The Wombles - Series 1 Episode 8 Bungo's Birthday Party The Wombles are fictional pointy-nosed, furry creatures that live in burrows, where they aim to help the environment by collecting and recycling rubbish in creative ways. Wombles were created by author Elisabeth Beresford, and originally appeared in a series of children's novels from 1968.[1] Although Wombles supposedly live in every country in the world, Beresford's stories are concerned with the lives of the inhabitants of the burrow on Wimbledon Common in London England Great Uncle Bulgaria -- the oldest and wisest of the Wimbledon Wombles and their leader. He is based on Beresford's father-in-law and named after the country.[2] He terrifies the younger Wombles with his stern manner (and particularly his habit of glaring at them through two pairs of spectacles) but is actually very kind. Tobermory -- an engineer, based on Beresford's brother, a skilled inventor, and named after the capital of the Isle of Mull, in the Scottish Inner Hebrides islands. He has a gruff and surly manner but like Bulgaria (with whom he has been friends for many years) he has a very kindly heart. Orinoco -- a shirker who loved sleep and food, styled on Beresford's teenage son and named after the River Orinoco in South America. Though slothful by nature, Orinoco is capable of some surprising acts of moral and physical courage. Bungo -- over-enthusiastic and bossy, named after Bungo Province in Japan. He is Orinoco's best friend. Tomsk -- an athletic Womble with a rather low IQ, named after Tomsk in Russia. He is extremely keen on golf. Wellington -- scientifically inclined, but very insecure and absent-minded. Named after Beresford's nephew's school: Wellington School, Somerset. Madame Cholet -- a prim and proper female Womble. The Womble cook, styled on Beresford's mother and named after the town of Cholet in France. She has a very noticeable French accent. Miss Adelaide -- schoolmistress, named after the city of Adelaide in Australia. Alderney -- Madame Cholet's assistant, named after Alderney in the Channel Islands where Beresford lived towards the end of her life. She appeared in the early books, but did not make it into the first TV series. Her character was revived in the second TV series, when many viewers wrongly assumed she was a new character. Later character names for the film Wombling Free and second Wombles TV series developed in the same manner: Cousin Cairngorm McWomble the Terrible -- named after the Cairngorms, a mountain range in Scotland. He was introduced in the second book (The Wandering Wombles) as a Highland Womble clan chief. He appeared in the TV series when he visited the Wimbledon burrow. He was usually known simply as McWomble. Shansi -- often paired with Alderney, as Bungo was with Orinoco, named after a Shanxi province in China. Stepney -- East Ender with dreadlocks, who got his name from the Stepney area in London's East End where he came from. Obidos -- named after Óbidos, Pará in Brazil. Snodgrass - the acting accountant of the wombles, known for her foul smell and habit of wagging her tail when she is lying. In the first book, Bungo is the youngest and least experienced of the team, and the story is mostly viewed through his eyes. Later Wellington (who was not introduced until the second book) took over the role of "new boy". Alderney and Adelaide appeared in the earlier books but were not included in the original 1970s TV series. Alderney was re-introduced in the later TV shows produced in the 1990s (the Channel Island of Alderney was actually Elisabeth Beresford's home at the time), along with Stepney (who appeared in none of the earlier versions).

• published: 01 Sep 2013
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