomas of the band Telltale, who regularly appeared in the first two seasons of the show. It was released as a single on an offshoot of the Music for Pleasure label called Surprise, Surprise in 1973 with the B-side "Windy Day". Although Telltale left the show in 1974, their recording of the theme tune continued to be used until the end of the original show's run in 1992.


Episode list


Characters

''Rainbow'' featured the following characters, each with their own character style: *The presenter was at first
David Cook David Cook may refer to: Entertainment * David Cook (game designer) (active since 1980s), American game designer for TSR * David Cook (singer) (born 1982), winner of the seventh season of ''American Idol'' ** ''David Cook'' (album) (released 2008) ...
, but was replaced in 1974 by the best-known presenter Geoffrey Hayes. He brought the other members of the Rainbow household to order or gave them something to do. He acted as the symbol of adult wisdom, and rarely demonstrated overt affection to any of the three puppet characters, acting more as a carer/teacher than a father. While bright and cheery by default, Geoffrey occasionally became exasperated and flustered by the misbehaviour of the puppet characters, and a lot of the comedy in the later episodes revolved around him showing a grumpier side and occasionally losing his temper. There were infrequent mentions of his life outside of the Rainbow household, such as girlfriends, while several episodes stated that Geoffrey had a day job, apparently working in an office during weekdays. *Zippy – loud and domineering, but usually very funny (albeit not to the other characters in the show). The puppet was originally voiced by
Peter Hawkins Peter John Hawkins (3 April 1924 – 8 July 2006) was a British actor. From the 1950s to 1980s, he was one of the most sought-after voice artists for television. Early life Peter John Hawkins was born on 3 April 1924 in Hargwyne Street in Bri ...
and operated by Violet Philpott, and later voiced by
Roy Skelton Roy William Skelton (20 July 1931 – 8 June 2011) was a British actor most noted for his voice work. He was best known for playing Zippy and George in ''Rainbow'', and for voicing the Daleks and the Cybermen in ''Doctor Who''. Life and ca ...
, operated by
Ronnie Le Drew Ronnie Le Drew (born 23 October 1947) is a Canadian-born British puppeteer who was born in Toronto, Canada. He is best known for playing "Zippy" from the ITV children's show ''Rainbow'' since the early 1970s and trained at the Little Angel The ...
– Hawkins and Skelton were voice artists also well known for voicing
Dalek The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Nation and first appeared in th ...
s and
Cybermen The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. The Cybermen are a species of space-faring cyborgs who often forcefully and painfully convert human beings ...
in ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
''. Le Drew would voice the character in the Tetra Films series and in appearances following Skelton’s death. Zippy's mouth is a zip, and when he became too bossy or irritating, this was zipped shut to prevent him from continuing: on at least one occasion he unzipped himself, though he appears unable to do so on other occasions or simply submits to this punishment. He broadly represented childhood self-centeredness, "naughtiness" and extroversion. Zippy was extremely boastful and would frequently brag about his superior intelligence and singing skill (both of which proved to be completely unfounded when put to the test) and was also greedy, often overeating and displaying a particular love for chocolate and sweets. *George – a shy, pink and slightly camp hippo. He broadly represented sensitivity and introversion. (puppet; voiced by
Roy Skelton Roy William Skelton (20 July 1931 – 8 June 2011) was a British actor most noted for his voice work. He was best known for playing Zippy and George in ''Rainbow'', and for voicing the Daleks and the Cybermen in ''Doctor Who''. Life and ca ...
and operated by Malcolm Lord, Tony Holtham and later Craig Crane (who voiced the character in the Tetra shows). George first appeared in 1973, introduced as a shy friend of Zippy's who was afraid of being seen or heard, usually crouching very low behind the window pane and rarely speaking, preferring to make funny noises. In subsequent seasons George gradually became more bold and spoke more, though he remained predominantly shy and timid. The most generally well-behaved and well-meaning of the puppet characters, George often found himself caught between Zippy and Bungle's squabbling, and his good nature taken advantage of by the other characters. Although mostly introverted, several episodes reveal that he aspires to be a singer. *Bungle – a brown furry
bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...
with a squashed face, who is inquisitive but also clumsy and usually complains a lot about the other characters, especially Zippy's antics. He broadly represented conformity. Although on the surface he appears well-behaved and sensible, Bungle has a very sneaky side and a tendency to suck up to authority, making him frequently just as troublesome as Zippy, if not more so. The polar opposites of Zippy and Bungle's personalities are the source of much humour. Unlike Zippy and George, Bungle is a costume rather than a puppet; played by
John Leeson John Francis Christopher Ducker (born 16 March 1943), known professionally as John Leeson, is an English actor. He is known for portraying Bungle in ''Rainbow'' and voicing K9 in ''Doctor Who'' and spin-offs '' The Sarah Jane Adventures'' a ...
,
Stanley Bates Stanley Kevin Bates (born 8 October 1942 in East Finchley, London) is a British actor and screen writer best known for the role of Bungle, and as a scriptwriter, in the children's television programme, ''Rainbow'' between 1973 and 1989, serie ...
and Malcolm Lord in the Thames TV series and by Richard Robinson and Paul Cullinan in the reboot. The stunt double in the late 90s was Stuart Nichol. Although unclothed most of the time, he wraps a towel around his waist after a shower and also wears tartan pyjamas at bedtime. His friends would on occasion put his bed in the shower if he was not vigilant. The original 1972 costume resembled a wild
brown bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear native to Eurasia and North America. Of the land carnivorans, it is rivaled in size only by its closest relative, the polar bear, which is much less variable in size and slightly bigger on av ...
, but in 1973 this was replaced with a new design resembling a
