Trumpton
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Trumpton (1967) is a stop-motion children's television show from the producers of Camberwick Green. Scripts are by Alison Prince; all other production details are identical to Camberwick Green. It currently airs on Noggin and Nick Jr Classics. The series has lead to other emergency services in the UK using the term 'Trumpton' as a generic term for the Fire Brigade (e.g. "Here come Trumpton" = The fire brigade have arrived)
The action in the new series moves to the imaginary town of Trumpton, not far from Camberwick Green. Each episode begins with a shot of Trumpton Town Hall Clock, "telling the time, steadily, sensibly; telling the time for Trumpton". (The musical box device used in Camberwick Green was dropped from the new series, perhaps because some children found it upsetting.)
Trumpton was narrated by Brian Cant. The animation was by Bob Bura and John Hardwick.
The townsfolk then appear and go about their daily business. These include the Mayor, Mr Troop the Town Clerk, Chippy Minton the carpenter and his apprentice son, Nibbs, Mrs. Cobbit the florist, Miss Lovelace the milliner and her trio of annoying pekingese dogs, and Mr. Platt the clockmaker.
Although all of the characters and settings are new, the style of the programme follows the pattern established by Camberwick Green, in which domestic problems are cheerfully resolved by the end of the show, leaving the last minute or so for the Fire Brigade to become the Fire Brigade Band and play the episode out.
[edit] The Fire Brigade
Not to be forgotten are the ever-ready Trumpton Fire Brigade, Captain Flack's gallant crew, whose roll-call can be recited by every British television viewer of a certain age: Pugh! Pugh! Barney McGrew! Cuthbert! Dibble! Grubb! Pugh and Pugh are twins, although many viewers misheard it as "Hugh! Pugh!" and assumed they were not related.
This roll-call is heard in every episode except one. In this episode ("Cuthbert's Morning Off"), Cuthbert is omitted because he is on leave. A respectful gap is therefore left in the roll call between Barney McGrew and Dibble.
The Fire Brigade is continually being called out to attend some emergency or other - but to Captain Flack's annoyance, never an actual fire! (Actually the reason for this is that fire would have been too difficult to animate.) However, this doesn't stop the Fire Brigade absent-mindedly getting out the fire hose and receiving a rebuke from Captain Flack ("No no! Not the hose!")
[edit] Trivia
As with Camberwick Green, the original masters seem to be lost; surviving versions often suffer from technical flaws. A "digitally restored" DVD of the series was released in April 2006. Although there are noticeable improvements some flaws are still visible.
The third and final series in the sequence was Chigley.
The show was immortalised by the cult 1980s indie band Half Man Half Biscuit with their song "Trumpton Riots" which contained humorous, satirical references to the show.
In the UK in the early 1990s it became popular for a short while to release dance music tracks based on children's TV programmes/educational adverts. The Prodigy released the track Charly in 1991 which was then promptly followed in 1992 by Sesame's Treet by the "Smart E's" and A Trip To Trumpton by a group called "Urban Hype" which was based on the original Trumpton music by Freddie Phillips with heavy use of Trumpton samples such as "Time for Trumpton", "Pugh, Pugh, Barney McGrew, Cuthbert, Dibble & Grubb!"
The roll call was referenced in an episode of Goodness Gracious Me during a Guru Maharishi Yogi sketch. The Guru in question worked it into one of his chants.
