25-442: Timbuctoo is a series of 25 children's books, written and illustrated by Roger Hargreaves , better known for his Mr. Men and Little Miss series. It was published from 1978 to 1979, with selected reprints in 1993 and 1999. The books tell the stories of a group of animals, each of whom is named after the sound that their particular animal makes. An animated series (produced by Flicks Films and Carlton International ) of Timbuctoo
50-443: A cartoonist, in 1971, he created a successful series of characters used to promote Askit Powders on television (these were used from 1971 to 1994). Also, in 1971 while working as the creative director at a London firm, he wrote the first Mr. Men book, Mr. Tickle . Initially, he had difficulty finding a publisher, but once he did, the books became an instant success, selling more than one million copies within three years. In 1974,
75-510: A stroke. He was buried in Cowden , East Sussex. He bought the adjacent field to the grave yard at Cowden Church so that he could be buried there. After his death, his son, Adam , continued writing and drawing the Mr. Men and Little Miss characters with new stories (while signing the covers in his father's signature). In April 2004, Hargreaves' widow Christine sold the rights to the Mr. Men characters to
100-545: A teacher until 1962. She made her stage debut at Windsor in A Gazelle in Park Lane in 1962 and her West End debut in Passion Flower Hotel in 1965. During the play's run, she made her first film, titled Secrets of a Windmill Girl , released in 1966. More stage roles followed. Collins played Samantha Briggs in the 1967 Doctor Who serial The Faceless Ones and was offered the chance to continue in
125-691: A tickle looked like. Hargreaves drew a figure with a round orange body and long arms which became Mr. Tickle. Some Mr. Men books have Hargreaves drawn in them. He appears in: Google celebrated what would have been his 76th birthday, 9 May 2011, with a series of 16 Google Doodles on its global homepage. Pauline Collins Pauline Collins OBE (born 3 September 1940) is a British actress who first came to prominence portraying Sarah Moffat in Upstairs, Downstairs (1971–1973) and its spin-off Thomas & Sarah (1979). In 1992, she published her autobiography Letter to Louise . Collins played
150-487: Is a commemorative plaque. Hargreaves attended Sowerby Bridge Grammar School (now Trinity Academy Sowerby Bridge ). He then spent a year working in his father's laundry and dry-cleaning business before gaining employment in advertising. By 1968, he was creative director of the Foote, Cone & Belding agency where he wrote slogans such as "Emigrate to Canada Dry (for the sake of your Scotch)". Originally wanting to become
175-569: The Mr. Men series, Little Miss series and Timbuctoo series, intended for young readers. The simple and humorous stories, with bold, brightly coloured illustrations, have sales of more than 85 million copies worldwide in 20 languages. Charles Roger Hargreaves was born in a private hospital at 1 Bath Road, Cleckheaton, West Yorkshire , England, on 9 May 1935 to Alfred Reginald Hargreaves and Ethel Mary Hargreaves. He grew up at 703 Halifax Road, Hartshead Moor, Cleckheaton, outside of which there now
200-635: The Timbuctoo series of 25 books, John Mouse and the Roundy and Squarey books—he is best known for his 46 Mr. Men and 33 Little Miss books. Between 1975 and 1982, Hargreaves lived with his family on Guernsey . Then, they settled at Sussex House Farm near Cowden , Kent. Hargreaves died on 11 September 1988 at the age of 53 and at the Kent and Sussex Hospital in Royal Tunbridge Wells following
225-526: The 1973 single " What Are We Going to Do with Uncle Arthur? " (performed by her character several times during the series) backed with "With Every Passing Day" (a vocal version of the show's theme). She was a subject of the television programme This Is Your Life in April 1972, when she was surprised by Eamonn Andrews . In 1988, Collins starred in the one-woman play Shirley Valentine in London, reprising
250-598: The BBC television drama Ambassador . Other television credits include The Saint , The Wednesday Play , Armchair Theatre , Play for Today , Tales of the Unexpected , Country Matters , and The Black Tower . In 2002, she guest-starred in Man and Boy , the dramatisation of Tony Parsons ' best-seller. In 2005, she appeared as Miss Flite in the BBC production of Charles Dickens ' Bleak House . In 2006, she became
275-515: The UK entertainment group Chorion , for £ 28 million. In December 2011, Chorion sold the Mr. Men brand and its associated merchandise business to Japan's Sanrio . On 4 March 2021, Hargreaves was posthumously awarded a gold Blue Peter badge . Hargreaves and his wife had four children: Adam , Giles and twins Sophie and Amelia. The first of the Mr. Men characters was allegedly created when Hargreaves' son Adam, then aged 8, asked his father what
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#1732776900150300-543: The books spawned a BBC animated television series narrated by Arthur Lowe . A second series the following year saw newer titles transmitted in double bill format with those from the first series. By 1976, Hargreaves had quit his day job. In 1981, the Little Miss series of books was launched and in 1983, it also was made into a television series narrated by Pauline Collins and her husband, John Alderton . Although Hargreaves wrote many other children's stories—including
325-511: The eight 1999 versions published in Greek. Four of the books ( Woof , Trumpet , Buzz and Oink ) were republished in 1993. There was also a set of Timbuctoo Shape Books released, including Oink , Neigh , Growl , Roar , Squeak , Trumpet , Cluck and Puff . Bray was an additional character created and written by Roger's son Adam. This was because standard TV series are often produced in 13 or 26 episode series and an additional character
