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''Follyfoot'' is a children's television series co-produced by the majority-partner British television company
Yorkshire Television ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...
(for transmission on
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
) and the independent
West German West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
company ''TV München'' (for transmission on the
ZDF ZDF (, short for Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen; ; "Second German Television") is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. It is run as an independent nonprofit institution, which was founded by all fe ...
channel). It aired in the United Kingdom between 1971 and 1973, repeated for two years after that and again in the late 1980s. The series starred
Gillian Blake Gillian Blake (born 10 May 1949), Buckingham, England is a retired British actress who became well known in the early 1970s as Dora in ''Follyfoot''. Blake studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and began her professional c ...
in the lead role. Notable people connected with the series were actors
Desmond Llewelyn Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn (; 12 September 1914GRO Register of Births: DEC 1914 11a 490 NEWPORT M. – Desmond W. Llewelyn, mmn = Wilkinson – 19 December 1999GRO Register of Deaths: JUN 2000 A70E 247 EASTBOURNE – Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn, D ...
and
Arthur English Arthur Leslie Norman English (9 May 1919 – 16 April 1995) was an English television, film and stage actor and comedian from the music hall tradition. Early life English was born at 22 Lysons Road in Aldershot,'Arthur English, ''Aldershot H ...
and directors
Jack Cardiff Jack Cardiff, (18 September 1914 – 22 April 2009) was a British cinematographer, film and television director, and photographer. His career spanned the development of cinema, from silent film, through early experiments in Technicolor, to fi ...
,
Stephen Frears Stephen Arthur Frears (born 20 June 1941) is an English director and producer of film and television often depicting real life stories as well as projects that explore social class through sharply drawn characters. He's received numerous accola ...
,
Michael Apted Michael David Apted, (10 February 1941 – 7 January 2021) was a British television and film director and producer. Apted began working in television and directed the '' Up'' documentary series (1964–2019). He later directed '' Coal Miner's ...
and
David Hemmings David Edward Leslie Hemmings (18 November 1941 – 3 December 2003) was an English actor and director. He is best remembered for his roles in British films and television programmes of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the 1966 mystery film ' ...
. It was originally inspired by
Monica Dickens Monica Enid Dickens, MBE (10 May 1915 – 25 December 1992) was an English writer, the great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens. Biography Known as "Monty" to her family and friends, she was born into an upper-middle-class London family to Henry ...
' 1963 novel ''Cobbler's Dream'' (republished in 1995 as ''New Arrival at Follyfoot''); she later wrote four further books in conjunction with the series—''Follyfoot'' in 1971, ''Dora at Follyfoot'' in 1972, ''The Horses of Follyfoot'' in 1975, and ''Stranger at Follyfoot'' in 1976.


