Adventure Island

My memories of "Adventure Island" are fragmented, yet vivid. Between the ages of 4 and 9 I was so totally enthralled by the wonderful characters of "Diddly-Dum-Diddley" that when it did finally disappear I was one of thousands who protested. Filmed entirely in black-and-white from 1967-72,(yet repeated until 1976), it was filled with magic, charm, glistening tinsel, and a basic moral that inevitably good must outdo evil. The goodies of the town were memorable characters, the mainstays being Clown, Liza, Mrs Flowerpotts and Percy Panda. The baddies included Captain Crook, Miser Meanie, Fester Fumble,Giggles Goblin, Squire Squeezm and Sir Cedric Sneak (several of these characters were played by the incredibly talented and versatile Ernie Bourne). In retrospect, the hilarity of the program lay in the fact that time and time again the "goodies" of the town, all except Clown, were unable to see through the "baddies" acts of deception until it was too late, and their lives were thrown into total disarray. Even though Clown was wise to the goings-on, he would inevitably forget at the crucial moment. As a child viewer, I was made to feel clever in being able to "unmask" a baddie so easily, and at the same time felt important at being drawn into this magical world through the art of the actors talking directly into the camera, either to stress a major point, or simply to make "me" feel included. Recently I had the opportunity of seeing several episodes of "Adventure Island" again, and I must say it made me feel terribly nostalgic. If anyone reads this who is over the age of 35, you just might remember little things like: the portraits hanging in Sir Cedric's mansion with the eyes that moved; Mrs Flowerpotts reading tea leaves in her little shop, or being transported to who knows where in a scary time machine; Liza, greeting the day with a song while watering the "plastic" flowers in her garden; Miser Meanie and his wonderful "Me-me-me" cackle; Sam the magic cat, who could appear and disappear whenever Sue (the host) clicked her fingers; the cast sitting around a big table on Fridays (after everything in the town got back to normal) to view paintings and drawings that young watchers had posted in; Clown's addiction to "jubes"; the magic house with Maxie the mouse, Troll, the two birds, Crispian Cockatoo & Gussie Galah, that used to tell jokes, and the weirdest character of all - a "line" that danced; or maybe even the final song that was sung every Friday as each character disappeared into his/her little house - aptly titled "We'll Be Thinking Of You, Dear Children." The Godfrey Philipp/John Michael Howson combination was pure genius, and the show got wackier and more delightfully camp as the years went on. Thank goodness I was a young child when I was! Children of today are missing out on so much, and sadly, the magic, innocence, purity, and other positive ingredients of "Adventure Island's" make-up (and a reflection of the times) have been lost. I do believe, however, that if the show was re-released today, and colourised, children could not help but succumb to its charms...UPDATE: To dispel any lingering doubts about the fate of "Adventure Island", over 1000 episodes still in fact exist and are kept in storage at the "National Archives" in Sydney. They are just sitting there gathering dust! One can only hope that someone who has a keen interest in the show can somehow save "Adventure Island" from extinction, get some funding happening to remaster some of the old tapes, so that this wonderful children's' favourite may once again see the light of day. Any takers????

I have just seen a snippet of this show in an ABC retrospective. If one of the previous contributors is correct, it is a tragedy that this material is in private hands! I have always wondered why nothing has ever been done to unearth it. Seeing the dates of screening I now realist I was in the exact demographic - turning 4 the year it first aired. I remember distinctly going to dance classes on Friday afternoons in the early 70's and being very peeved at missing the final episode each week! I also suspect the plots were very corny but would love to see them from an adult perspective. One of my strongest memories is of the final song each week and Liza walking towards the gates at the front of the set singing the song. I think the gates were under an arch of some kind. Our neighbors had some stepping stones in their front yard which led through a jasmine covered archway. I had long dark hair as a child and was a bit of a Liza wannabe I think! When I happened to be wearing my pink organza party dress, I would grab my parasol (I think Liza held one as she walked) and walk through the arch singing the song. I can't really remember the song (only the 'feeling' of it), and it would even be great if some of the music was available - even in sheet form.

This series is one of those that if you meet a stranger at a party that is aged between about 40 and 45 it is almost certain that they have memories of this show - when you are reminiscing about TV of your childhood, most people I meet have very strong and fond memories of it.

We must gotten our TV at around this time this came out.

Or perhaps I was going to school by then . I remember the long walk home from school - well. It seemed long, and perpetually hot! Playing outside for awhile, and being allowed to watch kids TV from Adventure Island ('At half past fooooour' as the jingle went) till Bellbird.

I can still remember the theme song, tune and lyrics, and I know I kept my cast photos for years.

It was very panto in style, but the houses, once we went into the magic book, were adorable (Liza's and the Panda's on screen left, Clown's caravan and Flower Pot's shop on screen right). The long hanging silver streamers looked Sooo magical in black and white!

As a child, Clown rather irritated me, and I remember Flower Pots as being quite the gossip. But Robert Essex was fab as Miser Meanie (can't see his name in the cast lest but that's the actor I'm sure...), much more scary than Squire Squeezum! Ernie Bourne was delightfully dumb as Fester Fumble, and Liza's end of week Song ('...its time to say goodbye goodbye, it's sad but time's the reason why we must bid farewell for a day or two...') was always lovely. Those poor Pandas must have been so hot!

Adventure Island, then maybe FTroop or My Favourite Martian reruns In later years, shows like The Goodies, Catweazle, and short series like The Owl Service and Time Slip... Bliss.

The great John Michael Howson created this television masterwork (with Godfrey Phillips) and played "Clown", a peculiar, unforgettable, asexual fellow who lived in a caravan in the town of Diddley-Dum-Diddley and never took his make-up off. That's right, folks, he was a permanent clown. Fixed grin. Never out of character. Totally nuts in a baggy costume and given to high-pitched declarations of surprise.

Truly incredible this series. So surreal, perhaps not deliberately, but one of the strangest "things" I've ever seen.

The town was controlled by a mean-spirited ogre (Meiser Meanie) who lived in a dark, cardboard tower overlooking the town square where Clown lived next to "Flowerpotts", an androgynous fusspot played by a man. Their neighbors were two married pandas, the male being a touch on the sissy side. Meanie's right hand man was the sycophantic Fester Fumble, affectionately played by Ernie Bourne.

The cameras never took us outside the town, although we were able to view a distant, remote outside world (painted) beyond the town gate occasionally.

Perhaps Mr. Howson, now a Hollywood-based writer of clever short stories and gossip monger of international repute, will see fit to resurrect this brilliant series one day, the crowning achievement of his queer youth.

Where are you, Clown? Where are you and that permanent grin?

Perhaps living in Baltimore with John Waters and Mink Stole?

I remember watching this as a child. So many years ago, now, my memories of the show are incredibly vague. So much so that, until hearing a radio special about the program a couple of years ago, I almost believed it was just one of those false memories of the past you seem to have about childhood.

But it did exist, and according to IMDb, there was a hell of a lot of it, most of which has probably been scrapped from archives (which is probably why we've not seen hide nor hair since). It was probably very bad, but I'd still like to see an episode today, just to see what it was _really_ like....