Here’s a cute 1980s animated show for kids we watched all the time. With its catchy intro music and stuff, it was really proper belting.
Raggy Dolls
The show ran from 1986 through to 1994 on ITV. Along with Knightmare and Dastardly and Mutley in their Flying Machines, it was a staple of our childhood.
Yorkshire Television (ee ba gum) took control of the production. Melvyn Jacobson created the series, but Neil Innes wrote and narrated everything.
Innes (1944-2019) famously collaborated with Monty Python and played in the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band. During that time he became mates with Keith Moon.
In the 1980s, his creative focus moved elsewhere. And he delighted many millions of kids with his work on this show.
The Raggy Doll’s intro music is particularly memorable. It’s burned into our memory and pops up quite a lot. Innes was also responsible for this.
Raggy dolls, scraggy dolls, dolls like you and me! Duh duh duh!
As for The Raggy Dolls plot, it’s about a bunch of imperfect toys at Mr Grimes’ Toy Factory. They’re dumped into the reject bin.
However, the human don’t realise the toys come to life. And they head off to have adventures and all that. Some of the characters include:
- Sad Sack
- Dotty
- Hi-Fi
- Lucy
- Back-to-Front
- Claude
- Princess
- Ragamuffin
They’re a ragtag bunch with design flaws. The obvious point being kids watching can get an appreciation that physical flaws are common and nothing to worry about.
That’s our take from it all these years on, anyway. It makes a good point, though, as we looked after our toys a little more carefully thanks to the show.
Especially the ones who were a bit torn and raggedy. Yeah?
There were nine series in total, with some 112 episodes. And it was one of our favourite kids shows around the early 1990s—we always had time for the Raggy Dolls.
We remember feeling a bit sorry for them with their imperfections. But admiring their fortitude to just get on with their lives.
That’s the power of watching good shows as a kid. They stick with you over the decades and, despite their simplistic innocence, they carry weighty themes.
