Picture Book
Encyclopedia
Picture Book was a BBC
TV series that first appeared in 1955. It was the Monday programme in the Watch with Mother
cycle and was created by Freda Lingstrom
. It was initially introduced by Patricia Driscoll
. The programme encouraged children to make things. Patricia Driscoll left in 1957 to play the part of Maid Marian
with Richard Greene
in the ITV
series, The Adventures of Robin Hood. She was later replaced by Vera McKechnie
.
Each Monday, either Driscoll or McKechnie would fetch out the Picture Book and open it at a relevant page. Sometimes this would be shown to the camera at a distance, making the pages' content often brief and obscure. Alternatively, the presenter would simply tell the children what the next item would be, sometimes with a still photograph as a continuity link. It was something different every week. The 1963 series featured throughout a puppet dachshund called Sausage, that could speak a few words and generally shared the presentation with Vera McKechnie.
The 1987 VHS
release by BBC Video featured an episode including Sausage the puppet dog, the Adventures of the Jolly Jack Tars (a group of sailors), making paper lanterns, growing mustard and cress and a regular cartoon of a little girl called "Busy Lizzie". A further episode was included on a Watch with Mother 2 video released in 1989. The main feature involved the creation of hills and a valley using a sand tray, which was a regular item featured in the programme. Both episodes were taken from the 1963 series, hosted by Vera McKechnie.
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...
TV series that first appeared in 1955. It was the Monday programme in the Watch with Mother
Watch with Mother
Watch With Mother was a cycle of children's programmes broadcast from 1952 by BBC Television which was created by Freda Lingstrom.It was the first BBC television programme specifically aimed at pre-school children, like its radio equivalent Listen with Mother that also started in 1950...
cycle and was created by Freda Lingstrom
Freda Lingstrom
Freda Violet Lingstrom OBE was a BBC Television producer and executive who was responsible for pioneering children's programmes in the early 1950s....
. It was initially introduced by Patricia Driscoll
Patricia Driscoll
Patricia Driscoll is an Irish actress, who has appeared on both television and in films. She was born in Cork, Ireland....
. The programme encouraged children to make things. Patricia Driscoll left in 1957 to play the part of Maid Marian
Maid Marian
Maid Marian is the wife of the legendary English outlaw Robin Hood. Stemming from another, older tradition, she became associated with Robin Hood only in the 16th century.-History:The earliest medieval Robin Hood stories gave him no female companion...
with Richard Greene
Richard Greene
Richard Marius Joseph Greene was a noted English film and television actor. A matinee idol who appeared in more than 40 films, he was perhaps best known for the lead role in the long-running British TV series The Adventures of Robin Hood, which ran for 143 episodes from 1955 to 1960.It has been...
in the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
series, The Adventures of Robin Hood. She was later replaced by Vera McKechnie
Vera McKechnie
Vera McKechnie was one of the first presenters at the start of BBC Children's Television in the early 1950s.-Television career:She started her career when the BBC restarted TV broadcasts after the Second World War. On BBC Children’s Television she presented the programme Andy Pandy where she told...
.
Each Monday, either Driscoll or McKechnie would fetch out the Picture Book and open it at a relevant page. Sometimes this would be shown to the camera at a distance, making the pages' content often brief and obscure. Alternatively, the presenter would simply tell the children what the next item would be, sometimes with a still photograph as a continuity link. It was something different every week. The 1963 series featured throughout a puppet dachshund called Sausage, that could speak a few words and generally shared the presentation with Vera McKechnie.
The 1987 VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
release by BBC Video featured an episode including Sausage the puppet dog, the Adventures of the Jolly Jack Tars (a group of sailors), making paper lanterns, growing mustard and cress and a regular cartoon of a little girl called "Busy Lizzie". A further episode was included on a Watch with Mother 2 video released in 1989. The main feature involved the creation of hills and a valley using a sand tray, which was a regular item featured in the programme. Both episodes were taken from the 1963 series, hosted by Vera McKechnie.