Come Outside
Encyclopedia
Come Outside is a BBC
educational children's television series that ran from 23 September 1993 to 18 March 1997. The two main characters of the show are Auntie Mabel (played by Lynda Baron
of Open All Hours
), and her dog Pippin. They go on adventures in Auntie Mabel's aeroplane which is covered in coloured spots. Pippin was a mixed breed dog, possibly part Tibetan Terrier
, roughly third generation descended from the famous American acting dog Benji
and was owned and trained by Ann Head. The first Pippin has since died in 2008. One of the dogs to play Pippin also starred as the Bakers dog for Bakers Complete pet food commercials and is still pictured on the products.
As well as adventures, Mabel often tells stories to Pippin. Pippin also often receives treats related to the adventures. The show was originally broadcast in 1993, but is still being shown as of 2011 on CBeebies
.
Many of the episodes were filmed in the Middlesex
area, for example in the episode "Buses", Auntie Mabel boards a bus bound for Uxbridge
, and is later seen exiting the public library at Ruislip Manor
. Scenes were also filmed in Woodley, in the precinct and in the veterinary clinic. Auntie Mabel's new house can be seen in a corner of Denham Aerodrome
close to Gerrards Cross
in Buckinghamshire
where one of the planes used in the series, G-RAFG, was based. G-BOCM and G-SFTZ were also used in the series. Some episodes feature a different plane, however it is of the same make (Slingsby Firefly). This plane however had a different propeller with black stripes which made a whirling spiral effect when spinning. All episodes where Aunt Mabel flies in this plane feature a slightly different, more up-beat flying theme tune. Aunt Mabel also wears an orange coat, rather than the usual green anorak she wears when flying in the alternative plane. The episode "bulbs" however has an exception to this, where Mabel wears her green coat and scarf in the different plane.
Although Aunt Mabel's new cottage can be seen in the corner of Denham Aerodrome
, it is difficult to say where the other house featuring in the series was located. This house seems to be located somewhere in the countryside, with the back garden looking similar to a paddock/large field, running onto a farm or a set of outbuildings containing livestock. This area is seen in the "carrots" episode, where Pippin goes to see the goats in these outbuildings.
In the episode "Marmalade" Auntie Mabel flies to Seville
to see some Orange Groves. However, the budget obviously didn't stretch to flying Lynda Baron
to Spain
, as she only appears from the front against a Chroma key
background. An Auntie Mabel body double
was used for shots of her in the orange grove with the locals, the double only ever being seen from behind.
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
educational children's television series that ran from 23 September 1993 to 18 March 1997. The two main characters of the show are Auntie Mabel (played by Lynda Baron
Lynda Baron
Lynda Baron is a BAFTA-nominated English stage, film and television actress, perhaps best known for playing the extremely busty Nurse Gladys Emmanuel, the object of Arkwright's affection, in the BBC comedy series Open All Hours....
of Open All Hours
Open All Hours
Open All Hours is a BBC sitcom written by Roy Clarke which ran for four series a first run in 1976, a second run in 1981, third in 1982 and finally with a fourth run in 1985, with a pilot episode from the Seven of One series in 1973...
), and her dog Pippin. They go on adventures in Auntie Mabel's aeroplane which is covered in coloured spots. Pippin was a mixed breed dog, possibly part Tibetan Terrier
Tibetan Terrier
The Tibetan Terrier is not a member of the terrier group, the name being given to it by European travelers to Tibet who were reminded of terriers from back home when they first encountered the breed...
, roughly third generation descended from the famous American acting dog Benji
Benji
Benji is the name of a fictional dog who has been the focus of several movies from 1974 through the 2000s. It is also the title of the first film in the Benji series....
and was owned and trained by Ann Head. The first Pippin has since died in 2008. One of the dogs to play Pippin also starred as the Bakers dog for Bakers Complete pet food commercials and is still pictured on the products.
Overview
The "adventures" are generally concerned with showing how something is made, or how everyday objects and systems work. Examples are:- "Clay" - Auntie Mabel's teapot breaks. They have to buy a new one, but the potter has run out of clay. Auntie Mabel and Pippin bring him some, then find out how teapots are made.
- "Sewage" - Auntie Mabel goes down a drain to see where waste water goes. Then she visits a sewage treatmentSewage treatmentSewage treatment, or domestic wastewater treatment, is the process of removing contaminants from wastewater and household sewage, both runoff and domestic. It includes physical, chemical, and biological processes to remove physical, chemical and biological contaminants...
plant to see what happens to what's flushed down the toilet. - "Street Lamps" - Auntie Mabel reports an out-of-order street lamp. She joins the maintenance man as he uses a hydraulic platform to replace the bulb, and explains the mystery of how the streetlights switch on when it gets dark. She also tells a story explaining how street lamps were lit in the olden days.
- "Buses" - Auntie Mabel's plane won't start, so she and Pippin have to go on a bus instead. She gets on at Hill End Road in Harefield and accidentally leaves Pippin on the bus, but is soon reunited with her thanks to the helpful driver of the U9 in Uxbridge.
- "A Woolly Jumper" - Auntie Mabel has run out of wool while knitting a woolly jumper. She and Pippin visit a sheep farm and a wool factory in search of supplies.
As well as adventures, Mabel often tells stories to Pippin. Pippin also often receives treats related to the adventures. The show was originally broadcast in 1993, but is still being shown as of 2011 on CBeebies
CBeebies
CBeebies is the brand used by the BBC for programming aimed at children 6 years and under. It is used as a themed strand in the UK on terrestrial television, as a separate free-to-air domestic British channel and used for international varients supported by advertising, subscription or both...
.
