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Magpie (TV series)

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Magpie
The Magpie logo.
GenreChildren's
Entertainment
Created byLewis Rudd
Sue Turner
Presented byTony Bastable
Tommy Boyd
Pete Brady
Jenny Hanley
Douglas Rae
Mick Robertson
Susan Stranks
Theme music composerEddie Hardin, Ray Fenwick & Spencer Davis
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producersLewis Rudd
Sue Turner
Running time25 minutes
Production companyThames Television
Original release
NetworkITV
Release30 July 1968 (1968-07-30) –
6 June 1980 (1980-06-06)

Magpie is a British children's television programme shown on ITV from 30 July 1968[1] to 6 June 1980.[2] It was a magazine format show, intended to compete with the BBC's Blue Peter, but it attempted to be more "hip", focusing more on popular culture.[3] The show's creators, Lewis Rudd and Sue Turner, named the programme Magpie, as a reference to the magpie's habit of collecting small items and also because of "mag" being evocative of "magazine" and "pie" being evocative of a collection of ingredients.

Broadcast history

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The programme, made by Thames Television, was first transmitted on 30 July 1968, Thames Television's first day of broadcasting. It was shown weekly until 1969, after which, until it ended on 6 June 1980, it went out twice a week. It was not fully networked to all other ITV companies until the autumn of 1969. Approximately 1,000 episodes were made, each 25 minutes in duration.

The first presenters were the BBC Radio 1 disc jockey Pete Brady, Susan Stranks and Tony Bastable.[4] Brady left the show in 1971 to be replaced by Douglas Rae,[5] and Bastable left his presenting role to become the show's producer in 1972, being replaced by Mick Robertson.[6] Jenny Hanley replaced Stranks in 1974.[7] This lineup remained until 1977, when Tommy Boyd replaced Rae.[8]

Like Blue Peter, Magpie featured appeals for various causes and charities.[9] Unlike its rival programme, however, it asked for cash donations rather than stamps or secondhand goods, familiar on Blue Peter. The cash totaliser was a long strip of paper which ran out of the studio and along the adjacent corridor walls. Unlike the BBC programme, Magpie was unscripted and the presenters were free to improvise the presentation of the show.[10]

The show's mascot was a magpie, who was named Murgatroyd in 1969. The name was chosen among four other after a viewer competition.[11]

Theme song

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The theme tune was played by the Spencer Davis Group under the alias of The Murgatroyd Band, and composed by Eddie Hardin (lead voc., keyb.), Ray Fenwick (harm. voc., guit.) and Spencer Davis (harm. voc.guit.). The main lyric is an old children's nursery rhyme One for Sorrow:[12]

One for sorrow
Two for joy
Three for a girl and
Four for a boy
Five for silver
Six for gold
Seven for a secret never to be told
Eight's a wish and
Nine a kiss
Ten is a bird you must not miss.

The rhyme refers to an old English superstition concerning the portent of the number of magpies seen together in a flock, and an older version of the ending runs:

Eight for Heaven
Nine for Hell
Ten for the Devil himself

Steam engine and boat

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In 1973, Magpie adopted a steam railway locomotive, "Black 5" 44806, which was given the name "Magpie" (Blue Peter already had a locomotive with the same name as that show). After an eventful history, it is still being used today on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, although now with a different name.[citation needed]

Magpie also adopted a boat, originally called "Mankadu"[13] and renamed "Thames Magpie".[14] Its current whereabouts are unknown.

References

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  1. ↑ "TUESDAY 30 JULY ON CHANNEL NINE: THAMES". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 25 July 1968. p. 33. Retrieved 27 April 2026.
  2. ↑ "FRIDAY JUNE 6". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 29 May 1980. p. 69. Retrieved 28 April 2026.
  3. ↑ Sheridan, Simon (2004). The A-Z of Classic Children's Television: From Alberto Frog to Zebedee. Reynolds & Hearn Ltd. pp. 156–159. ISBN 1903111277.
  4. ↑ Hanley, Jimmy (25 July 1968). "Jimmy Hanley bangs the drum...: THE GREATEST JUNIOR SHOWS ON TV". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. p. 14. Retrieved 27 April 2026. As well as the magpies–real ones–you will meet Sue Stranks, Tony Bastable and Pete Brady–of record fame.
  5. ↑ "TUESDAY AUGUST 31: LONDON". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 26 August 1971. p. 35. Retrieved 27 April 2026. Magpie returns for a new series today with Douglas Rae replacing Pete Brady as one of the trio of presenters.
  6. ↑ "TUESDAY NOVEMBER 14: LONDON". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 9 November 1972. p. 51. Retrieved 27 April 2026. Take a look at the presenters and you'll notice that Tony Bastable has vacated his chair in favour of Mick Robertson. But Tony hasn't gone far. He's up in the control box where, as the programme's producer, he keeps an eye on a varied selection of items for everyone.
  7. ↑ "Your letters: Where's Susan?". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 21 November 1974. p. 79. Retrieved 27 April 2026. You will no doubt have seen that the lovely Jenny Hanley has taken Susan's place, and has certainly won the affection of millions of viewers.
  8. ↑ Block, David (10 November 1977). "Magpie/Tuesday and Friday 4.45: Jumping in at the deep end–that's Tommy". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. p. 32. Retrieved 27 April 2026. Within a few days of the announcement last summer that Douglas Rae was leaving Magpie, more than 2,000 applications for the job poured in. The short list was whittled down to two dozen–among them the 24-year-old Boyd. [...] Six weeks later they phoned and told him to report for duty at Teddington. He was in!
  9. ↑ "TUESDAY JANUARY 5". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 31 December 1970. p. 50. Retrieved 27 April 2026. Magpie staff have been standing by throughout the Christmas season to deal with the response to the Magpie Sixpence appeal for mentally-handicapped children.
  10. ↑ Magpie [Network DVD] ASIN: B00272F3TW Release date: 29 Jun 2009
  11. ↑ "CHANNEL 9: THAMES: TUESDAY APRIL 15". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 10 April 1969. p. 38. Retrieved 27 April 2026. The competition to find a name for the fat little Magpie bird that is featured in the programme's opening film proved enormously popular. More than 20,000 votes were received and from the five possible names viewers chose "Murgatroyd."
  12. ↑ Wilkinson, Dean (18 July 2011). The Classic Children's Television Quiz Book. Andrews UK Limited. ISBN 978-1-908548-89-4. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  13. ↑ "CHANNEL 9: THAMES: TUESDAY OCTOBER 15". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 10 October 1968. p. 51. Retrieved 27 April 2026. Special feature is the Magpie boat. At present she's called Mankadu, but a grand launching and re-naming ceremony is planned.
  14. ↑ "CHANNEL 9: THAMES: THURSDAY APRIL 17". TV Times. London, United Kingdom. 10 April 1969. p. 45. Retrieved 27 April 2026. Regular Magpie viewers will know that the programme's boat has now been re-named Thames Magpie.
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