Background and production

The series, which was filmed on the Harewood family estate, was set at a home of rest for horses. Despite an apparent appeal limited to young girls with an equine interest, ''Follyfoot'' was actually aimed squarely at the teenage market and often had challenging things to say about the treatment of horses and animals generally in British society. The ethos of ''Follyfoot'' generally was to give another chance to both horses and people who had been rejected by the rest of society: the stance of the series was recognisably pro-animal, and characters who resembled the archetypes of the Pullein-Thompson sisters et al were overwhelmingly shown in a negative light. Continuity in the series was assured by the use of mainly one writer, Tony Essex, who wrote 34 of the 39 episodes. The series' theme song, "The Lightning Tree", written by Francis Essex, the brother of Tony Essex and sung by
The Settlers ''The Settlers'' (german: Die Siedler) is a City-building game, city-building and real-time strategy video game series created by Volker Wertich. The The Settlers (1993 video game), original game was released on the Commodore Amiga in 1993, wit ...
, is well-remembered, sometimes more so than the series itself. The song reached No. 36 in the UK charts in 1971. An album featuring music from the series was also released. The main actors were
Gillian Blake Gillian Blake (born 10 May 1949), Buckingham, England is a retired British actress who became well known in the early 1970s as Dora in ''Follyfoot''. Blake studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and began her professional c ...
as Dora,
Steve Hodson Steve Hodson (born Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, 5 November 1947) is a British actor who played the role of Steve Ross in ''Follyfoot''. Hodson was working as a civil servant in Bradford when he won a place at the Central School of Speech ...
as Steve,
Christian Rodska Christian Rodska (born Christian Rodskjaer; 5 September 1945) is an English actor who has appeared in many television and radio series and narrated a number of audiobooks, including Sir Winston Churchill's Nobel Prize winning ''The Second World W ...
as Ron Stryker,
Desmond Llewelyn Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn (; 12 September 1914GRO Register of Births: DEC 1914 11a 490 NEWPORT M. – Desmond W. Llewelyn, mmn = Wilkinson – 19 December 1999GRO Register of Deaths: JUN 2000 A70E 247 EASTBOURNE – Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn, D ...
as the Colonel and
Arthur English Arthur Leslie Norman English (9 May 1919 – 16 April 1995) was an English television, film and stage actor and comedian from the music hall tradition. Early life English was born at 22 Lysons Road in Aldershot,'Arthur English, ''Aldershot H ...
as Slugger. Several other famous people had minor roles:
Pam St Clement Pamela Ann Clements (born 11 May 1942), known professionally as Pam St Clement, is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Pat Butcher in the BBC One, BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' from June 1986 until January 2012, with a gu ...
,
Gretchen Franklin Gretchen Franklin (7 July 1911 – 11 July 2005) was an English actress and dancer with a career in show business spanning over 70 years. She was born in Covent Garden, Central London. She played Ethel Skinner in the long-running BBC 1 soap ope ...
as the Colonel's housekeeper and
Kathy Staff Kathy Staff (born Minnie Higginbottom; 12 July 1928 – 13 December 2008) was an English actress known for her work on British television. She is best known for her portrayal of Nora Batty in ''Last of the Summer Wine'', the longest running sit ...
in two separate bit parts. What really characterised the series was its rotation of directors, many of whom have since become revered figures in the UK film industry, including
Stephen Frears Stephen Arthur Frears (born 20 June 1941) is an English director and producer of film and television often depicting real life stories as well as projects that explore social class through sharply drawn characters. He's received numerous accola ...
,
Michael Apted Michael David Apted, (10 February 1941 – 7 January 2021) was a British television and film director and producer. Apted began working in television and directed the '' Up'' documentary series (1964–2019). He later directed '' Coal Miner's ...
and
Jack Cardiff Jack Cardiff, (18 September 1914 – 22 April 2009) was a British cinematographer, film and television director, and photographer. His career spanned the development of cinema, from silent film, through early experiments in Technicolor, to fi ...
who took time out from working overseas with
Kirk Douglas Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in ''The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'' (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. Do ...
to direct two episodes of the series. Also, in the third series,
David Hemmings David Edward Leslie Hemmings (18 November 1941 – 3 December 2003) was an English actor and director. He is best remembered for his roles in British films and television programmes of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the 1966 mystery film ' ...
took the time to appear in one episode, "Uncle Joe" and also to direct two other episodes, which took place before and after that episode: "The Bridge Builder" and the final episode, "Walk In the Wood". The series proved to be very popular and was sold to many countries at the time of the original UK transmission. The first series won the Harlequin award for best production at the 1972
BAFTA Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cere ...
, while the second series episode, "The Debt", reached the top 20 in the weekly television ratings—a rarity for an afternoon-timeslot show. During production for the third series, it was intended that this would be the last, a film version of ''Follyfoot'' was planned, but the idea was ultimately shelved. The children's magazine ''
Look-in ''Look-in'' was a children's magazine centred on ITV's television programmes in the United Kingdom, and subtitled "The Junior ''TVTimes''". It ran from 9 January 1971 to 12 March 1994.annuals were released in association with Yorkshire Television. These ran until 1976—long after the series had finished.
Follifoot Follifoot is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the A658 road and south-east from the town centre of Harrogate. History The village name is derived from Old Norse translating ...
(note the slightly different spelling) is a small village just three miles from
Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor at ...
, not far from the Yorkshire Television studios in
Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
.


