Carey Blyton

Carey Blyton
Born	Carey Blyton (1932-03-14)March 14, 1932 Beckenham, Kent
Died	July 13, 2002(2002-07-13) (aged 70) Woodbridge, Suffolk
Nationality	British
Occupation(s)	Composer, music editor
Years active	54 years
Notable work	Bananas In Pyjamas Theme

Carey Blyton (14 March 1932 – 13 July 2002) was a British composer and writer best known for his song Bananas In Pyjamas (1969), which later (1992) became an Australian children's television series, and for his work on Doctor Who.

Early life

Blyton, a nephew of children's author Enid Blyton, showed a talent for science from an early age, and did not switch to music until he contracted polio and, as he was recovering, began taking piano lessons in 1948 at the age of sixteen. In the 1950s he began his training as a composer and won several certificates and awards.

Career

Blyton is primarily known as a miniaturist, composing short orchestral scores. He wrote some well-regarded and often humorous pieces including Return of Bulgy Gogo (a tribute to Peter Warlock), Up the Faringdon Road, Mock Joplin and Saxe Blue. He also worked as a music editor, and in this capacity he assisted Benjamin Britten.

Blyton wrote incidental music for three stories in the BBC Doctor Who television series: Doctor Who and the Silurians (1970), Death to the Daleks (1974), and Revenge of the Cybermen (1975). He was noted for his use of primitive musical instruments, using Crumhorns to depict the Silurians in Doctor Who and the Silurians, and serpents and ophicleides in Revenge of the Cybermen.

Several CDs of his work were produced, notably Sherlock Holmes meets Dr Who, showcasing his work for an unmade Sherlock Holmes animated series, cues from all three of his Doctor Who stories, and other classics such as Saxe Blue. He died in 2002 from cancer and post-polio syndrome, aged 70.

External links

• Official website
• Carey Blyton at IMDb