Otis the Aardvark
Encyclopedia
Otis the Aardvark was a puppet
presenter on Children's BBC. Otis mainly presented the afternoon links on BBC One
alongside the main CBBC presenters.
Otis was thought to be inspired from the 1992 Children's BBC idents which ended with a voice proclaiming "Tell that aardvark
it's a wrap". These idents led to much speculation as to what the phrase meant. However, these idents were dropped just before the character of Otis appeared in late 1994.
Dave Chapman
was the puppeteer. He also performed in a number of other Children's BBC programmes for both incarnations, notably The Cat from Dick and Dom in Da Bungalow
.
When Fully Booked
moved to Sundays on BBC2, the extended Saturday CBBC was renamed Saturday Aardvark, with Otis being a key feature.
From 1996 - 1999 Otis presented the morning and afternoon links on Nickelodeon
's CBBC block named CBBC on Nick
. The programmes on CBBC on Nick were:
Fireman Sam
Playdays
William's Wish Wellingtons
Monty the Dog
Noddy
Postman Pat
Tales of the Tooth Fairies
Spider
Oakie Doke
Teletubbies
Spot the Dog
After leaving CBBC in late 1999 Otis appeared on a puppet based quiz show before the puppet was finally laid to rest, with the announcement given claiming that the character had gone to work at the BBC canteen, although Otis made appearances on other CBBC shows including Insides Out
and Live & Kicking
and Clever Creatures until 2001. Otis was replaced by another puppet called Emlin the Gremlin, who proved to be short-lived.
On 28 December 2007, Otis reappeared on a special 'puppet' edition of The Weakest Link
for the BBC. However he was voted off in the second round.
In a 2009 interview BBC Presenter Kirsten O'Brien revealed that she has the Otis The Aardvark Puppet and once used it unsuccessfully to impress a date.
On 1 April 2010, Otis appeared on the ITV2 show Celebrity Juice
.
Chapman's other characters include "Scratch" in Cbeebies show Nuzzle and Scratch, Vinnie The Ferret for CBBC's Xchange,Matt Lucas' Singing Potatoes from Shooting Stars, Tiny the Giant Hamster from The Saturday Show and Tiny and Mr Duk's Huge show,Riff the dog from Carrie and David's Popshop, Windy the rat from 'Space Pirates' and most recently Guppy the Elephant in the feature film 'My Last Five Girlfriends'
Puppet
A puppet is an inanimate object or representational figure animated or manipulated by an entertainer, who is called a puppeteer. It is used in puppetry, a play or a presentation that is a very ancient form of theatre....
presenter on Children's BBC. Otis mainly presented the afternoon links on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
alongside the main CBBC presenters.
Otis was thought to be inspired from the 1992 Children's BBC idents which ended with a voice proclaiming "Tell that aardvark
Aardvark
The aardvark is a medium-sized, burrowing, nocturnal mammal native to Africa...
it's a wrap". These idents led to much speculation as to what the phrase meant. However, these idents were dropped just before the character of Otis appeared in late 1994.
Dave Chapman
Dave Chapman
Dave Chapman is an English actor, television presenter, puppeteer and voice artist.-Career:Dave Chapman trained at The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and The Jim Henson Company...
was the puppeteer. He also performed in a number of other Children's BBC programmes for both incarnations, notably The Cat from Dick and Dom in Da Bungalow
Dick and Dom in da Bungalow
Dick and Dom in da Bungalow was a CBBC children's entertainment television series presented by the duo Dick and Dom...
.
When Fully Booked
Fully Booked
Fully Booked was a magazine show for children produced by BBC Scotland and broadcast from 1995 to 1999, and in revised form as FBi in 2000. The show was a summer-time replacement for Live & Kicking, which would normally not broadcast over the summer months...
moved to Sundays on BBC2, the extended Saturday CBBC was renamed Saturday Aardvark, with Otis being a key feature.
From 1996 - 1999 Otis presented the morning and afternoon links on Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon is a US cable TV channel.Nickelodeon may also refer to:-In television:*Spinoffs of the Nickelodeon channel:** Nickelodeon Magazine, a children's magazine.** Nickelodeon Universe, an amusement park....
's CBBC block named CBBC on Nick
CBBC
CBBC is one of two brand names used for the BBC's children's television strands. Between 1985 and 2002, CBBC was the name given to all the BBC's programmes on TV for children aged under 14...
