Allsorts (TV series)

Allsorts (later renamed Gigglish Allsorts in 1994) is a British educational comedy series for children that was produced for ITV by Granada Television. The programmes aired from 7 January 1987 to 19 December 1995 and covered a range of children's learning activities.

History
In common with many of ITV's educational children's programmes of the era, Allsorts – first screened in January 1986 – was originally intended to run for only one series while ITV's flagship children's series, Rainbow, was off air that year. The first series ran until July, but despite moderate popularity in its first run, Granada decided not to renew the series and, instead, initially opted in favour of Allsorts predecessor, the pre-school orientated series Our Backyard (which had already been on air since August 1984), largely because the latter could be made more quickly and cheaply. But, after failing to attract enough viewers in its third run in late 1986, Our Backyard was cancelled and Allsorts was brought back for a second series in January 1987 and proved so popular with both pre-schoolers and older children that it was subsequently recommissioned for a further seven series, before it was eventually dropped in 1995.

The series was characterised by its quirky humour, songs and entertaining storylines, which the characters would have to discover, solve or enjoy. It starred Andrew Wightman as Bonzo and Wayne Jackman as Jiffy, who starred in the series throughout its entire run. Wayne and Andrew were originally joined by Vivienne Mckone as 'Natty' and Virginia Radcliffe as 'Spike The Dog'. Natty and Spike were later dropped from the cast and Radcliffe was promoted to the role of Virginia, replacing Natty. In the early 1990s Virginia Radcliffe left the cast and was replaced by Jane Cox as 'JJ'. Puppet characters were later introduced. The first was Box (a talking box) operated by Julie Westwood. The final addition to the cast was Moudly The Mole, operated by Robert Skidmore who co-built the puppet with Daryl Worby and also rebuilt Box.

The series was renamed Gigglish Allsorts in 1994, with a new set of titles, a new house and new music. However, by this time, viewing figures were on the wane, despite the introduction of a zany Jack In The Box played by Fred Feast and Granada decided that the show had become a shadow of its former self. After a decade-long run, the series was cancelled at the end of its ninth series a year later, in part due to Granada discontinuing many of its lower budget programmes. The final episode was screened on 12 December 1995. Jane Cox later joined Emmerdale and Andrew Wightman became series producer of Granada's Stars in Their Eyes.

Cast

 * Jiffy – Wayne Jackman (Series 1–9)
 * Bonzo – Andrew Wightman (Series 1–9)
 * Natty – Vivienne Mckone (Series 1–3)
 * Spike The Dog – Virginia Radcliffe (Series 1–3)
 * Virginia – Virginia Radcliffe (Series 4)
 * JJ – Jane Cox (Series 5–9)
 * Box – Julie Westwood (Series 5–9)
 * Mouldy – Robert Skidmore (series 7–9)

Format
The show's format changed every series. The set changed, the characters' clothing changed, and the storylines became a little more complex. By series 5 with the introduction of Box and JJ, the show became more of situational comedy with educational aspects and the Gigglish Allsorts era of the series, the characters even ventured out of the house on outings, such as a visit to Gulliver's World in the episode "The Big Day Out" in 1994.

Opening titles
The opening credits from series one to five are fully animated in a cartoonish style. They feature a toy which starts off as a spinning top, then turns into a ball, then a jug of water, then a train, then a house which flies into a kite which reads "Allsorts". The music consists of several pieces of instrumentation in sequence, coming in one after the other as the toy changes form.

Series six has the cartoon pictures of series one in three square boxes at the right hand side of the screen, with the opening titles on the left side. The background music is sung by the stars of the show, with each singing a different verse. The lyrics of the song are "Hey, it's an Allsorts day, anything can happen / It's an Allsorts day / Today!"

The opening credits from series seven to nine begins with a close-up of a box made of numerous light-up squares as an unknown voice starts singing. As the lyrics "one – two – three" are sung, the camera pans back, and a box opens which contains objects including toy aeroplanes, cars and teddy bears. Afterwards, JJ, Jiffy, Box and Bonzo appear, pulling faces. The lyrics of the background song are "Hey! Are you ready – steady – one – two – three / Gigglish Allsorts – what's happening today? / Gigglish Allsorts – they're coming out to play."