teddy bear A teddy bear, or simply a teddy, is a stuffed toy in the form of a bear. The teddy bear was named by Morris Michtom after the 26th president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt; it was developed apparently simultaneously in the first deca ...
. The costume design underwent another overhaul upon Bates assuming the role in 1974 with an all brown pelt (instead of the previous brown/white) slimmer torso and further modified face. *
Rod, Jane and Freddy Rod, Jane and Freddy was a singing trio who appeared in children's programming on the British TV channel ITV in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. They starred both in the long-running series ''Rainbow'' and their own 15-minute show. The trio ...
– a group of musicians who regularly featured on the show. When they debuted in 1974 they were 'Rod, Jane and Matt', Matt being
Matthew Corbett Matthew Corbett (born Peter Graham Corbett on 28 March 1948) is an English former actor, singer, comedian, magician, puppeteer, television presenter, and writer, best known for presenting '' The Sooty Show'' and later '' Sooty and Co''. He is ...
(of ''
The Sooty Show ''The Sooty Show'' is a British children's television series, created by Harry Corbett, and produced for the BBC from 1955 to 1967, and then for ITV from 1968 until 1992. The show, part of the ''Sooty'' franchise, focuses on the mischievous ad ...
'' fame). Matt was replaced from 1977 by Roger Walker, before Freddy Marks, in turn, took over in 1981. Although initially confined to the song segment of the show, gradually Rod, Jane & Freddy began to feature more heavily in the episode's storylines during the show's run, often playing significant roles in the plot. Some of the early 80s episodes stated they lived in the Rainbow House and they were shown to have a bedroom of their own, although later episodes implied they lived next door. Rod, Jane & Freddy were very well-respected and looked up to by Zippy, George and Bungle, who admired their singing and rarely ever got into any conflict with them. *Sunshine and Moony – optimistic sunshine (yellow with a red hat) and his more gloomy friend Moony (brown with a tuft of yellow hair) were the original 'stars' of the programme, but soon became little more than foils to the more popular Zippy. They would occupy short sketches in the early episodes, the humour coming from the boastful, extroverted Sunshine winding up the more modest, cynical Moony, in a loose parallel of the later relationship between Zippy and George. They were phased out by 1974, in favour of greater roles for Bungle and (especially) George. They were voiced by Violet Philpott. *Telltale – a six-piece group who provided the music in the early days of the show. They were a folk-rock band and their repertoire would consist of both original compositions and cover versions. *
Charlie Dore Charlie Dore (born 1956) is an English singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and actress. Although best known as a singer-songwriter, Dore has a multi-faceted career that includes acting in film, TV and radio, comedy-improvisatio ...
, Julian Littman and Karl Johnson – the singing trio who replaced Telltale in 1974. They stayed with the show before being replaced by Rod, Matt & Jane in 1975. Charlie Dore and Julian Littman went on to have hugely successful music careers, while Karl Johnson became a well-known actor. *Duffy – a white sheepdog. Zippy's short-lived original sidekick for a handful of episodes circa 1972. Replaced by George in the 1973 series. *Zippo – Zippy's cousin, identical in appearance to Zippy but slightly brighter in colour, who would make the occasional guest appearance throughout the 80s and 90s seasons. Originally portrayed as an eloquent Frenchman, but a later episode depicted him as an American-accented
rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...
with loud, flashy clothing. Operated by Valerie Heberden, and voiced by Roy Skelton. *Georgette – a pink female hippo, identical in appearance to George except for her longer eyelashes and floppy hat. She appears in the 1986 episode "Falling Out and Making Up" in which she moves into the house next door to the Rainbow House and immediately gets along well with George. Despite her close resemblance to George in appearance and name, this appears to be nothing more than sheer coincidence. *Dawn – the next-door neighbour, played by Dawn Bowden, who was introduced in the show's later years, first appearing in 1990. Dawn would often visit the Rainbow House to help out with everyday chores and socialize with the characters, as well as performing songs with the rest of the cast on her Casio keyboard. * Aunty – played by
Patsy Rowlands Patricia Amy Rowlands (19 January 1931 – 22 January 2005) was an English actress who is best remembered for her roles in the ''Carry On'' films series, as Betty Lewis in the ITV Thames sitcom '' Bless This House'', and as Alice Meredith ...
, is apparently Geoffrey's aunt, who he used to stay with as a little boy. Aunty comes round to visit in several episodes, while in others the cast visit her. Aunty is a very old-fashioned woman, which occasionally exasperates the puppet characters, although they enjoy her company nonetheless. * Christopher – played by Christopher Lillicrap, a semi-regular guest star who would guest on the show from time to time since the 70s, at first to read stories and later to perform songs, which the main cast would join in with. * Vince – played by
Vince Hill Vincent Brian Hill (16 April 1934 – 22 July 2023) was an English traditional pop singer, best known for his cover version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein show tune " Edelweiss" (1967), which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart. He record ...
, a singer who would occasionally visit the Rainbow House and join in a song with Rod, Jane & Freddy. One episode portrayed him as a kind of 'Geoffrey' figure for Zippo when he showed up with Zippo to a garden party. Generally speaking, George and Zippy represented two 'types' of a child, George being the quiet and shy type, while Zippy represented the hyperactive and destructive type. Zippy often demonstrated a cynicism and wit that went beyond the "4th wall" and appealed to older viewers. George was usually vindicated, and Zippy got his comeuppance. While they were apparently young 'children' (aged around 6), Bungle was an older 'child' (aged around 8), and differed from them in being a costume rather than a hand puppet. Geoffrey's relationship to them was unclear, other than being a kind of mentor/teacher/carer.