. The programmes on CBBC on Nick were:
Fireman Sam
Fireman Sam
Fireman Sam is a Welsh animated children's television series about a fireman called Sam, his fellow firefighters, and other townspeople in the Welsh town of Pontypandy . The original idea for the show came from two ex-firemen from Kent...
Playdays
Playdays
Playdays was a children's television programme from the United Kingdom. The series ran from 17 October 1988 to 28 March 1997 on Children's BBC , and was aired in reruns until 2003. The show was the successor of Play School, and, like its predecessor, was designed as an educational programme...
William's Wish Wellingtons
William's Wish Wellingtons
William's Wish Wellingtons is an animated BBC children's television series made by Hibbert Ralph Entertainment that was first aired from 25 October 1994 to 28 November 1997. It was narrated by Andrew Sachs of Fawlty Towers fame. It was also translated into Gaelic and aired as on BBC Two Scotland...
Monty the Dog
Noddy
Noddy
Noddy is a character created by British children's author Enid Blyton, originally published between 1949 and 1963. Television shows based on the character have run on British television since 1955 and continue to appear to this day.-Noddy:...
Postman Pat
Postman Pat
Postman Pat is a British stop-motion animated children's television series first produced by Woodland Animations. It is aimed at pre-school children, and concerns the adventures of Pat Clifton, a postman in the fictional village of Greendale .Postman Pat's first 13-episode season was screened on...
Tales of the Tooth Fairies
Spider
Spider (TV series)
Spider! is a musical children's television series made by Hibbert Ralph Entertainment for the BBC that originally aired in 1991. It follows the adventures of a spider, the protagonist, and a young boy. The stories are told through song, performed by Jeff Stevenson with his children, Casey and Holly...
Oakie Doke
Teletubbies
Teletubbies
Teletubbies is a BBC children's television series targeted at pre-school viewers and produced from 1997 to 2001 by Ragdoll Productions. It was created by Ragdoll's creative director Anne Wood CBE and Andrew Davenport, who wrote each of the show's 365 episodes. The programme's original narrator was...
Spot the Dog
Spot the Dog
Spot the Dog is a series of children's books by Eric Hill, which were later made into a popular children's animation series, known as Spot, for BBC television by David McKee's King Rollo Films....
After leaving CBBC in late 1999 Otis appeared on a puppet based quiz show before the puppet was finally laid to rest, with the announcement given claiming that the character had gone to work at the BBC canteen, although Otis made appearances on other CBBC shows including Insides Out
Insides Out
Insides Out is a children's television game show. Its theme was the human body, and involved games that included body parts. A total of thirty episodes were made over two series, lasting from 15 September 1999 to 22 December 2000. It was presented by Mark Speight and Marsali Stewart, with...
and Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking was a BBC Saturday morning children's magazine programme, running from 1993 to 2001. The fourth in a succession of Saturday morning shows, it was the replacement for Going Live!, and took many of its features from it, such as phone-ins, games, comedy, competitions and the showing of...
and Clever Creatures until 2001. Otis was replaced by another puppet called Emlin the Gremlin, who proved to be short-lived.
On 28 December 2007, Otis reappeared on a special 'puppet' edition of The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link is a television game show which first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and will end its run in 2012 when its host Anne Robinson ends her contract. The original British version of the show airs around the world on BBC Entertainment...
for the BBC. However he was voted off in the second round.
In a 2009 interview BBC Presenter Kirsten O'Brien revealed that she has the Otis The Aardvark Puppet and once used it unsuccessfully to impress a date.
On 1 April 2010, Otis appeared on the ITV2 show Celebrity Juice
Celebrity Juice
Celebrity Juice is a British television comedy panel game show on ITV2 that has been airing since 24 September, 2008. The show is presented by Keith Lemon, with regular captains Holly Willoughby and Fearne Cotton, alongside regular panellist Rufus Hound...
.
Chapman's other characters include "Scratch" in Cbeebies show Nuzzle and Scratch, Vinnie The Ferret for CBBC's Xchange,Matt Lucas' Singing Potatoes from Shooting Stars, Tiny the Giant Hamster from The Saturday Show and Tiny and Mr Duk's Huge show,Riff the dog from Carrie and David's Popshop, Windy the rat from 'Space Pirates' and most recently Guppy the Elephant in the feature film 'My Last Five Girlfriends'