Series 1 (1987)

 * 1) Water (1) - 7 January 1987
 * 2) Up and Down (1) - 14 January 1987
 * 3) Collections - 21 January 1987
 * 4) Big and Little - 28 January 1987
 * 5) Shoes - 4 February 1987
 * 6) Hats - 11 February 1987
 * 7) Hands - 18 February 1987
 * 8) Sticky Things - 25 February 1987
 * 9) Same/Different - 4 March 1987
 * 10) Fruit and Veg - 11 March 1987
 * 11) Houses and Homes - 18 March 1987
 * 12) Noises (1) - 25 March 1987
 * 13) Paper - 1 April 1987
 * 14) Plants (1) - 8 April 1987
 * 15) Boxes - 15 April 1987
 * 16) String and Things - 22 April 1987
 * 17) Journeys (1) - 29 April 1987
 * 18) Air (1) - 6 May 1987
 * 19) Colour - 13 May 1987
 * 20) Lost and Found - 20 May 1987
 * 21) Faces - 27 May 1987
 * 22) Wheels - 3 June 1987
 * 23) Hot and Cold - 10 June 1987
 * 24) Pets - 17 June 1987
 * 25) Dragons - 24 June 1987
 * 26) Birthdays - 1 July 1987

Series 2 (1988)

 * 1) Spring - 6 April 1988
 * 2) Clean and Dirty - 13 April 1988
 * 3) Magic Orchestra (1) - 20 April 1988
 * 4) Fair's Fair - 27 April 1988
 * 5) Games - 4 May 1988
 * 6) Pictures - 11 May 1988
 * 7) New Beginnings - 18 May 1988
 * 8) Going Away Today - 25 May 1988
 * 9) Jealousy - 1 June 1988
 * 10) Cafe Allsorts - 8 June 1988
 * 11) Robots - 15 June 1988
 * 12) Theatre - 22 June 1988
 * 13) Appearances - 29 June 1988
 * 14) Holes - 6 July 1988
 * 15) Secrets - 13 July 1988
 * 16) Silliness - 20 July 1988
 * 17) Magic Orchestra (2) - 27 July 1988
 * 18) Friends - 3 August 1988
 * 19) Illness - 10 August 1988
 * 20) Gallery - 17 August 1988
 * 21) Happy and Sad - 24 August 1988
 * 22) Night - 31 August 1988
 * 23) Favourites - 7 September 1988
 * 24) Mystery and Magic - 14 September 1988
 * 25) Promises - 21 September 1988
 * 26) Greed - 28 September 1988
 * 27) Treasure - 5 October 1988
 * 28) Clothes (1) - 12 October 1988
 * 29) For Sale - 19 October 1988
 * 30) On My Own - 26 October 1988
 * 31) Circus - 2 November 1988
 * 32) Allsorts Book - 9 November 1988
 * 33) Time - 16 November 1988
 * 34) Journeys (2) - 23 November 1988
 * 35) Lost Property - 30 November 1988
 * 36) Broken and Fixed - 7 December 1988
 * 37) All Change (1) - 14 December 1988
 * 38) Naughty Tricks - 21 December 1988

Series 3 (1989-1990)

 * 1) Cottoning On - 9 August 1989
 * 2) Floating and Sinking - 16 August 1989
 * 3) Ten Green Bottles - 23 August 1989
 * 4) Accidents - 30 August 1989
 * 5) Hello - 6 September 1989
 * 6) The Hot Day - 13 September 1989
 * 7) Collecting - 20 September 1989
 * 8) Camping (1) - 27 September 1989
 * 9) Sharing - 4 October 1989
 * 10) Allsorts TV - 11 October 1989
 * 11) Flying - 18 October 1989
 * 12) Plants (2) - 25 October 1989
 * 13) The Face - 1 November 1989
 * 14) Magnets - 8 November 1989
 * 15) Jumble Sale - 15 November 1989
 * 16) Colours - 22 November 1989
 * 17) Memory - 29 November 1989
 * 18) Water (2) - 6 December 1989
 * 19) Puppets - 13 December 1989
 * 20) Round and Round - 20 December 1989
 * 21) Picture Show - 10 January 1990
 * 22) Noises (2) - 17 January 1990
 * 23) Measuring - 24 January 1990
 * 24) Air (2) - 31 January 1990
 * 25) Balancing - 7 February 1990
 * 26) Alone Again – Naturally - 14 February 1990
 * 27) Teatime - 21 February 1990
 * 28) The Dark - 28 February 1990
 * 29) The Box - 7 March 1990
 * 30) Up and Down (2) - 14 March 1990

Series 4 (1990-1991)

 * 1) The Arrival of Jane - 19 September 1990
 * 2) All Change (2) - 26 September 1990
 * 3) Friendship - 3 October 1990
 * 4) Shopping - 10 October 1990
 * 5) A Change in the Weather - 17 October 1990
 * 6) Bicycles - 24 October 1990
 * 7) Waiting for Aunt Jemima - 31 October 1990
 * 8) Patterns - 7 November 1990
 * 9) The Little Red Car - 14 November 1990
 * 10) Passing the Time - 21 November 1990
 * 11) Once Upon a Time - 28 November 1990
 * 12) The Locked Door - 5 December 1990
 * 13) Cooking - 12 December 1990
 * 14) It's Magic - 19 December 1990
 * 15) A Bad Monday - 9 January 1991
 * 16) Noises (3) - 16 January 1991
 * 17) The First Day - 23 January 1991
 * 18) Fun with Language - 30 January 1991
 * 19) Weight - 6 February 1991
 * 20) Dressing Up - 13 February 1991
 * 21) Jane's Birthday - 20 February 1991
 * 22) Bricks - 27 February 1991
 * 23) Going to Bed - 6 March 1991
 * 24) Clearing Up - 13 March 1991
 * 25) The Garden - 20 March 1991
 * 26) The Canvas Bag - 27 March 1991

