. Book of the Month

This will be the last Book of the Month, as it was the world's most unpopular book group (no one else joined). I will be continuing to read books, just not boring you with the details.

That said, here are this month's boring details.


Oliver Postgate wrote, directed, narrated and animated 12 wonderful children's television shows, including Ivor the Engine, the Clangers, and Bagpuss.

I read his autobiography in the hope of finding out how he managed to be so very good. From what I can tell he was using a clever combination of wild imagination, independent spirit, relentless inquisitiveness, and bull-headed practicality. Plus he had the loveliest voice in all of history. As Stephen Fry writes in the book's Forward: "During bouts of childhood theism, I always supposed that if God had a voice it would be that of Oliver Postgate, the same matchless blend of authority, kindliness and humour."

Postgate's parents were well-off lefties. He went to a private "progressive" school where you could do whatever you wanted. He was a conscientious objector to the second world war and went to prison. He tried acting for a while. And farm work.

Throughout his life he was inventing and building machines, from electric pencil erasers to solar powered houses. He almost went into manufacturing, but feared that a lifetime spent in the pursuit of "Personal success, wealth, dignity..." would be like "Spending one's life decorating one's tomb."

He then spent some time making props for television shows, noticed how most television for children was pretty poor, decided he could do better, and did.















Postgate founded Smallfims with Peter Firmin. They operated out of a cow-shed, with the later addition of four converted pigsties. Commissions for television shows flooded in, and Smallfilms became successful in their own modest way. When America called and offered them the big time, they politely declined.




Towards the end of the book Postgate seems to turn into a bit of a grumpy old man, although probably less grumpy than most of us. His wife died and his own health failed. His passion for nuclear disarmament disturbed people on both sides of the argument. And the television companies were no longer interested in his shows.

He was particularly unimpressed by those concerned with the "art" of film-making. He describes the students he met at the RCA Animation School (where I went to college) as "manic pretentious pseudo-artists."




In 1999 Bagpuss was voted the most popular British children's television show of all time.

Oliver Postgate died in December 2008. The rights to several Smallfilms properties were bought by Coolabi for $625,000. Coolabi specialises in "The ownership, development, creative management and exploitation of high quality children's and family intellectual property assets."

They are apparently working with Peter Firmin on new episodes of Bagpuss.



Oh dear.