Johnson and Friends
| Johnson and Friends | |
|---|---|
|
Title card for the series, seen at the beginning of every episode. | |
| Created by |
John Patterson Ian Munro Ron Saunders |
| Directed by |
Ian Munro David Ogilvy |
| Starring | See Cast section below. |
| Narrated by | Paul Bertram |
| Composer(s) |
Chris Neal Braedy Neal |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 4 |
| No. of episodes | 78 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Ron Saunders |
| Editor(s) |
Robin Archer Neil Thumpston |
| Running time | 10 mins |
| Production company(s) | Film Australia |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | ABC |
| Picture format | 4:3 |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Original run | 3 September 1990 – 30 October 1995 |
Johnson and Friends is an Australian children’s television programme broadcast on the ABC from 3 September 1990 to 30 October 1995. It was produced by Film Australia and lasted four seasons. In the UK it was shown in 1993 on TCC, CBBC, and then on UK Living's Tiny Living strand for under-fives.[1] It was aired in the United States as a segment on the Fox Cubhouse, an educational children's program on Fox, from 1993 to 1996. The series was last repeated on ABC1 until 19 March 2002.
Plot
Johnson and his friends are toys that belong to a boy named Michael, unseen except for asleep in his bed. They reside in his bedroom, but do not move or show any signs of life until he has left the room or fallen asleep. Each episode involves a story about the toys and it will usually have a message to convey to the children about sharing, cheating, complaining or similar.
Themes
The series is aimed at children less than five years old, and plays upon their fascination with the notion that toys come to life when they are gone. However, the stories often have a deeper message, and sometimes they are very poignant. Often the toys live in terror that new toys will replace them (also a major theme in Toy Story), encouraging small children to look after old toys.
On one occasion McDuff was taken out into the real world. She rejected her friends because it was so wonderful, but eventually she regained her senses. One episode deals with the issue of having a TV in your child's room. The toys become completely addicted and Alfred watches it even when nothing is on. All the episodes convey gentle moral messages to young children whilst at the same time providing the lively colour and rambunctious gaiety that young children enjoy.
Characters
- Johnson: The leader of the toys. A furry pink elephant who loves reading. Johnson is the wisest and oldest of the group, although he tends towards impatience sometimes.
- McDuff: A blue and yellow concertina who loves having fun. Although she is a little silly, McDuff is a kind and loyal friend, especially towards the misunderstood Diesel.
- Diesel: A red toy truck with a yellow and black hat that spends most of his time going "bruuum, bruuum" around the floor. He speaks with a very pronounced Australian accent. Although brusque, he means well and is obviously fond of his friends.
- Alfred: A green hot water bottle, which is technically not a toy. He is a real fusspot and lives in the dark, dank area of the bedroom that is under the bed. He is neurotic and anxious and complains constantly. His face wears an aggrieved expression, but it is Alfred that supplies a lot of the humour. He also owns an old "banana skin blanket" which he is very protective of. Although grumpy and sometimes selfish, Alfred is generally good natured and helps Johnson out on his endeavors.
- Squeaky: A black and red robot. She guards the bedroom while Michael is asleep and loves singing to herself. She is childlike and believes that the vacuum cleaner is her mother. She does not appear in every episode.
- Victoria: A slow-moving orange and purple dinosaur that actually belongs to Michael's elder sister, Melissa; Victoria will appear at the door with some bad news she has just heard, e.g. "They're going on holiday and they can't take any toys with them!"
- Michael: The boy who owns the toys.
- Melissa: Michael's sister who is the owner of Victoria.
- Baby: A baby who is the younger brother of Michael and Melissa.
Cast
| Character | Costume Actor | Voice Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Johnson | Garry Scale (first season) Arky Michael (second season) Jonathon Hendry (third and fourth seasons) | Garry Scale |
| McDuff | Katrina Sedgwick (first and second seasons) Dra McKay (third and fourth seasons) | Katrina Sedgwick |
| Diesel | Bruce Wedderburn (first and second seasons) Matthew Chamberlain (third and fourth seasons) James Caitlin (stage shows) | Doug Scroope |
| Alfred | Peter Browne | Peter Browne |
| Squeaky | Kristen Lyons (first and second seasons) Sarah Boddy (third and fourth seasons) | Emily Lumbers (first season) Kristen Lyons (second season) Sarah Boddy (third and fourth seasons) Angela Toohey (singing voice) |
| Victoria | Elizabeth Easther (third season) Leighton Young (fourth season) | Deborah Kennedy |
The programme was narrated by Paul Bertram. The costumes were built and designed by Caroline Jones and Studio Kite.
