Play School is an Australian educational television show for children produced by the educational department[2] of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), based on the original British version created by Joy Whitby, with many of the presenters former school teachers, whilst others being a mix of well known stage and screen actors and musicians.[2] It is the longest-running children's show in Australia and the second-longest-running children's show worldwide after British series Blue Peter.[3]
An estimated 80% of pre-school children under six watch the program at least once a week.[4] It is screened three times each weekday on ABC Kids, at 9 am, 11:30 am and 3:30 pm (from 7 July 2014) and twice daily each weekend at 9 am and 3:30 pm.
Play School was admitted to the Logie Hall of Fame in 2006,[2] the program's 40th anniversary year. It is one of only five Australian television programs to be inducted.
Play School premiered on 18 July 1966, with the first episode and was based on the British program of the same name. (The British version started in 1964 and ended in 1988; the show's format was then sold to Australia.) The first episode began transmitting that day, as the program was originally transmitted live. It has been produced continuously from this time. It has also launched the careers of several Australian actors and television presenters. It was admitted to the Logie Hall of Fame on its 40th anniversary in 2006, in recognition of the strong influence the show has had on at least three generations of Australian children.
Play School was the third show to enter the Logies' Hall of Fame in its own right, after Four Corners (1992) and Neighbours (2005). It was also the first children's show inducted into the hall of fame.[5]
During the 2006 Logie Awards, a package showing memorable scenes from the show throughout its history was shown, before notable presenters (from past and present) came onto the stage with some of the favourite toys from the show. After these presenters accepted the award, the audience then joined them for a stirring rendition of the Play School theme.
In 1992, a through-the-windows segment featured an early performance by the Australian children's musical group the Wiggles performing the songs "Get Ready to Wiggle" and "Rock-a-Bye Your Bear" at a day care centre.[6]
On 18 July at 6:30 pm, ABC also broadcast a special 50th anniversary Play School celebrity covers special that featured Hamish & Andy singing "There's a Hole in My Bucket"; John Hamblin, "I'm a Little Teapot"; Dan Sultan, "The Wheels on the Bus"; Molly Meldrum and Charlie Pickering, "Nursery Rhyme News"; Delta Goodrem, "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" & "Moon Moon"; Benita Collings & Don Spencer, "Teddy Bears Picnic"; Josh Thomas, "Ning Nang Nong"; Annabell Crabb and Leigh Sales, "Singing in the Kitchen"; Guy Sebastian, "Singing in the Rain"; Magda Szubanski, "Old Mother Hubbard"; and You Am I, "One Potato, Two Potato". In 2020, all of the existing Celebrity Covers episodes were rebranded as part of a new spin-off series Play School Show Time, which features new celebrities singing covers of songs from the series.Potentially redundant information based on the table above. Open to feedback on this point.
There have also been various spin-offs from Play School which have been played on ABC Kids, typically much shorter in duration. These include Little Ted's Big Adventure, Jemima's Big Adventure, Big Ted's Big Adventure, Humpty's Big Adventure, Maurice's Big Adventure, Joey's Big Adventure, Play School Story Time, Play School Art Time, Play School Nursery Rhyme News Time, Play School Art Crew, Play School Song Time, Play School Science Time, Play School Show Time and Play School Story Time: Languages.
Format
Flower clock
The format of the show is activities, songs and games with either host passing back to each other at the end of their segment, and frequently joining each other in activities. Each day the presenters look at the calendar to find out which day of the week it is, read a story, and look through the windows. From 1976 to 2000, they had a clock shaped like a rocket, and from 1966 to 2000, a clock shaped like a flower. The rocket clock was a popular addition to Play School in 1976 with its distinctive space and band music and the lights under the clock with colourful stars covered flashing and rotation to see what's behind the clock and reveal the diorama of the day. The coloured timbered Flower Clock appeared in 1975 with its two flower shapes and the pot under the clock going round and round. It was more vibrant than the original Perspex model and it was introduced along with the other changes to the Play School set to make most of the colour television which arrived in Australia the previous year. The windows looked almost exactly like their British counterparts with a few slight differences. They changed the background behind the windows from black to white at the end of 1967 and they then changed it to light blue in 1985. In 1987 Play School had a mild makeover for its 21st anniversary on air; there was a mild cosmetic revamp to the set, with a new set of opening and closing titles with a new version of the theme song sung by presenters, Philip Quast and Jennifer Ludlam. The windows also changed to look like the ones used on the British version of the show, but this change was not well received and the windows reverted to their old style by 1988, which remained until the major 2000 revamp.
