Cockleshell Bay

Cockleshell Bay is a stop-motion children's television series which was shown at lunchtime on ITV during the early 1980s. It was made by Cosgrove Hall for their parent company, the ITV broadcaster Thames Television. Other children's programmes in the same ITV time slot on the remaining four weekdays included Let's Pretend, Jamie and the Magic Torch, and Rainbow – the latter in which Cockleshell Bay began as a regular story feature (reflected in the rainbow design of Cockleshell Bay's logo).

Cockleshell Bay
GenreStop motion, Animation
Created byCosgrove Hall
StarringBrian Trueman
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languagesEnglish, Finnish, Swedish, Hebrew, Hungarian, French, and Spanish
No. of episodes104
Production
Executive producerJohn Hambley
ProducersBrian Cosgrove, Mark Hall
Running time10 mins
Release
Original networkITV
Original release6 May 1980 (1980-05-06) –
1 July 1986 (1986-07-01)

Twins Robin and Rosie Cockle were the main characters. They lived at the Bucket and Spade guest house run by their parents Helen and Christopher. The family had moved to the Bay from a city called “Roughington” because their parents had wanted to leave city life behind, and their father no longer wanted to work in a factory. Although Robin and Rosie frequently argued with each other, it was clear that they much enjoyed each other's company. Gran Routy (who was no relation to the family, but was known as "Gran" due to her large number of grandchildren) helped out at the house. Robin and Rosie's friends included Mr. Ezikiel Shipham (known locally as Mr Ship), Mr. McGinty and his donkey Fury (whom Mr. Ship looked after), as well as Ben Gunn the "pirate seagull". In the later series Robin and Rosie had a baby sister called Holly.

Transmission guide
  • Series 1: 13 editions from 6 May 1980 – 29 July 1980
  • Series 2: 13 editions from 24 March 1981 – 16 June 1981
  • Series 3: 13 editions from 28 September 1981 – 21 December 1981
  • Series 4: 13 editions from 29 March 1982 – 21 June 1982
  • Series 5: 13 editions from 4 January 1983 – 5 April 1983
  • Series 6: 13 editions from 10 January 1984 – 3 April 1984
  • Series 7: 13 editions from 16 April 1985 – 9 July 1985
  • Series 8: 13 editions from 8 April 1986 – 1 July 1986

Episode Guide

Series 1 (1980)
  1. 6 May 1980: A Fresh Start
  2. 13 May 1980: Names
  3. 20 May 1980: The Pirate Seagull
  4. 27 May 1980: Buried Treasure
  5. 3 June 1980: Arrow is Arrows is Arrows
  6. 10 June 1980: Mortar This than Meets the Eye
  7. 17 June 1980: Ben Gunn Strikes Again
  8. 24 June 1980: Round and Round and Up and Down
  9. 1 July 1980: The Grand Old Duke of York
  10. 8 July 1980: Spring Cleaning
  11. 15 July 1980: Land Ho
  12. 22 July 1980: The House That Robin and Rosie Built
  13. 29 July 1980: Happy Birthday Gran Routy

Series 2 (1981)
  1. 24 March 1981: Fishy Things
  2. 31 March 1981: The Disappearing Peas
  3. 7 April 1981: Something Beginning with P
  4. 14 April 1981: The Pirate King
  5. 21 April 1981: Footprints in the Sand
  6. 28 April 1981: Bumps and Twangles
  7. 5 May 1981: Beachcombing
  8. 12 May 1981: Rosie the Ballerina
  9. 19 May 1981: A Day in the Sand Dunes
  10. 26 May 1981: A Couple of Carpenters
  11. 2 June 1981: A Cart Made for Two
  12. 9 June 1981: The Grown Ups' Secret
  13. 16 June 1981: Cockleshell Bay Concert

Series 3 (1981)
  1. 28 September 1981: The Mystery of the Talking Donkey
  2. 5 October 1981: Mr Ship's New Crew
  3. 12 October 1981: Ben Gunn Goes Missing
  4. 19 October 1981: Shirts, Socks and Sunshine
  5. 26 October 1981: Mr Ship's African Adventure
  6. 2 November 1981: Robin and Rosie at the Gallop
  7. 9 November 1981: Gran Routy Bowls Them Over
  8. 16 November 1981: Rock and Roll Robin
  9. 23 November 1981: Robin and Rosie Hit the Trail
  10. 30 November 1981: Tea Time Troubles
  11. 7 December 1981: In the Cart
  12. 14 December 1981: The Boatyard Sailors
  13. 21 December 1981: A Cockleshell Christmas

Series 4 (1982)
  1. 29 March 1982: The Cockleshell Cooks
  2. 5 April 1982: Deep Sea Divers
  3. 12 April 1982: Football Crazy
  4. 19 April 1982: The Birthday Secret
  5. 26 April 1982: Fury Comes to Tea!
  6. 3 May 1982: Robin the Vet
  7. 10 May 1982: A Dressing-Up Day
  8. 17 May 1982: The Eight-Wheeled Cockles
  9. 24 May 1982: Nurse Rosie
  10. 31 May 1982: Stage Struck
  11. 7 June 1982: Cockleshell Keep-Fit
  12. 14 June 1982: The Well-Groomed Donkey
  13. 21 June 1982: Carnival!