Series 5 (1991-1992)

 * 1) Bonzo's Olympics - 16 October 1991
 * 2) Money - 23 October 1991
 * 3) Noises (4) - 30 October 1991
 * 4) Inventions - 6 November 1991
 * 5) Names - 13 November 1991
 * 6) City Farm - 20 November 1991
 * 7) Rainy Day - 27 November 1991
 * 8) Moods - 4 December 1991
 * 9) Home and Away - 11 December 1991
 * 10) Clothes (2) - 18 December 1991
 * 11) Shapes - 8 January 1992
 * 12) Monsters - 15 January 1992
 * 13) Playing Tricks - 22 January 1992
 * 14) Holiday - 29 January 1992
 * 15) Camping (2) - 5 February 1992
 * 16) Panic - 12 February 1992
 * 17) Being Ill - 19 February 1992
 * 18) Food - 26 February 1992

Series 6 (1993)

 * 1) Episode 601 - 6 January 1993
 * 2) Episode 602 - 13 January 1993
 * 3) Episode 603 - 20 January 1993
 * 4) Episode 604 - 27 January 1993
 * 5) Episode 605 - 3 February 1993
 * 6) Episode 606 - 10 February 1993
 * 7) Episode 607 - 17 February 1993
 * 8) Episode 608 - 24 February 1993
 * 9) Episode 609 - 3 March 1993
 * 10) Episode 610 - 10 March 1993
 * 11) Episode 611 - 17 March 1993
 * 12) Episode 612 - 24 March 1993
 * 13) Episode 613 - 31 March 1993
 * 14) Episode 614 - 7 April 1993
 * 15) Episode 615 - 14 April 1993
 * 16) Episode 616 - 21 April 1993
 * 17) Episode 617 - 28 April 1993
 * 18) Episode 618 - 5 May 1993

Series 7 (1994)

 * 1) Episode 701 - 6 January 1994
 * 2) Episode 702 - 13 January 1994
 * 3) Episode 703 - 20 January 1994
 * 4) Episode 704 - 27 January 1994
 * 5) Episode 705 - 3 February 1994
 * 6) Episode 706 - 10 February 1994
 * 7) Episode 707 - 17 February 1994
 * 8) Episode 708 - 24 February 1994
 * 9) Episode 709 - 3 March 1994
 * 10) Episode 710 - 10 March 1994

Series 8 (1994-1995)

 * 1) Haircut - 6 September 1994
 * 2) Episode 802 - 13 September 1994
 * 3) Episode 803 - 20 September 1994
 * 4) Episode 804 - 27 September 1994
 * 5) Episode 805 - 4 October 1994
 * 6) Episode 806 - 11 October 1994
 * 7) Episode 807 - 18 October 1994
 * 8) Episode 808 - 25 October 1994
 * 9) Bath time Blues - 1 November 1994
 * 10) Episode 810 - 8 November 1994
 * 11) Three Billy Goats Gruff - 15 November 1994
 * 12) Episode 812 - 22 November 1994
 * 13) Episode 813 - 29 November 1994
 * 14) Episode 814 - 6 December 1994
 * 15) Episode 815 - 13 December 1994
 * 16) Showtime - 20 December 1994
 * 17) Episode 817 - 3 January 1995
 * 18) Episode 818 - 10 January 1995
 * 19) The Band - 17 January 1995

Series 9 (1995)

 * 1) The Visitor - 12 September 1995
 * 2) Episode 802 - 19 September 1995
 * 3) Episode 803 - 26 September 1995
 * 4) Episode 804 - 3 October 1995
 * 5) Episode 805 - 10 October 1995
 * 6) Episode 806 - 17 October 1995
 * 7) Episode 807 - 24 October 1995
 * 8) Episode 808 - 31 October 1995
 * 9) Episode 809 - 7 November 1995
 * 10) Episode 810 - 14 November 1995
 * 11) Episode 811 - 21 November 1995
 * 12) Episode 812 - 28 November 1995
 * 13) Episode 813 - 5 December 1995
 * 14) Episode 814 - 12 December 1995
 * 15) Big Day Out - 19 December 1995

UK VHS Releases

 * "A bumper box of Allsorts" released 1994
 * "Allsorts of fun..." released 1995