In 1992 there was a set revamp with new shelving and coloured tree shapes in the background; this change was done about midway through the 1992 production season, with earlier 1992 episodes retaining the older 1980s set.
Every week there is a common theme running through the program that the actors reflect upon during the episode; themes include Dinosaurs, Opposites, Zoo Animals, Food, Clothes, Games, Art, Hair, Hats, Shapes, Road Safety and vehicles. Each theme (or block of five episodes) were repeated twice a year on average for a period of six to seven years, before it was recycled and reused in new episodes. As funding was limited, only 45 new episodes were made each year, which means that nine weekly blocks shown each year were new episodes, the rest repeats.
In 2000, the show had a considerable revamp, with the rocket and flower clocks and the three windows put in storage[12][13][14] in favour of a newer-style Play School. The clocks and windows were subsequently sent to the National Museum of Australia. The main clock was now simply called the Play School Clock, which was controlled by one of the presenters standing at the top of the clock and turning a winding device, which caused the clue to the story on the trolley to slide down a slippery dip from 2000 to 2003, some episodes include the toys inside the trolley along with a book. Then came the Hickory Dickory Clock which made its debut in 2001 featured clockwork resembling the "Hickory Dickory" nursery rhyme with a cat and the mouse running around the clock and then the mouse re-appearances as the little red doors under the clock opens. The Train Clock made its debut appearance in 2005 which resembles a train station with a clock above it and the Trains comes out of the tunnel and pulls up at the station with a clue to the story on the back of the train. In 2017, the Rocket Clock made a comeback, featuring sliding doors with a clue to the story. The windows were also heavily changed. They were now built into a large rotating prop which was built underneath the clock (shown one themed week “Messy”) and 'controlled' by one of the presenters pulling a lever back and forwards. The windows (now including a diamond window) would spin around and would slowly be eliminated as the window they would look through until they got to the fourth window and the camera would slowly zoom in and fade out into the fill. That was soon replaced by windows with animation where Jemima stands next to the round window; Little Ted stands next to the square window, Big Ted stands next to the diamond window, Humpty stands next to the arched window, and the window chosen goes through to pre-recorded footage. That was replaced by CGI craft-like animation where each window shakes with assorted theme tunes for the windows.
Music
Pianists
The program has historically had a musical director, who served as a pianist who played live music to accompany the presenters on each episode. Occasionally the pianist would make an on-camera appearance, one of the more well known being Warren Carr who served as musical director for over 20 years.
The Play School theme song, "There's a Bear in There", was composed by Australian composer Richard Connolly, with lyrics by Rosemary Milne.
There's a bear in there, and a chair as well. There are people with games and stories to tell. Open wide, come inside; it's Play School.
In 2016, the song was remixed by Andre Butterworth aka Copycatt as the winner of the Triple J Play School remix competition which, along with two other remixes by KLP and Jondrette Den respectively, appeared on the Play School album Famous Friends: Celebrating 50 Years of Play School.[15]
The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector.
Banana (banana-shaped toy wearing pyjamas, see also Bananas in Pyjamas) (1976–2010)
Daisy (toy cow) ('80s or '90s–present)
Henny Penny (toy hen) ('80s or '90s–present)
Goosy Lucy (toy goose) ('80s or '90s)
Kim (plastic doll and Lisa's twin brother which both of them are of Korean descent) ('80s or '90s–present)
Lisa (plastic doll and Kim's twin sister which both of them are of Korean descent) ('80s or '90s–present)
Darcy (toy donkey) ('90s or 2000s–present)
Henry and Henrietta (toy mice)
Troy And Tony (twin teddy bears) ('90s or 2000s)
Owl (toy owl) ('90s to 2000s–present)
Tippy (toy duck) (2011–present)
Mukundan Jr (toy lion) (2000s or 2010s)
Fido (toy dog) (2000s to 2010s)
Joey (toy kangaroo) Designed by award-winning children's book illustrator Bruce Whatley and introduced in the 50th anniversary edition 'Come to the Party' tx 18 July 2016 by presenter Miranda Tapsell.[19]
From the inception of the program, the producers of Play School have made efforts to promote equality, playful education, and a love of learning in its audience. Working on Play School has come to be considered an unusually demanding and important job for some actors,[22] because they feel they are becoming part of a generation of children's lives and providing a foundation for learning things that will last for life.