Episodes
Season 1 (1990)
| No. in series | No. in season | Title | Directed By | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Beginnings | Ian Munro | September 3, 1990 |
| 2 | 2 | Under the Bed | Ian Munro | September 4, 1990 |
| 3 | 3 | Best of Friends | Ian Munro | September 5, 1990 |
| 4 | 4 | The Thing Outside | Ian Munro | September 6, 1990 |
| 5 | 5 | Helpless | Ian Munro | September 7, 1990 |
| 6 | 6 | Moving House | Ian Munro | September 10, 1990 |
| 7 | 7 | Playing Games | Ian Munro | September 11, 1990 |
| 8 | 8 | The Birthday Present | Ian Munro | September 12, 1990 |
| 9 | 9 | Wind Chimes | Ian Munro | September 13, 1990 |
| 10 | 10 | Sharing | Ian Munro | September 14, 1990 |
| 11 | 11 | The Picnic | Ian Munro | September 17, 1990 |
| 12 | 12 | Cleaning Day | Ian Munro | September 18, 1990 |
Season 2 (1991)
| No. in series | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 1 | Camping Trip | Ian Munro | October 29, 1991 |
| 14 | 2 | Homeless | Ian Munro | October 30, 1991 |
| 15 | 3 | Battle of the Bed | Ian Munro | October 31, 1991 |
| 16 | 4 | Secrets | Ian Munro | November 1, 1991 |
| 17 | 5 | Blast Off | Ian Munro | November 4, 1991 |
| 18 | 6 | A Case of Trust | Ian Munro | November 5, 1991 |
| 19 | 7 | The Concert | Ian Munro | November 6, 1991 |
| 20 | 8 | Baby of the Family | Ian Munro | November 7, 1991 |
| 21 | 9 | Crying Wolf | Ian Munro | November 8, 1991 |
| 22 | 10 | The Big Freeze | Ian Munro | November 11, 1991 |
| 23 | 11 | Being Good | Ian Munro | November 12, 1991 |
| 24 | 12 | The Birthday Party | Ian Munro | November 13, 1991 |
| 25 | 13 | Operation Squeaky | Ian Munro | November 14, 1991 |
| 26 | 14 | Buried Treasure | Ian Munro | November 15, 1991 |
Season 3 (1994)
- Diesel Tries To Fly (29 August 1994)
- Dinosaur Tracks (30 August 1994)
- The Pink Thread (31 August 1994)
- Melissa's Dinosaur (1 September 1994)
- Diesel Who? (2 September 1994)
- The Homecoming (5 September 1994)
- The Three Little Pigs (6 September 1994)
- Disappearing Act (7 September 1994)
- Growing Up (8 September 1994)
- The Flood (9 September 1994)
- The Toy Orchestra (12 September 1994)
- The Money Box (13 September 1994)
- The Television Set (14 September 1994)
- The Toy Hospital (15 September 1994)
- A Trip To The Moon (16 September 1994)
- The Loose Tooth (19 September 1994)
- The Fancy Dress Party (20 September 1994)
- The Art Exhibition (21 September 1994)
- Finders Keepers (22 September 1994)
- Leaving Home (23 September 1994)
- Sock Soup (26 September 1994)
- The Train Conductor (27 September 1994)
- The Fun Run (28 September 1994)
- The Crying Baby (Possibly unaired)
- Bringing Up Baby (29 September 1994)
- Going Away (30 September 1994)
Season 4 (1995)
- Left Behind (25 September 1995)
- All At Sea (26 September 1995)
- The Big Surprise (27 September 1995)
- Victoria Gets Swapped (28 September 1995)
- The Thinker (29 September 1995)
- Little Red Riding Hood (2 October 1995)
- The Telephone Exchange (3 October 1995)
- Putting Out The Rubbish (4 October 1995)
- The Birthday Balloon (5 October 1995)
- Traffic Lights (6 October 1995)
- Clowning Around (9 October 1995)
- The Hypnotist (10 October 1995)
- The Tin Star (11 October 1995)
- Three Billy Goats Gruff (12 October 1995)
- Shoe Laces (13 October 1995)
- Diesel's Taxi (16 October 1995)
- Evening News (17 October 1995)
- The Toy Bus (18 October 1995)
- Alfred and Alphonse (19 October 1995)
- The Ghost Train (20 October 1995)
- Chicken Pox (23 October 1995)
- The Elf (24 October 1995)
- Superbot (25 October 1995)
- The Christmas Tree (26 October 1995)
- Christmas Presents (27 October 1995)
- Happy New Year (30 October 1995)
References
- ↑ Tiny Living Information on DigiGuide.com - Lists Johnson and Friends