Many of the episodes were filmed in the Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
area, for example in the episode "Buses", Auntie Mabel boards a bus bound for Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
, and is later seen exiting the public library at Ruislip Manor
Ruislip Manor
Ruislip Manor is an area of Ruislip in the London Borough of Hillingdon. It is located approximately north west of Charing Cross.-History:The area was originally owned by King's College, Cambridge, as a part of the Manor of Ruislip...
. Scenes were also filmed in Woodley, in the precinct and in the veterinary clinic. Auntie Mabel's new house can be seen in a corner of Denham Aerodrome
Denham Aerodrome
Denham Aerodrome is an airfield located east of Gerrards Cross, near Denham, Buckinghamshire, England. It lies beneath London's Class A airspace. VFR entry/exit points are at Maple Cross and St Giles Church. Entry lanes and circuit height are at AGL...
close to Gerrards Cross
Gerrards Cross
Gerrards Cross is a village in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the south of the county, near the border with Greater London, south of Chalfont St Peter. Gerrards Cross is also a civil parish within South Bucks district, which was known as the Beaconsfield district from 1974 to 1980...
in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
where one of the planes used in the series, G-RAFG, was based. G-BOCM and G-SFTZ were also used in the series. Some episodes feature a different plane, however it is of the same make (Slingsby Firefly). This plane however had a different propeller with black stripes which made a whirling spiral effect when spinning. All episodes where Aunt Mabel flies in this plane feature a slightly different, more up-beat flying theme tune. Aunt Mabel also wears an orange coat, rather than the usual green anorak she wears when flying in the alternative plane. The episode "bulbs" however has an exception to this, where Mabel wears her green coat and scarf in the different plane.
Although Aunt Mabel's new cottage can be seen in the corner of Denham Aerodrome
Denham Aerodrome
Denham Aerodrome is an airfield located east of Gerrards Cross, near Denham, Buckinghamshire, England. It lies beneath London's Class A airspace. VFR entry/exit points are at Maple Cross and St Giles Church. Entry lanes and circuit height are at AGL...
, it is difficult to say where the other house featuring in the series was located. This house seems to be located somewhere in the countryside, with the back garden looking similar to a paddock/large field, running onto a farm or a set of outbuildings containing livestock. This area is seen in the "carrots" episode, where Pippin goes to see the goats in these outbuildings.
In the episode "Marmalade" Auntie Mabel flies to Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
to see some Orange Groves. However, the budget obviously didn't stretch to flying Lynda Baron
Lynda Baron
Lynda Baron is a BAFTA-nominated English stage, film and television actress, perhaps best known for playing the extremely busty Nurse Gladys Emmanuel, the object of Arkwright's affection, in the BBC comedy series Open All Hours....
to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, as she only appears from the front against a Chroma key
Chroma key
Chroma key compositing is a technique for compositing two images together. A color range in the top layer is made transparent, revealing another image behind. The chroma keying technique is commonly used in video production and post-production...
background. An Auntie Mabel body double
Body double
A body double is a general term for someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character in any recorded visual medium, in shots where the character's body is shown but the face is either not visible or shown indistinctly, or in shots where the image of the credited actor's face is joined,...
was used for shots of her in the orange grove with the locals, the double only ever being seen from behind.
Characters
- Auntie Mabel - the main human character of the show. She lives with her dog, Pippin. In some episodes a close up of Auntie Mabel's hand can be seen, revealing a wedding ring. Auntie Mabel never talks of her husband, but rather about her sister Edie. Played by Lynda BaronLynda BaronLynda Baron is a BAFTA-nominated English stage, film and television actress, perhaps best known for playing the extremely busty Nurse Gladys Emmanuel, the object of Arkwright's affection, in the BBC comedy series Open All Hours....
- Pippin - Mabel's pet dog. Pippin often has a comedy sub-plot during each episode, where she gets up to mischief without Auntie Mabel knowing. For example, in the episode "A carton drink", she secretly eats the sausages from her lunch box. In the episode "Soap", she hides the bar of soap to avoid having a bath. Played by PippinPippinPippin, Peppin, and Pepin are variants of a single Frankish given name. It was the name of several important figures in the Carolingian family that ruled the Frankish Empire in what is now France and the western parts of Germany in the Middle Ages:* Pepin of Landen, nicknamed the Elder, sometimes...
. - Edie - Auntie Mabel's sister, who is often referred to but never seen on screen.
Production details
Two different production companies are credited at the end of episodes; Tricorn Productions and Spelthorne Productions. In the "Boxes" episode, Auntie Mabel and Pippin both move house. This episode was created for the transition between the two production companies, as the house used when Tricorn was the producer was not the same as the one owned by Spelthorne Productions. One aspect of the "new" house is the front garden - it is directly adjacent to the field/strip containing Auntie's plane. Although the companies were merging together some fundamental assets changed, for example the acting dog used to portray Pippin was replaced in some scenes with a similar looking dog - later in many scenes Pippin was portrayed by a puppet. Also due to Spelthorne's new director, the scenes of Auntie Mabel at home were now filmed in a film set, rather than Tricorn's use of an actual house. Elements of the set can be clearly seen in some episodes, where the kitchen window displays a blatant backdrop rather than an actual garden. All scenes where Auntie Mabel herself can be clearly seen were done on the ground, the flying was by well-known aerobatics pilot Alan Cassidy and not by Lynda Baron.Series guide
- Series 1: 11 editions first shown 23 September 1993 - 2 December 1993
- Series 2: 18 editions first shown 22 September 1994 - 9 March 1995
- Series 3: 10 editions first shown 7 January 1997 - 18 March 1997
External links
- Come Outside pilot Alan Cassidy's website.