Old Bear Stories

Old Bear Stories is a British stop-motion animated children's television series based on the Old Bear and Friends books by Jane Hissey. It was first broadcast on 22 September 1993 and ran for three series until 23 December 1997, concluding with a double-length Christmas special. In total, 41 episodes were produced. The series won the BAFTA for Best Children's Programme in 1993.

The series was produced by Optomen Television in association with Ealing Animation and Carlton Television, and was originally broadcast in the United Kingdom on ITV. Episodes have subsequently been repeated on Channel 5 in the UK. The series was also broadcast internationally, including in the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa and several European countries, and was screened on armed forces television via BFBS.

Episodes of the series were released on VHS by Carlton Video.

Plot In a playroom that is home to a variety of sentient toys, their wise and caring leader, Old Bear, has long been absent after being put into the loft and forgotten. After the toys rescue him and bring him back to the playroom, Old Bear once again becomes their most respected toy and guides his friends in their many adventures, both in the playroom and in the garden.

Characters Old Bear – An elderly dusty teddy bear. He was put up in the attic when he reached an advanced age, but was rescued by the other toys. They now look up to him as a fearless, yet wise, leader. Bramwell Brown – A wise and intelligent teddy bear, often considered second to Old Bear. He often likes to cook things for the other toys. Duck – a gloomy and pessimistic but amiable toy duck. He sometimes wishes he could fly, and he does not like to get his feet wet. Rabbit – An impulsive and energetic toy rabbit. He enjoys jumping, and has talents for magic tricks and acrobatic performances. Little Bear – A small white bear who wears overly baggy orange-red trousers. Being the youngest of all the toys, he is very enthusiastic and inquisitive, rather like a young child. He sometimes has good ideas for solving problems or playing games. Jolly Tall – A kind and loyal toy giraffe who, despite his height, suffers from acrophobia – he says his head thinks it is high enough already. Sailor – a sailor doll who enjoys sailing in his toy boat. Zebra – A female toy zebra, who likes giving the other toys rides in her cart. Hoot – A toy owl living in the attic. She originally had a nest made of a bunch of socks that didn't match, until Little Bear gave her an old bobble hat to use instead. She doesn't often appear as, like all owls, she sleeps during the day. However, she sometimes appears at night to help people, such as when she rescued Little Bear from the snowy rooftop one Christmas Eve. Ruff – A toy dog that resembles a Fox Terrier. He had been left in the garden next door, as found nobody seemed to want him due to his bouncy nature. When he first visited the toys, they gave him his name due to the barking noise he made. They also gave him a whole week of birthdays, as he believed he was seven years old but had never counted or celebrated a birthday before. At the end of the week, he was afraid that the toys would want him to leave; but to his delight, they asked him to stay permanently. Dog – A toy black Scottish Terrier who likes to bury his rubber bones in some plant pots. Camel – A kindly toy camel who is almost as tall as Jolly Tall. She once tried to use Little Bear's trousers as hump warmers. Cat – A sleepy toy cat who likes to nap in any place she finds. Rabbit's cousin – A female cousin of Rabbit, who occasionally stays with the toys. She wears a straw hat, seems to like to cause mischief and does not like cleaning. The dolls – A family of three dolls (a father, mother and daughter) who live in a dolls' house in a corner of the playroom.

Episodes Series overview

Series 1 (1993)

Series 2

Series 3 (1996)

Christmas Specials

Crew Series 1 Narrated by Anton Rodgers Written by Jane Hissey Animation: Humphrey Leadbitter, Fin Leadbitter Music: Paul Castle Video Editors: Nick Follows, Simon Brook, Chris Reynolds Dubbing Mixer: Nigel Glynn-Davies Puppet Makers: Val Jones, Monique Brown, Alix Hardwood Sets: Colin Armitage Props: Pippa Randolph, Sue Phillips Executive Producer: Peter Gillbe Producer: Richard Randolph Director: Kevin Griffiths Characters © Jane Hissey, Licensed by Random House (UK) Ltd. An Optomen Television Production in association with Ealing Animation for Carlton Television © Carlton Television 1993 Series 2 Narrated by Anton Rodgers Written by Jane Hissey Music by Paul Castle Animated by Tobias Fouracre, Bryn Jones, Aziz Samuels, Humphrey Leadbitter, Dan Ryan Puppet Makers: Alix Hardwood, Helen Rench Sets: Graeme Owen Props: Pippa Randolph Production Assistant: Jilly Clarke Video Editor: Nick Follows Producers: Peter Gillbe, Richard Randolph Assistant Director: Liz Whitaker Director: Kevin Griffiths Characters © Jane Hissey, Licensed by Random House (UK) Ltd. An Optomen Television Production in association with Ealing Animation © Carlton Television 1994 Series 3 Narrated by Anton Rodgers Written by Jane Hissey Music by Paul Castle Animated by Tobias Fouracre, Geoff Walker, Humphrey Leadbitter, Dan Ryan, Liz Whitaker, Rowan Leadbitter Puppet Makers: Alix Hardwood, Helen Rench Sets: Graeme Owen Props: Pippa Randolph, Fin Leadbitter, Geoff Walker, Donna Joy Production Assistants: Jilly Clarke, Geoff Walker, Lynne Pritchard Video Editor: Nick Follows, Sally Fryer, Nick Aleck Producers: Peter Gillbe, Richard Randolph Assistant Director: Liz Whitaker Director: Kevin Griffiths Characters © Jane Hissey, Licensed by Random House (UK) Ltd. An Optomen Television Production in association with Ealing Animation © Carlton UK Television 1996, 1997

Theme music The theme tune was composed by Paul Castle and consists of the lyrics: Please read us a story Old Bear, we'll all gather round

Dear Old Bear.

Sit in your favourite chair,

We'll sit all around, all around dear Old Bear.Listen

The harmony vocals were provided by Alison Goldfrapp of the band Goldfrapp.

Awards The series received several awards: 1995 Chicago International Children's Film Festival - Outstanding Achievement Award 1994 Royal Television Society - Best Children's Series 1993 BAFTA - Best Children's Programme 1993 New York Film Festival - Gold Medal 1993 Chicago International Film Festival - Silver Plaque

Old Bear Stories

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