The "adult" version

In 1979, the cast and crew of ''Rainbow'' made a special exclusive sketch for the Thames TV staff Christmas tape, sometimes referred to as the "Twangers" episode. This sketch featured plenty of deliberate sexual innuendo (beginning with Zippy peeling a banana, saying 'One skin, two skin, three skin...' before being interrupted by George), and was never shown at the time (as it was never intended to be screened to the general public.) The cast later sang "The Plucking Song". The clip became famous after being aired on
Victor Lewis-Smith Victor Lewis-Smith (12 May 1957 – 10 December 2022) was a British film, television and radio producer, a television and restaurant critic, a satirist and newspaper columnist. He was executive producer of the ITV1 Annual National Food & Drink ...
's
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
programme ''
TV Offal ''TV Offal'' is a British satirical comedy sketch/archive television series that ran on Channel 4 from 31 October 1997 to 26 June 1998. It was written and narrated by comedian and writer Victor Lewis-Smith, who shared writing duties with Paul S ...
'' (1997) and was referred to as 'the pilot episode' in order to fit into the regular programme segment "The Pilots That Crashed"; however, the clip clearly was not a pilot, as Geoffrey Hayes was not a regular presenter until the series itself was a year old. The clip became widespread with the increasing popularity of the Internet, first as an e-mail attachment and later via online video websites such as
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
. This has led to many erroneous claims that the episode was publicly broadcast as a regular episode. ''TV Offal'' additionally broadcast ''Rainbow''-related material from the 1984 Thames TV Christmas tape involving Zippy, George,
Jim Davidson James Cameron Davidson (born 13 December 1953) is an English stand-up comedian, actor, singer and TV presenter. He hosted the television shows '' Big Break'' and '' The Generation Game''. In 2014 he was the winner of the 13th series of ''Cel ...
and
Tommy Boyd Timothy Leslie "Tommy" Boyd (born 14 December 1952) is a British television and radio presenter. He gained prominence in the 1970s and 1980s as host of the children's television programmes ''Magpie'', '' Wide Awake Club'', and ''The Saturday ...
on a mock variety programme. This material, also not being intended for broadcast, featured more risqué content including Zippy swearing.


