Fraggle Rock

FRAGGLE ROCK
Made by: Jim Henson Productions
Shown on: ITV
Years shown: 1982-4
Theme tune: “Dance your cares away/Worries for another day/Let the music play/Down at Fraggle Rock.”

Fraggle Rock filled the Saturday morning slot, and was a surprise hit for ITV. It was set in a remote lighthouse, where the solitary lighthouse keeper, Fulton MacKay (later, John Gordon Sinclair), thought he was going mad because he kept seeing strange furry creatures on his island. But he wasn’t crazy, and only his dog, Sprocket, actually knew of the creatures’ existence. Their names were Wembley, Gobo, Boober and Travelling Mat, offspring of the Jim Henson Company, and they lived in a hole in the lighthouse, where there was also a large, talking compost heap called Marjorie, complete with rats. The Fraggles were also the prey of three giant Gorgs, who always hoped they might get a tasty Fraggle fry-up one day. That was about it, really. There were cartoons and magazine features in between, but I was never sure why Fraggle Rock was so immensely popular (there was even a rude version of the theme circulating the nation’s schools) - I think perhaps I might have thought the whole set-up was a bit frightening for my delicate disposition.

SQUARE EYES RATING: 3/10

(Thanks to www.cinematical.com for the borrowed pic)