Play School's stated philosophy is to encourage a child "to wonder, to think, to feel and to imagine".[23] The duo (sometimes a trio when joined by hearing impaired actress Sofya Gollan) of presenters (now almost always a male-female pairing, but sometimes two females or two males) address the child directly and personally, so that every child watching the show feels that they are spending time with two people they know and can trust. Into this relationship are woven the stories, songs and activities that form the fabric of Australian children's culture.[24]
Controversies
"Two mums"
On 31 May 2004, a "through the windows" segment narrated by Brenna Harding[25] featured the sentence "My Mums are taking me and my friend Merryn to an amusement park." The clip was raised as controversial by sections of the media, and three federal ministers expressed dislike over the screening of the clip. The ABC responded, however, by saying that "Play School aims to reflect the diversity of Australian children, embracing all manner of race, religions and family situations." The producers of the segment also said the segment showed the girl being accompanied by her birth mother and her step mother (hence "two mums") and they believed most people would automatically assume the same. What was shown was taken by the public to be two lesbians taking their child and her friend to an amusement park.
Constructing a "bong"
A 2013 episode showed Alex Papps constructing some kind of contraption which involved a straw inserted through the side of a plastic bottle, which was then filled with hot water, accidentally resembling a bong. This controversy arose again when the episode was replayed in 2015.[26]
"Grooming" accusation
In October 2022, Courtney Act appeared on an episode of spin-off Play School Story Time, where she read The Spectacular Suit by Kat Patrick.[27] Her appearance generated considerable media attention when Senator Alex Antic took issue with the ABC inviting a drag queen to read a book to children about a girl who favoured wearing pants instead of a dress, which he described in a Senate Estimates hearing as "grooming".[28] Questioning ABC managing director David Anderson, Antic asked why the ABC was "grooming Australian children with this sort of adult content" and asking Anderson whether such content was contributing to a "gender dysphoria problem".[28] Anderson denied this, while Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young accused Antic of using "deeply offensive" language.[29] Act defended her appearance on Play School Story Time in an opinion piece she wrote in The Sydney Morning Herald and during an appearance on The Project.[30][31]
Logo history
Play School has had a number of openers and logos throughout its long history. Originating as simple animations with vocals from select presenters, the logos and their respective openers have evolved over the many years of the series. The most recent logo, introduced in 2011, features an opener made entirely of stop-motion animation with vocals by presenters Justine Clarke and Jay Laga'aia.
1966–1975
1976–1987
1987–2000
2000–2011
2011–present
Presenters
Long time presenter Justine Clarke (tenure; 2000-present)
Australian musician Don Spencer is a noted presence on the program, having not only been a presenter for some 28 years but also releasing several related tie-in records. He also appeared with Diana Dorgan, the only presenter to appear on both the Australian and British versions. (Although Lorraine Bayly briefly appeared on the British version in 1972 as a storyteller)
Play School has had many presenters, however several remained (or remain) with the series for a long period. Australian actress Benita Collings (30 years) and British-Australian actor John Hamblin (29 years) are the longest-serving.
While the show is written by preschool education experts, the presenters are all well-known actors or musicians who can connect well with the target audience.
Current presenters
This article needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2024)
Teletubbies is a British children's television series created by Anne Wood and Andrew Davenport for the BBC. The programme focuses on four differently coloured characters known as the Teletubbies, named after the television screens on their bellies. Recognised throughout popular culture for the uniquely shaped antenna protruding from the head of each character, the Teletubbies communicate through gibberish and were designed to bear resemblance to toddlers.
Cabbage Patch Kids are a line of cloth dolls with plastic heads first produced by Coleco Industries in 1982. They were inspired by the Little People soft sculptured dolls sold by Xavier Roberts as collectibles. The brand was renamed 'Cabbage Patch Kids' by Roger L. Schlaifer when he acquired the exclusive worldwide licensing rights in 1982.
Radio National, known on-air as RN, is an Australia-wide public service broadcasting radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). From 1947 until 1985, the network was known as ABC Radio 2.
