Muffin the Mule

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Muffin the Mule is a puppet character in television programmes for children. The programmes were presented by Annette Mills, sister of John Mills, and broadcast live by the BBC from their studios at Alexandra Palace from 1946 to 1952. Mills and the puppet continued with programmes that were taped for broadcast until 1955, when Mills died. The tapes were then shown on ITV in 1956 and 1957. A new modern animated version of Muffin reappeared on the BBC in 2005.

The original mule puppet was created in 1933 by Punch and Judy puppet maker Fred Tickner for husband-and-wife puppeteers Jan Bussell (1909-c.1987) and Ann Hogarth (1910-1993), to form part of a puppet circus for the Hogarth Puppet Theatre. The act was soon put away, and the puppet was not taken out again until 1946, when Bussell and Hogarth were working with presenter Annette Mills, sister of John Mills. Annette Mills named the puppet mule "Muffin", and it first appeared on television in an edition of For The Children broadcast on 20 October 1946.

The character proved popular, and ran on BBC television until 1955. Typically, Muffin danced on top of a piano as Mills played it. Muffin the Mule was supported by a host of other puppet characters who appeared occasionally, such as Crumpet the Clown, Mr. Peregrine Esquire the penguin, Louise the Lamb; Oswald the Ostrich, Willie the Worm, Peter the Pup, Poppy the Parrot, Grace the Giraffe, Hubert the Hippo, Katy the Kangaroo, Kirri the Kiwi, Monty the Monkey, Maurice and Doris the Mice, Zebbie the Zebra, Sally the Sea-lion, and Prudence and Primrose Kitten. A separate series of 15 minute episodes, "Muffin the Mule", was broadcast from 1952, with his signature tune "We want Muffin". Muffin became a television star, and a wide range of spin-off merchandise was made using the Muffin character, including books, records, games and toys. The BBC decided to discontinue the show in 1955, when Annette Mills died, although tapes were broadcast on ITV in the following two years.

Bussell and Hogarth, and later their daughter Sally McNally (1936-2004), continued to use Muffin in their own shows. Surviving original episodes are available on DVD. Archive footage of the original series was shown on a television set in the 2006 Doctor Who story The Idiot's Lantern.

The rights to Muffin were bought by Maverick Entertainment Plc in 2003, and a new 26 part animated version of Muffin returned to BBC TV in September 2005.