Before we had a telly

[Tinkerbell]

I wonder if anyone else on the forums was at school in the 1950s, and can recall a radio programme which was played in schools to educate and develop an interest in British nature. I can't recall what it was called, but do remember sitting in class listening to bird calls, info on frog spawn, leaf identification etc.

Tinkerbell

[Wild-Woman]

Well I wasn't around in the fifties but I was at the beginning of the sixties and I do remember a little brown bakerlite box in the corner of the room which was apparently the telly. We were aloud it on after tea for an hour before bed.
Things were routine in our home and the TV certainly didn't rule our life. I can remember my favourite TV programme years later which was Zoo Time. And of course a while after that Animal Magic.
Wish the younger generations weren't so hooked into all the violent, depressing and materialistic programmes that rules so much of the TV today.

[naturelover]

i was born 46 so i remember all that and more,in late fourtys early fiftys you didnt have a tv or radio,it was a speaker that you hung on the wall and all listend to the same program or none atall.

[smartie]

I was at school in the 50s, but we never did anything as exotic as listening to the radio in my school, so I don't know what the programme was.

[pressld2]

Originally Posted by Wild-Woman

Well I wasn't around in the fifties but I was at the beginning of the sixties ... And of course a while after that Animal Magic.

That was my era too, and I loved Animal Magic. Hmm, perhaps I should stop being so harsh about Bill Oddie anthropomorphising... Johnny Morris won the anthropomorphic gold medal 5 years running!

Dave P.

[ron1863]

I was around in the fifties but don't remember the programme. I do remember a man on television who used to whistle all the different bird songs. I bet he was on that radio programme but can't remember his name.

[Lance Morgan]

I remember him on TV in the 60's. Was it Percy Edwards?

[Paul mabbott]

There were a whole mass of schools programmes - different subjects and aimed at different age-groups. I don't think they had special names - something like BBC Primary Poetry. I remember the music ones and the nature ones that you referred to - it tended to be some chap apparently wandering around saying things like, 'Oh, over there we can hear the distinctive call of the robin." and describing some of the flowers he could see. I suspect that this was all done from a studio in London but it was very good ....

Since our school was on the edge of town, I could actually look out the window and imagine some of the things being talked about. I often wonder what it meant (if anything) to children living in the heart of big cities?

Originally Posted by Tinkerbell

I wonder if anyone else on the forums was at school in the 1950s, and can recall a radio programme which was played in schools to educate and develop an interest in British nature. I can't recall what it was called, but do remember sitting in class listening to bird calls, info on frog spawn, leaf identification etc.

Tinkerbell

[Paul mabbott]

At the bottom of the page is a potted history of school radio programmes - they still exist, apparently ...

BBC NEWS | Education | Search for UK's top teen speller

[Paul mabbott]

Yes. It was very impressive on the radio but on TV it was rather distracting to see his face making all sorts of contortions .....

Originally Posted by Lance Morgan

I remember him on TV in the 60's. Was it Percy Edwards?

[ron1863]

Originally Posted by Lance Morgan

I remember him on TV in the 60's. Was it Percy Edwards?

That's the man, thanks

[puzzler]

Hi Guys

No was not around in the 50s but do remember Animal Magic, I never missed it on the box, what a fabulous man Johnny Morris was, he always made me laugh.

Cath

[Billy Wobble Dagger]

Originally Posted by puzzler

Hi Guys

No was not around in the 50s but do remember Animal Magic, I never missed it on the box, what a fabulous man Johnny Morris was, he always made me laugh.

Cath

I always think of him and animal magic when I see a camel, which isn't that often. But I remember him dubbing two camels talking, pure animal magic.

[ron1863]

Originally Posted by Billy Wobble Dagger

I always think of him and animal magic when I see a camel, which isn't that often. But I remember him dubbing two camels talking, pure animal magic.

I watched one of those outake programmes last week where Johnny was following the two camels around in their pen. He had to cut the take short as they were constantly spitting on him and he was covered in saliva

[PeterJL]

I actually remember writing in my school book "It is the new year 1950" but I don't remember anything about nature programmes. Of course that maybe because we only had a crystal set which you couldn't tune in from down the mine. We had a nature table at school which always seemed to be filled with rubbish and dead leaves.

Anyway I didn't care much for the natural world since had mostly been bombed round us anyway but chocolate coming off rationing - now that was gooooood.