Shep (British dog)
Shep (1 May 1971 — 17 January 1987) was a famous Blue Peter dog, a border collie. Shep was bought by the BBC to replace Patch, one of Petra's puppies, born in 1965. He became the main Blue Peter dog when Petra died in 1977.
Shep is remembered by British TV viewers as inseparable from Blue Peter presenter John Noakes. Shep was excitable, and Noakes would often have to restrain him. Noakes' common refrain, "Get Down Shep!", became a catchphrase, and The Barron Knights released a song with that title. Shep left Blue Peter when Noakes departed in June 1978.
Shep also appeared with Noakes in six series of Go With Noakes, from 1976 to 1980. Contrary to popular legend, while Shep belonged to the BBC, Noakes was not required to return Shep to the BBC when he left. Although Noakes retained Shep, he was forbidden to use him for advertising purposes, even though the payments he received for Shep's upkeep whilst on the programme ceased. Noakes used a similar looking dog named 'Skip' in a series of TV ads for dog food in 1978, which infuriated the BBC's Blue Peter production team. Shep died in 1987. Noakes has often become emotional when asked about Shep. He openly wept on an edition of The Weakest Link when hostess Anne Robinson asked him about the dog.[1]
Shep was bred by Audrey Wickham (née Hart), breeder of a number of notable pedigree border collies in the Sadghyl line.
References
External links
- Shep from the Blue Peter website
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