Characters


Main Characters

* Dora Maddocks (
Gillian Blake Gillian Blake (born 10 May 1949), Buckingham, England is a retired British actress who became well known in the early 1970s as Dora in ''Follyfoot''. Blake studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and began her professional c ...
): the series' central character and niece of The Colonel. The daughter of a bigwig ambassador, she has spent a miserable childhood because her parents have never understood her and being showered with material possessions was no compensation. In Series 2 ep 4, she recalls the pain of her 10th birthday where, instead of getting the pony she wanted, she instead got the most expensive dresses available. The story begins when Dora is sent to live with the Colonel when her parents leave for a government commission in South America—when she discovers Follyfoot farm, Dora finds her idyll. Dora is an idealist and a dreamer; she cannot cope with change and tries to shut out the fact the world is full of bad people. When the Colonel signs Follyfoot over to her, Dora desperately tries to keep the farm running as it always has done, despite this becoming increasingly impractical and the resulting tension with her love interest, Steve. Her disillusionment with the elite world she was brought up in is redolent of Monica Dickens's own feelings in the 1930s (she had been a debutante, but abandoned that privileged life to go into domestic service). * Steve Ross (
Steve Hodson Steve Hodson (born Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, 5 November 1947) is a British actor who played the role of Steve Ross in ''Follyfoot''. Hodson was working as a civil servant in Bradford when he won a place at the Central School of Speech ...
): Miner's son and former reform school pupil who served time in prison for lashing out at a man he found whipping a horse. A very competent horseman, he comes to work at Follyfoot after his previous employer, the Squire, refuses to believe he wasn't involved in an attack on his horses. Steve believes in the same values as Dora but through life experiences has a more realistic view of the world and this causes increasing tension with Dora throughout the second and especially the third series. He has an emotional attachment with Dora and wishes he could be more idealist like her. * Ron Stryker (
Christian Rodska Christian Rodska (born Christian Rodskjaer; 5 September 1945) is an English actor who has appeared in many television and radio series and narrated a number of audiobooks, including Sir Winston Churchill's Nobel Prize winning ''The Second World W ...
): the third of the trio of young workers at Follyfoot but also the shadiest. He is known to the police and one of his friends is Lewis Hammond, member of local miscreant gang the Night Riders. His father persuaded the Colonel to give him a job at Follyfoot to help keep him out of trouble, yet Ron is workshy and ignores constant warnings not to burst through the main gate at Follyfoot with his distinctive
Triumph Tiger Triumph Tiger is a name used by a number of former motorcycles historically made by the British company Triumph Engineering and more-recent models by its modern successor, Triumph Motorcycles Ltd. Current models: * Triumph Tiger Sport 660, produ ...
motorbike. Despite the rough exterior, Ron is essentially warm-hearted and loves the horses as much as everyone else. Ron is already working at Follyfoot when Dora, then Steve, arrive. * Slugger Jones (
Arthur English Arthur Leslie Norman English (9 May 1919 – 16 April 1995) was an English television, film and stage actor and comedian from the music hall tradition. Early life English was born at 22 Lysons Road in Aldershot,'Arthur English, ''Aldershot H ...
): ex-boxer and "housekeeper" at Follyfoot Farm who has been working for the Colonel for over 20 years. He proves to be an emotional rock for Dora but will readily tell her to "snap out of it" where necessary. Slugger is gruff yet cuddly at the same time and is rather fond of Ron despite their love-hate façade. His cookery is notorious for its lack of variety—bacon and eggs or stew! * Colonel Geoffrey Maddocks (
Desmond Llewelyn Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn (; 12 September 1914GRO Register of Births: DEC 1914 11a 490 NEWPORT M. – Desmond W. Llewelyn, mmn = Wilkinson – 19 December 1999GRO Register of Deaths: JUN 2000 A70E 247 EASTBOURNE – Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn, D ...
): Dora's uncle and the original owner of Follyfoot farm. He started Follyfoot years ago as his response to all the cruelty in the world and his attempt to do something about it. The Colonel has a reputation as a kindly eccentric and is the first person most people call on when they've got a horse in need of rehoming. He thinks the world of Dora and proves to be more of a father to her than her actual father, but an illness weakens him in Series 2 and when he signs Follyfoot over to Dora, she must increasingly have to manage under her own steam. He comes over, broadly, as a One Nation Tory, very much of the centre ground.


