The world's longest-running children's television show Blue Peter celebrated its 60th birthday yesterday!
Pre-dating America's Sesame Street by eleven years, its whirlwind mixture of educational topics, "make-at-home" arts and crafts, pets, gardening, special guests, charity fundraising appeals, features, time capsules, and general "derring-do" adventures has been a staple diet for generations of children in the UK (including my own) - some of whom are probably grandparents today (gulp), and is (quite rightly) revered as one of the BBC's best innovations.
All but five (Simon Groom and Mark Curry gave apologies due to ill-health, Christopher Wenner, Tina Heath and Gethin Jones were not mentioned) of its surviving presenters, together with the show's founding producer Biddy Baxter, gathered for the party - and what a line-up!
So who's who among the Blue Peter presenters at the 60th anniversary party?
- Barney Harwood, 2011-2017
- Zoe Salmon, 2004-2008
- Konnie Huq, 1997-2008
- Stuart Miles, 1994-1999
- Lesley Judd, 1972-1979
- Tim Vincent, 1993-1997
- Sarah Greene, 1980-1983
- Romana D’Annunzio, 1996-1998
- Janet Ellis, 1982-1987
- Richard Bacon, 1997-1998
- Valerie Singleton, 1962-1972
- Peter Purves, 1967-1978
- Leila Williams, 1958-1962
- Simon Thomas, 1999-2005
- Radzi Chinyanganya, 2013-present
- Lindsey Russell, 2013-present
- Peter Duncan, 1980-1984 and 1985-1986
- John Leslie, 1989-1994
- Anthea Turner, 1992-1994
- Liz Barker, 2000-2006
- Diane-Louise Jordan, 1990-1996
- Joel Defries, 2008-2010
- Yvette Fielding, 1987-1992
- Ayo Akinwolere, 2006-2011
- Katy Hill, 1995-2000
- Anita West, 1962
- Helen Skelton, 2008-2013
For the uninitiated, or just as a nostalgic indulgence for fans such as I, here, for your delectation - a whole hour of the best bits from the classic era of the show, the 60s and 70s:
All hail, Blue Peter! Here's to the next sixty years.
Read my tribute to the show on it's 50th (yes - this blog has been going a while...)
Happy days.... I never had the right cartons or squeezy bottles though.
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Did you never make your mum or auntie a lovely jewellery box out of four matchboxes glued together and covered with sticky-backed plastic? They were treasured items, round our way. Jx
DeleteI did! It wasn't very robust, though, so quickly fell apart. Or, at least, that's what mum said as she was chucking it away.
DeleteMuch the same as those "Xmas candelabras", made out of coathangers and flammable-looking tinsel. Jx
DeleteSarah Greene and Janet Ellis could do no wrong in my eyes. I remember Janet Ellis's first big challenge - jumping out of an aeroplane! Oh, gods, I was only six or seven at the time...
ReplyDeleteI see Yvette Fielding's hair hasn't got any better.
By time any of those three ladies were at the helm, I was in work - and far too "grown-up" for this type of telly; although I remember Peter Duncan in short shorts did pique my attention... Jx
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