| Colargol | |
|---|---|
| Les Aventures de Colargol character | |
| First appearance | 1967 |
| Created by | Olga Pouchine |
| In-universe information | |
| Species | Bear |
| Gender | Male |
| Nationality | French |
Colargol is a fictional bear created by French writerOlga Pouchine in the 1950s.[1] Colargol first became famous through a series of children's recordings byPhilips Records in the 1960s. It is the story of a little bear who wants to sing and travel the world, but lacks the natural ability.[2][3]
Following the success of the Colargol records,Albert Barillé's animation companyProcidis started production onLes Aventures de Colargol, a stop-motion animated series starring Colargol. Barillé enlisted the Polish animatorTadeusz Wilkosz andSe-ma-for inŁódź to create the animation.[4]
Music for the series was performed byMireille, with orchestration byJean-Michel Defaye and lyrics byVictor Villien.
The series was produced from 1967 to 1974, comprising 53 thirteen-minute episodes which were broadcast in many European countries.Les Aventures de Colargol was renamedBarnaby when it was dubbed into English and broadcast in the UK by the BBC.[5] The series underwent another name change when a second dubbed version of the series was shown in Canada (and also in the UK and Ireland), this time asJeremy the Bear.
The series was also turned into three motion picture films in Poland:Colargol na Dzikim Zachodzie (Colargol in the Wild West) in 1976,Colargol zdobywcą kosmosu (Colargol, the Conqueror of Space) in 1978, andColargol i cudowna walizka (Colargol and the Magic Suitcase) in 1979.
Colargol is known by the following names in various countries including:
Barnaby is the British version of the Colargol animated series. Barnaby was first aired on the programmeWatch with Mother in April 1973 on the BBC.[6] The programme also featured the voice talents ofColin Jeavons (who narrated),Charles Collingwood,Gwenllian Owen andPercy Edwards. The English version (Barnaby) was produced byMichael Grafton-Robinson at Q3 London. Thirteen episodes were produced; an episode usually had at least two "Colargol" episodes spliced together.Barnaby was repeated on a number of occasions between 1973 and 1979.
The theme song ran as follows:
Barnaby the Bear's my name, never call me Jack or James,
I will sing my way to fame, Barnaby the Bear's my name.
Birds taught me to sing when they took me to their king
First I had to fly in the sky so high so high so high so high so high, so...
If you want to sing this way, think of what you want to say,
Add a tune and you will see just how easy it can be!
Treacle Pudding,Fish and Chips,Fizzy drinks andLiquorice.
Flowers, rivers, sand and sea, snowflakes and the stars are free.
La la la la la, la la la la la la la.
La la la la la, la la la la la la la la la la la la la, so...
Barnaby the Bear's my name, never call me Jack or James,
I will sing my way to fame, Barnaby the Bear's my name.''
| Title |
|---|
| In the Forest |
| The Bear Visits The King of the Birds and Learns to Sing |
| The Concert |
| The Circus |
| The Rescue |
| Barnaby Learns to Swim |
| Ship's Boy |
| Escape To Nordine |
| Return To The Forest |
| The Holiday |
| Welcome to Nordine |
| Crow's Wedding |
| Farewell Nordine |
The Circus was included on the VHSWatch With Mother: The Next Generation by the BBC in 1989
Jeremy the Bear is the Canadian version of Colargol, aTVOntario program which aired in Canada in the 1970s and 1980s. Unlike theBarnaby British version,Jeremy the Bear kept all of the episodes intact and properly in order.Jeremy was also shown in the Republic of Ireland and on a number ofITV regions in the UK, as well as being aired-available in several northern US states with access to Canadian television.
The rights for distribution were initially held by Procidis whilstVictor Villien held the rights for the previously created Colargol recordings (the material of which was used throughout the series to provide the musical score. Towards the late 1980s and onward, differences in opinions between Procidis and Villien, grew to the extent that the dispute went to court. Procidis lost the case and also the distribution rights. As various national television networks had licensed the show from Procidis, they subsequently lost the right to broadcast the show.
When the show was made, Se-Ma-For retained the distribution rights for Poland. However, Se-Ma-For was a state-run organization and the changed economic situation caused by the fall of the Eastern Bloc eventually led to its collapse. All the rights for material produced between 1947 and 1999 including the Polish version ofColargol were inherited by the Polish National Filmotheque.
Because of this, there are still some episodes ofColargol available on VHS and DVD in Poland, although as an indirect consequence of the court case, a complete collection has never been published.