350-491: The first two series, the second of which starred her actor husband John Alderton , with whom she later starred in the spin-off Thomas & Sarah (1979); the sitcom No, Honestly , written by Terence Brady and Charlotte Bingham; and a series of short-story adaptations titled Wodehouse Playhouse (1975–1978). She co-narrated the animated British children's TV series Little Miss with Alderton in 1983. In connection with her role on Upstairs, Downstairs , Collins recorded
375-522: The pantomime Cinderella at the Old Vic in London. In 2011, she was cast as part of the comedy-drama Mount Pleasant . She played the role of Sue, Lisa's mother, in the first two series running into 2012. She did not return to the third series in 2013, and her character was killed off in the fourth series in 2014. In late 2015, she appeared as Mrs Gamp in the BBC TV series Dickensian . Collins
400-622: The popular ITV drama series Forever Green , created and written by Terence Brady and Charlotte Bingham in which the fictitious couple escape the city with their children to start a new life in the country. It ran from 1989 to 1992 over 18 episodes. Collins was voted sexiest woman in Britain in 1990. Collins' film credits include 1992's City of Joy , 1995's My Mother's Courage [ de ] , 1997's Paradise Road , and 2002's Mrs Caldicot's Cabbage War , which also featured Alderton. In 1999 and 2000, Collins starred as Harriet Smith in
425-584: The role on Broadway in 1989 and in the 1989 film version. The film won a number of awards and nominations; Collins was nominated for the Oscar as Best Actress and won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical. Both the play and the feature film used the technique known as breaking the fourth wall as the character Shirley Valentine directly addresses the audience throughout the story. After Shirley Valentine , Collins starred with her husband in
450-452: The series as a new companion for the Doctor, but declined the role. Other early TV credits include the UK's first medical soap Emergency Ward 10 (1960), and the pilot episode and first series of The Liver Birds , both in 1969. Collins first became well-known for her role as the maid Sarah in the 1970s drama series Upstairs, Downstairs . The character appeared regularly throughout
475-524: The third actor to have been in both the original and new series of Doctor Who , appearing in the episode " Tooth and Claw " as Queen Victoria . Later in 2006, she appeared in Extinct , a programme where eight celebrities campaigned on behalf of an animal to save it from extinction. Collins campaigned to save the Bengal tiger and won the public vote. In December 2007, she appeared as the fairy godmother in
500-899: The title role in the play Shirley Valentine for which she won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress , and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play . She reprised the role in the 1989 film adaptation of the play , winning the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role and receiving a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress . She also starred in the television dramas Forever Green (1989–1992) and The Ambassador (1998–1999). Her other film appearances include City of Joy (1992), Paradise Road (1997), Albert Nobbs (2011), Quartet (2012), and The Time of Their Lives (2017). Collins
525-622: Was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2001 Birthday Honours for services to drama. Collins married actor John Alderton in 1969 and lives in Hampstead, London with her husband and their three children Nicholas, Kate, and Richard. She also has an older daughter, Louise, with actor Tony Rohr . Collins gave Louise up for adoption in 1964 when she was a penniless single mother. They were reunited when Louise
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#1732776900150550-544: Was based on the characters of the book series. Series 1 was released on VHS as Neigh Finds a New Home and Other Stories in March 1999 and Series 2 released as Woof Has Forgotten How to Bark and Other Stories in February 2000. A total of 26 episodes were produced. Roger Hargreaves Roger Hargreaves (9 May 1935 – 11 September 1988) was a British cartoonist , illustrator and writer of children's books . He created
575-617: Was born in Exmouth, Devon, the daughter of Mary Honora (née Callanan), a schoolteacher, and William Henry Collins, a school headmaster. She is of Irish extraction, and was brought up as a Catholic in Wallasey, Cheshire. Her great-uncle was Irish poet Jeremiah Joseph Callanan . Collins was educated at Sacred Heart High School and studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. Before turning to acting, she worked as
600-460: Was required to reach 26 episodes. Eight of the original books were reprinted in 1999, with new illustrations, to accompany the TV series. While Bray was listed on the back cover along with the rest of the cast, only Buzz, Cluck, Growl, Meow, Neigh, Oink, Snap and Trumpet were reprinted. The Timbuctoo animated television show was broadcast from January 1998 to April 1999. It ran on CITV for two series and
625-509: Was shown on CITV which ran from 9 January 1998 to 5 January 2000, narrated by Ronnie Corbett . The original set of 25 books named after their main character were published in 1978 and 1979, along with board books, shaped story books and three Timbuctoo Annuals. In 1999 eight of the books were reprinted with new illustrations to promote the television show, along with a new character, Bray. The first twelve books were also published in Dutch, and
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