Series 5 (1983)
  1. 4 January 1983: Dust Sheet Dramas
  2. 11 January 1983: Dad's Marathon
  3. 18 January 1983: Gypsy Rose Routy
  4. 25 January 1983: Flying High
  5. 1 February 1983: The Treasure Hunt
  6. 8 February 1983: Alleys and Dobbers
  7. 15 February 1983: Ben Gunn Gets Busy
  8. 22 February 1983: Another Boxing Day
  9. 1 March 1983: Mr Cockle's Common Cold
  10. 8 March 1983: It's in the Air
  11. 15 March 1983: Words, Words, Words
  12. 22 March 1983: Long Ears and Tall Stories
  13. 29 March 1983: The Cockleshell Easter Fayre

Series 6 (1984)
  1. 10 January 1984: Tyred Out
  2. 17 January 1984: Ostriches and Obstacles
  3. 24 January 1984: Squeak, Squeak!
  4. 31 January 1984: Holed in One
  5. 7 February 1984: Robin and Rosie Clean Up
  6. 14 February 1984: Tea Trays and Tumbles
  7. 21 February 1984: The Vikings are Coming!
  8. 28 February 1984: Skates Alive!
  9. 6 March 1984:
  10. 13 March 1984: Easy as Toffee Apples!
  11. 20 March 1984: Iceberg on the Port Bow
  12. 27 March 1984: A Frosty Day
  13. 3 April 1984: Under Canvas

Series 7 (1985)
  1. 16 April 1985: Footprints and Floorcloths
  2. 23 April 1985: The Attic
  3. 30 April 1985: Paste and Paper Everywhere
  4. 7 May 1985: Moving In
  5. 14 May 1985: A New Friend
  6. 21 May 1985: Donkey is on the Loose
  7. 28 May 1985:
  8. 4 June 1985:
  9. 11 June 1985: The Baby
  10. 18 June 1985: The Magpie Braves
  11. 25 June 1985: Lost and Found
  12. 2 July 1985: Drawing and Winning
  13. 9 July 1985: A Puzzle... and a Party

Series 8 (1986)
  1. 8 April 1986: Holly on the Loose
  2. 15 April 1986: Taming of the Lion
  3. 22 April 1986: Steaming Ahead
  4. 29 April 1986: The Puppet Show
  5. 6 May 1986: Mr Cockle Cooks
  6. 13 May 1986: Shopping and Shipwrecks
  7. 20 May 1986: A Day at the Chariot Races
  8. 27 May 1986: Storms at Sea
  9. 3 June 1986: Ben Gunn's New Feathers
  10. 10 June 1986: Dr. Mario
  11. 17 June 1986: Blow Me Down
  12. 24 June 1986: Holly Catches a Train
  13. 1 July 1986:

VHS releases
VHS Title Release Date Episodes
Cockleshell Bay (TV9901) 3 November 1986 A Fresh Start, Names, The Pirate Seagull, The Grand Old Duke of York, Happy Birthday Gran Routy
Seaside Tales from Cockleshell Bay (TV9951) 17 August 1987 Mr. Ship's African Adventure, Nurse Rosie, Mr. Fingal's Skating Lesson, Ostriches and Obstacles, Cockleshell Christmas
Robin and Rosie's Adventures in Cockleshell Bay (TV9952) 5 October 1987 Fishy Things, The Pirate King, A Day in the Sand Dunes, A Cart Made for Two, Cockleshell Bay Concert
Bedtime Stories: Toad and Friends (TV8078) 6 November 1989 Flying High (Compilation VHS with 'The Wind in the Willows' and 'Jamie and the Magic Torch')

Credits
Writer and Narrator
Brian Trueman
Music
David Rohl, Stuart J. Wolstenholme
Animation
Andrea Lord, Steve Moss
Puppet Design
Bridget Appleby
Illustrations
Josie Yee & Ivor Wood
Sets & Props
Chris Walker
Puppet Construction
Peter Saunders
Camera
Jim Noble, Jane Hilcks
Film Editor
John McManus
Executive Producer
John Hambley
Director
Jackie Cockle
Producers
Mark Hall, Brian Cosgrove
Copyright 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, & 1986 Cosgrove/Hall Productions Ltd

Thames Colour Production

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.