Bananas in Pyjamas is an Australian children's television series that first aired on 20 July 1992 on ABC. It has since been syndicated in many countries and dubbed into other languages. In the United States, the "Pyjamas" in the title was modified to reflect the American spelling pajamas. It aired in syndication from 1995 to 1997 as a half-hour series, then became a 15-minute show paired with a short-lived 15-minute series The Crayon Box, under a 30-minute block produced by Sachs Family Entertainment titled Bananas in Pajamas & The Crayon Box. Additionally, the characters and a scene from the show were featured in the Kids for Character sequel titled Kids for Character: Choices Count. The pilot episode was Pink Mug.
The Magic Circle Club was an award-winning Australian children's television show, produced at ATV Channel 0 from 23 January 1965 to 1967.
Justine Clarke is an Australian actress, singer, author and television host.
Dylan Thomas Lewis is an Australian television and radio host. He is currently the host of Mornings on Double J. As a musician, he played in funk/alternative rock band The Brown Hornet under the stage name Dirk Vile.
Xuxa is an American children's television series hosted by Xuxa Meneghel that aired in first-run syndication between September 13 and December 10, 1993, for a total of 65 episodes. The program was based on Rede Globo's Xou da Xuxa and was created by Thomas W. Lynch and Marlene Mattos, with MTM Enterprises handling production. The show is made up of various segments of games, famous guests, and educational lessons.
Milkshake! is a British children's television programming block on Channel 5 and is currently aimed at children aged 2 to 7.
Play School is a British children's television series produced by the BBC which ran from 21 April 1964 until 11 March 1988. It was created by Joy Whitby and was aimed at preschool children. Each programme followed a broad theme and consisted of songs, stories and activities with presenters in the studio, along with a short film introduced through either the square, round or arched window in the set.
Behind the News is an Australian children's news program televised by the ABC. Described as an 'educational news program aimed at 10-13 year old kids', BTN is commonly used by schools in Australia as an education tool to help children catch up with current affairs and issues.
ABC Entertains is an Australian English language general entertainment free-to-air television channel owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It was launched on 4 December 2009 as a children's channel called ABC3. It was rebranded on 19 September 2016 to ABC Me. It rebranded once more on 3 June 2024 to ABC Entertains, now focusing on general entertainment programming.
Benita Collings is an Australian theatre, television and film character actress and children's television presenter best known for her role on ABC TV's Play School. Collings has also featured in documentaries and commercials.
Giggle and Hoot is an Australian children's television "wrap-around" program block that aired on the ABC Kids channel. The series was produced from 2009 to 2019, with the final episodes airing in 2020, and depicted the adventures of Jimmy Giggle and his best friend, Hoot the Owl. It also aired on ABC from 2009 to 2011. In later seasons, they were joined by a second owl called Hootabelle along with other friends and their toys.
John Reginald Hamblin, known affectionately as "Funny John" or "Naughty John", was a British-born Australian children's television presenter and actor of stage and screen who appeared in theatre productions, soap operas and made-for-TV films.
Stephanie Claire Bendixsen is an Australian video game critic, author, and is best known as one of the former presenters of the video game television programs Good Game and Good Game: Spawn Point, where she went by the gamertag "Hex", and screenPLAY.
Show Me Show Me is a pre-school television series that aired on CBeebies from 6 July 2009 to 30 October 2015 and is presented by Chris Jarvis and Pui Fan Lee. The series teaches and shows children to read stories about their toys. The show also aired on Pluto TV's BBC Kids FAST Channel in the United States, ABC Kids in Australia, BBC Kids in Canada and on BBC One And BBC Two.
Good Game: Spawn Point is an Australian video game review programme.
Bluey is an Australian animated preschool television series which premiered on ABC Kids on 1 October 2018. The program was created by Joe Brumm and is produced by Queensland-based company Ludo Studio. It was commissioned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the British Broadcasting Corporation, with BBC Studios holding global distribution and merchandising rights. The series made its international premiere on Disney Junior in the United States and is released widely on Disney+.
Rainbow High is a fashion doll franchise created by Michael Scott Anderson originally as Rainbow Surprise and released by American toy company MGA Entertainment in 2020 originally as a spin-off from their Poopsie Slime Surprise brand. The back story for the franchise revolves around an elite high school for the visual arts, featuring students who represent colors of the rainbow.
↑ Palmer, Emma (21 June 2023). "On the Couch with Emma Palmer". Australian Arts Review (Interview). Archived from the original on 21 February 2024. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
↑ Okenyo, Zindzi. "Zindzi Okenyo". The Hobart Magazine (Interview). Interviewed by Williams, Stephanie. Archived from the original on 13 March 2023. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
