Rocky Hollow
Rocky Hollow was a 1983 stop motion animation children's television series made in Wales and produced by Rockscene Ltd. The show was narrated by Peter Sallis, who later became the voice of Wallace in Wallace and Gromit. This was the first children's television show to be produced by Bumper Films for S4C. The firm later made Fireman Sam, Joshua Jones & Starhill Ponies for the BBC. These were in production with S4C, Mike Young Productions and Prism Art and Design Ltd.
| Rocky Hollow | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Deri Deg |
| Written by | Bill Clout Nona Hooper |
| Directed by | John Walker |
| Narrated by | Peter Sallis |
| Theme music composer | Ian Frampton Nigel Hess |
| Opening theme | "Rocky Hollow Theme" (Instrumental) |
| Ending theme | "Rocky Hollow Theme" (Instrumental) (shorter version) |
| Composers | Ian Frampton Nigel Hess |
| Country of origin | Wales United Kingdom |
| Original languages | English Welsh |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Production | |
| Editor | Richard Bradley |
| Running time | 5 min |
| Production companies | Bumper Films for S4C Rockscene Ltd |
| Release | |
| Original network | S4C (Wales) The Children's Channel (1985–1986) Channel 4 (1996) and ITV (1989) (in English) RTÉ One (1991) and RTÉ2 (1992) (Ireland) TVNZ 1 (New Zealand) |
| Picture format | 4:3 |
| Audio format | Mono |
| First shown in | 1983 (Wales) 1985 (England) |
| Original release | 1983 - 1984 (Wales) 1985 - 1986 (England) |
Rocky Hollow first appeared as Deri Deg in Welsh on S4C in 1983. The Welsh series finished in 1984, and later in English throughout the United Kingdom on The Children's Channel in 1985, ITV in 1989 as part of It's Stardust! (a wrapper programme for children hosted by rock singer Alvin Stardust) and Channel 4 in 1996. The series finished in 1986.
It was also screened in Ireland first on RTÉ One in 1991 before the US animated series DuckTales and then on RTÉ2 in 1992 as part of The Saturday Club along with the British cult marionette series from the 1960s Thunderbirds and the Irish puppet series The Rimini Riddle and in New Zealand on TVNZ 1.
Most of the episodes were released on various VHS videos in the late 80s and early 90s, but the program has never been officially released on DVD.
Characters
- Mr Oak - The old man of Rocky Hollow that wears a yellow shirt and a big brown hat. He is very wise and helps to keep the other people of Rocky Hollow on track.
- Acorn - A young boy that wears a blue singlet and a baseball cap. The mischievous nephew of Mr Oak who loves skateboarding and playing tricks on other people.
- Sycamore - A tall skinny young man that wears white gym clothing and a long red scarf. He is good friends with Acorn and helps Mr Oak often on tasks. He is rather clumsy and trips over his own scarf but very friendly.
- Miss Myrtle - A lady with blonde hair that wears a purple dress. She loves to be well dressed at all times and likes to organize picnics.
- Conker - A man with red facial hair and a large red nose that wears overalls. He is the handy man of Rocky Hollow that fixes things like clocks, chairs and boxes.
- Rosie Woodpigeon - A female Pigeon that wears a post hat and yellow gumboots. She delivers letters all over Rocky Hollow and often stops by for tea.
Episodes
- "The Picnic" – Welsh: 1983, English: 1985
- "Spring Cleaning" – Welsh: 1983, English: 1985
- "Keep Fit" – Welsh: 1983, English: 1985
- "Ghosts" – Welsh: 1983, English: 1985
- "The Post Bag" – Welsh: 1983, English: 1985
- "Treasure" – Welsh: 1983, English: 1985
- "The Operation" – Welsh: 1983, English: 1985
- "The Birthday Party" – Welsh: 1983, English: 1985
Credits
- Story: Bill Clout, Nona Hooper
- Told by: Peter Sallis
- Music: Ian Frampton, Nigel Hess
- Sound: John Cross
- Editor: Richard Bradley
- Puppets: Ian Frampton
- Director: John Walker
- Made by Bumper Films Ltd for S4C–Channel 4 Wales
- Rocky Hollow ©Rockscene Ltd 1983
- ©S4C 1983
- ©S4C 1985