Minor Characters

* Lewis Hammond (Paul Guess): known locally as "The Louse", Ron's friend and leader of motorcycle thugs the Night Riders. He is complicit in the death of two of the Squire's horses, which leads to Steve being wrongly implicated and sacked. * Callie Holmes (
Gillian Bailey Gillian Bailey (born 14 June 1955 in Wimbledon, London), also known as Gilli Bush-Bailey, is a British academic and former actress. She was a child actress and appeared as Billie in '' Here Come the Double Deckers'' (1970–71). Other roles inc ...
): teenage schoolgirl who occasionally helps out at Follyfoot. In the episode ''Moonstone'', Callie coerces Steve into helping her hide a horse she's stolen from the circus, believing the animal to be unhappy. Steve is naturally twitchy because of his criminal past. Callie has a crush on Steve. * Gip Willens (Bryan Sweeney): young boy who loves horses but has little idea how to look after them. After Ron spins him a line about Follyfoot being a place where horses are tortured, Steve has his work cut out trying to convince him otherwise and it takes the near-death of Gip's horse to win him round. * Wendy Bendiger ( Elaine Donnelly): a brief love-interest for Steve, which causes much upset for Dora. She eventually breaks up with him, which Steve puts down to their class difference. * Sam Lockwood ( Frederick Treves): unscrupulous horse trader who is in it only for the money and does not care whether his animals are going to good homes. He proves the main series villain in Series 3, with Follyfoot having to take in two of his animals. His son Chip (Nigel Crewe) briefly dates Dora but he is too loyal to his father for the relationship to progress. * Hazel Donnelly (Veronica Quilligan): 14-year-old reform school delinquent sent to Follyfoot by the probation service. Dora takes an initial dislike to her, especially when she almost attacks her favourite horse Copper and forms a bond with Steve, but Hazel is essentially a younger version of Dora with the same background and strained relationship with her parents. After a volatile start she takes to working at Follyfoot and it is widely thought among the show's fans Hazel would have become a regular character had the series continued. * Another recurring (but very minor) character is the Vet (unnamed), played by Geoffrey Morris, who appears in several episodes during series 2 and 3. A second vet, played by Colin Rix, appeared in the first and last episodes of series 1 and in both cases was seen putting a sick horse out of its misery.


Episodes


Series overview


Series 1 (1971)


Series 2 (1972)


Series 3 (1973)


Home releases

The first three episodes were released on video in 1995. No further releases ever came to light, and this video has long been deleted. However, on DVD, Series 1 (episodes 1 to 13) was released in 2007. Series 2 was released on DVD in April 2008, with Series 3 following in October 2008.Moviemail-online.co.uk , DVD releases
/ref> The DVDs are Region 2 encoded, and in PAL format. A complete boxset of the series was released in late 2008.


References


External links


The Follyfoot Tribute Fan SiteThe Follyfoot forum
*
Follyfoot: Horses And High Production Values by Sabrina Ferguson
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170830042503/http://www.thenicerooms.com/room-39 , date=30 August 2017 Television series by Yorkshire Television 1970s British children's television series 1971 British television series debuts 1973 British television series endings ITV children's television shows British teen drama television series Television series by ITV Studios Television shows set in Yorkshire English-language television shows Television series about horses 1970s British drama television series