Geordie Racer

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Geordie Racer
Format Children's Educational
Starring Kevin Whately, Leon Armstrong, Lien Lu
Narrated by Sean Barrett
Country of origin UK
Language(s) English
No. of episodes 10 (List of episodes)
Production
Running time 30 mins
Broadcast
Original channel British Broadcasting Corporation
Original run 1988 – 2006
Chronology
Preceded by Badger Girl (1984)
Followed by Through the Dragon's Eye (1989)
External links
IMDb profile

Geordie Racer was an educational BBC Look and Read production, which was first aired on BBC Two in 1988 and has been shown regularly ever since.

The story was set in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and the surrounding area, and featured pigeon racers and runners (competing in the Great North Run. The main character is Spuggy Hilton (Spuggy being a nickname - the Geordie word for sparrow), who isn't a runner like the rest of his family, but is a keen pigeon fancier and owns 'Blue Flash' - one of the best birds in Newcastle. He and his friend Janie observe some suspicious activity, and link a spate of local art robberies with obscure messages they find on some of the pigeons, but find they have even more problems when they go to spy on the crooks.

Geordie Racer featured Geordie actor Kevin Whately as Spuggy's father. Whately, who went on to star in Inspector Morse, was joined on screen by his real-life wife, Madelaine Newton, who played his on-screen wife. This was not an intentional decision, but merely an accidental coincidence.[1]

Contents

[edit] Cast

  • Leon Armstrong as Spuggy Hilton[2]
  • Lien Lu as Janie Chung
  • Lesley Casey as Cath Hilton
  • Brian Hogg as Victor
  • Madelaine Newton as Bev Hilton[1]
  • Fred Pearson as Baz Bailey
  • Peter Rowell as Mickey Stone
  • Kevin Whately as Ray Hilton[1]
  • Bungo as Plod
  • Charles Collingwood as Wordy
  • Katie Hebb as Wordy puppeteer
  • Rachel Mackay as Bug-Bopper
  • Mary Edwards as Bug-Bopper puppeteer

[edit] Theme Tune

The theme tune was sung by Derek Griffiths. The lyrics are:

Flying free, flying high,
Flashing wings across the sky,
Geordie racer, Geordie racer.

On the road, in the street,
Hear the sound of pounding feet,
Geordie racer, Geordie racer.

Don't wait, don't stop,
You're heading home.
Don't rest, don't drop,
You're heading home.

In the air, on the ground,
See them moving all around.
Running hard, flying fast,
See them all go rushing past,
Geordie racer - fly!


[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Internet Movie Database. Look and Read (1967). imdb.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-01.
  2. ^ Internet Movie Database. Leon Armstrong. imdb.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-01.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Look and Read
List of Look and Read stories
Bob and Carol Look for Treasure • Len and the River Mob • The Boy from Space • Joe and the Sheep Rustlers • Cloud Burst • The King's Dragon • Sky Hunter • The Boy From Space (1980 version) • Dark Towers • Fair Ground! • Badger Girl • Geordie Racer • Through The Dragon's Eye • Sky Hunter II • Earth Warp • LRTV • Spywatch • Captain Crimson • The Legend of the Lost Keys • Zzaap and the Word Master • Spelling Strategies • Spelling with the Spellits • Shadow Play