Oliver Postgate (12 April 1925 – 8 December 2008) was an English animator, puppeteer and writer.
Postgate was the writer and creator of well-known children’s programmes such as: Pingwings, Pogles’ Wood, Noggin the Nog, Ivor the Engine, Clangers and Bagpuss, were all made by Smallfilms, the company he set up with Peter Firmin, and were shown on the BBC between the 1950s and the 1980s, and on ITV from 1959 to the present day. In a 1999 poll, Bagpuss was voted the most popular children’s television programme of all time.
Now I don’t remember much of these programmes, but I do remember them being on and I remember loving the clangers when I was very young. My Dad encouraged me to watch Ivor the engine and I’ll always remember the sound that Ivor made and the speechless language of the clangers. There is a really nice quality with these animations that makes them what they are, they wouldn’t be the same if they were perfect and polished animations.
It came to my mind the other day that childrens television is changing so much, it was more of an art form years ago. Looking back on it now that I’m an adult (if only just) I can appreciate the ‘effort’ and the art that was put into these programs. I feel that the childrens programs of today are too politically correct and too ‘careful’ and ’safe’ about what they are teaching children that their ideas are held back. Also, out of protest, I don’t like that Fireman Sam and Thomas the Tank Engine are now both computer generated and have ‘modern’ theme tunes!