Home video releases

*
Thorn EMI Video Thorn EMI was a major British company involved in consumer electronics, music, defence and retail. Created when Thorn Electrical Industries merged with EMI in October 1979, it was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent o ...
/
Thames Video Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...
(1983-1984) *
Video Collection International 2 Entertain Video Limited, trading as BBC Studios Home Entertainment, is a British video and music publisher founded in 2004 following the merger of BBC Video and Video Collection International by BBC Worldwide and the Woolworths (United Kingd ...
(1986–1996) *
FremantleMedia Fremantle Limited (), formerly FremantleMedia, is a British multinational television production and distribution company based in London. The company was founded as Pearson Television in 1993 when publishing and education company Pearson ...
(2002–2018)


Rainbow (1972–1991) releases


Rainbow (1994–1995) VHS releases


Reruns

Episodes of the original ''Rainbow'', dating from the early 1980s, were shown sporadically on the UK
satellite TV Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location.ITU Radio Regulations, Section IV. Radio Stations and Systems ...
channel
Nick Jr. Nick Jr. (sometimes disambiguated as Nick Jr. on Nickelodeon or Nick Jr. on Nick, and sometimes referred to as Nick, Jr.) is an American morning programming block that airs on Nickelodeon every weekday. It was launched on January 4, 1988. Nick ...
(and/or its sister channel, Nick Jr. 2) from 2006 to 2009 as part of its Nick Jr. Classics reruns. A previous repeat run took place on UK Gold (now
Gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
) from its launch in November 1992 to 1994; these were mostly from the last three years of the programme (without Rod, Jane and Freddy).


References


Further reading

* Mike Anderiesz, ''Climbing High: Life Under the Rainbow Exposed'' (Boxtree, 2002). * Tim Randall, ''Rainbow Unzipped – The Autobiography'' Published on 1 October 2009 by Headline Publishing Group (). * ''The A to Z of Classic Children's Television'' by Simon Sheridan. (Reynolds & Hearn books, 2004, reprinted 2007). This book features a chapter on the series and interviews with
Jane Tucker Jane Tucker (born 20 October 1947) is a British actress, singer, songwriter, musician and keyboardist. She is best known for being part of the musical trio Rod, Jane and Freddy who appeared in many TV series, notably ''Rainbow''. Career In ...
and Pamela Lonsdale. () * ''Zippy and Me: My Life Inside Britain’s Most Infamous Puppet'' by Ronnie LeDrew, Unbound (2019)


Sweet Cherry Publishing

An initial range of three hand puppet books featuring Bungle, Zippy and George was launched at the London Book Fair on 12 March on Sweet Cherry's stand, and then at the Bologna Book Fair on 1 April. These books were going to be available at retail from July–October 2019, but it was delayed further until May 2020. * ''I Love You, Bungle!'' (Sweet Cherry Publishing, 28 May 2020) () * ''Time For Bed, Zippy!'' (Sweet Cherry Publishing, 28 May 2020) () * ''Let's Play, George!'' (Sweet Cherry Publishing, 28 May 2020) ()


External links

*
Transcript of the adult version

Zippy's Big Red Twanger



Rainbow Facebook Fan Page

BBC News, 28 February 2006.



Zippy, George and Bungle appeared in the Pizza Hut advert, 3 October 2017.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rainbow (Tv Series) 1972 British television series debuts 1997 British television series endings 1970s British children's television series 1970s preschool education television series 1980s British children's television series 1980s preschool education television series 1990s British children's television series 1990s preschool education television series British children's television series British preschool education television series British television series with live action and animation British television shows featuring puppetry ITV children's television shows Television series by FremantleMedia Kids & Family Television shows produced by Thames Television Television shows produced by Harlech Television British English-language television shows Television shows set in England Television shows shot at Teddington Studios