The Wombles (1973)
The Wombles is a stop motion animated British television series made in 1973–1975. After the first Wombles book, published in 1968, was featured on the BBC children's television programme Jackanory, the BBC commissioned producer FilmFair to create a television series of the books. The series was produced by Graham Clutterbuck and directed by Ivor Wood using stop-motion. The characters were all voiced by actor Bernard Cribbins. Sets and model making were by Barry Leith. Two series of 30 five minute episodes were produced, with the first series airing in 1973, animated by Ivor Wood, and the second in 1975, animated by Barry Leith. In all, sixty episodes were produced. The original television series was regularly screened for many years. After FilmFair was acquired by the Canadian company Cinar Films in 1996, a new series of episodes was created, with a number of new Womble characters. In the UK, the series was purchased by ITV.
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Episode 1 - Orinoco & The Big Black Umbrella
Release Date: 1973-02-05On any day, the Womble Orinoco is swept by the wind.
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Episode 2 - The Rocking Chair
Release Date: 1973-02-06After Orinoco gets stuck in a tire, the Wombles realise they can use it to fix Great Uncle Bulgaria's chair.
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Episode 3 - A Sticky Ending (or A Sticky End)
Release Date: 1973-02-07The Wombles have a leaking ceiling and come up with an inventive way of fixing it.
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Episode 4 - Great Uncle Bulgaria's Keep Fit Lesson
Release Date: 1973-02-09After the Wombles find a football, Great Uncle Bulgaria becomes inspired to start a new "keep fit" regime.
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Episode 5 - A Safe Place
Release Date: 1973-02-12A safe place must be found for a valuable Womble history book.
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Episode 6 - Peep-Peep-Peep
Release Date: 1973-02-13Great Uncle Bulgaria wants the Wombles to keep in touch with each other while they're working, so Wellington invents, in the words of Orinoco, a "talking tin can"!
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Episode 7 - The Purple Paw Mystery
Release Date: 1973-02-14Great Uncle Bulgaria's fountain pen runs out of ink, so asks Tomsk to pay Tobermary a visit to collect some more. While there, Tobermary enlists the help of Tomsk in manufacturing the ink, but when he cuts corners he creates a mess around the entire burrow.
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Episode 8 - Bungo's Birthday Party
Release Date: 1973-02-16Bungo thinks that everyone forgot about his birthday, but he didn´t expect that everyone has a secret that Bungo doesn´t known.
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Episode 9 - The Invisible Womble
Release Date: 1973-02-19Orinoco thinks that if he turns invisible no one will interrupt his sleeping while he pretends that he is in work.
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Episode 10 - Orinoco Sees The Light
Release Date: 1973-02-20Wellington has planted some daffodil seeds and he is "awfully disappinted" when they don't grow. Orinoco suggests he plants light bulbs instead.
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Episode 11 - The Conkering Hero
Release Date: 1973-02-21The Wombles learn how to play conkers and how to count.
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Episode 12 - One Pair Of Feet
Release Date: 1973-02-23After a human being is spotted on the common, the Wombles rush back to their burrow. However, in the panic Wellington is left behind...
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Episode 13 - Tobermory On Television
Release Date: 1973-02-26Tobermory makes his own TV show for the Wombles.
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Episode 14 - Crossed Lines
Release Date: 1973-02-27Tobermory invents a new telephone system for everyone but the telephone lines are having problems and many conversations are heard by Tobermory.
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Episode 15 - Blow The Womble Down
Release Date: 1973-02-28The Wombles get blown about when they find a vacuum cleaner.
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Episode 16 - Madame Cholet Returns
Release Date: 1973-02-03Making cakes turns into a problematic situation.
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Episode 17 - Weighing In Time
Release Date: 1973-06-19Orinoco decides to put himself on a diet, because he thinks he's too fat.
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Episode 18 - Musical Wombles
Release Date: 1973-06-19The Wombles make music with tins and cans.
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Episode 19 - Wombles And Ladders
Release Date: 1973-06-20A ladder is adapted to Womble size
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Episode 20 - Orinoco And The Ghost
Release Date: 1973-06-21Orinoco thinks that there is a ghost in his house
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Episode 21 - A Game Of Golf
Release Date: 1973-06-22Golf balls sometimes travel in the wrong direction
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Episode 22 - North, South, East, West
Release Date: 1973-06-25Tobermory makes a machine that can predict the weather.
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Episode 23 - The Picnic
Release Date: 1973-06-26Orinoco shows us how to make a picnic basket that is not heavy to carry.
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Episode 24 - Games In The Snow
Release Date: 1973-06-27The Wombles have fun in the snow and, in the process, create a minor avalanche
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Episode 25 - The Snow Wombles
Release Date: 1973-06-28The annual competition to see who can make the best snowman.
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Episode 26 - What's Cooking?
Release Date: 1973-06-29A bird nests in the Wombles' ventilation shaft.
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Episode 27 - Spring Cleaning Time
Release Date: 1973-07-02When the Wombles have to spring clean, an elastic washing line leads to trouble.
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Episode 28 - Marrow Pie
Release Date: 1973-07-03The Wombles use too much fertiliser on a marrow, causing it to grow and grow.
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Episode 29 - The Cement Mixer
Release Date: 1973-07-05The Wombles get into trouble with some wet cement.
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Episode 30 - The Circus Comes To Wimbledon
Release Date: 1973-07-06When the circus to Wimbeldon Common, the Wombles put on their own act.