The former BBC broadcaster Max Robertson, 94, has died in his home island of
Guernsey.

He presented the television antiques programme Going for a Song for 13 years,
but he will be best remembered for his Wimbledon tennis commentaries.

He was born in Dacca, Bengal but moved to England when he was seven years old,
joining the BBC in 1946 after serving in the Army during WWII.

He retired in 1986 and moved to the Channel Islands shortly after.

He was well-known for his commentary on the titanic 1980 men's singles final
between Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe.

Tennis was his first love, he was a regular at Wimbledon, but covered many
sports including being the first reporter at the 1948 Winter Olympics in
Switzerland.

In 1953 Robertson became the host of Panorama, before moving to present the
antiques programme Going for a Song with Arthur Negus.

He was also a commentator at major news events like the funeral of King George
VI in 1952 and the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II a year later.

He was an author and poet, producing several books including the definitive
guide to Wimbledon 1877-1977 and The Ballad of Worple Road, a book of poetry
with a forward by Peter Ustinov.

He was previously married to the children's author and creator of the Wombles,
Elizabeth Beresford.

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "kerryslade" <kerryslade@...> wrote:
>
> I have a cast bronze womble mould does anyone heard of one and know how much
its worth  ?
>

It sounds like the mould for a Womble toy, but do you have any idea what toy or
the name of the manufacturer?

If the mould were from the Corgi company for instance, then Corgi collectors
would be interested as Corgi are very collectible. A mould from a cheap Hong
Kong manufacturer would have less appeal.

The Womble character may make a difference to its value to Womble collectors.
Great Uncle Bulgaria and Orinoco are more popular than say Tomsk.

I have a cast bronze womble mould does anyone heard of one and know how much its
worth  ?

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "tonyclarkuk" <tonyclarkuk@...> wrote:
>
>
>
> The original 1970s TV series only featured 8 characters (Bulgaria, Tobermory,
Mdm Cholet, Orinoco, Bungo, Wellington, Tomsk and Cairngorm MacWomble).
> Some of those puppets were dressed up as other charcters from the original
books most likely to be used, as they were, on merchandise (the Annuals and
puzzles).
> Given the time these photos first appeared, it would seem to be after the
second series was finished. If you look carefully at the "other" characters (you
mention Shansi and Alderney) they are the regular puppets dressed up.
> I don't have the photos in front of my as I type, but from memory, Bungo was
dressed as Cousin Yellowstone and Wellington dressed as Cousin Botany. I think
Orinoco was dressed as Alderny and Madame Cholet dressed as their Great Aunt.
> The illustrations of some of those characters in the Annuals are based on
those re-dressed puppets if I remember correctly.
>
> The Heads/faces of those early puppets each had their own shape (unlike the
later puppets that were all based on the same design), so you may be able to
match the face shape and hair style of the re-dressed puppets in those photos to
their original owner. I think you can see the marks where Wellington's glasses
rested on his nose in the photo of the puppet re-dressed as Cousin Botany in one
of the photos on a puzzle.
>
> TC
>


Ah, so they weren't new puppets, but simply redressed versions of current
puppets. Quite intresting, now that I know this little tidbit of information

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "raccoonfan" <raccoonfan@...> wrote:
>
> Hello. Just noticed that on one of the annual covers, there's an
early-designed Shansi puppet. As far as I know, Shansi wasn't introduced to the
screen until the newer TV series.
>
> Another thing I noticed is that, on a jigsaw, there's also an Alderny puppet
in the same early design.
>
> Just want some clarification. Were the puppets made for the annuals and
jigsaws, or did they appear once on the original TV show, or at least, in the
specials 'World Wombling Day' and 'The Wandering Wombles'?
>


The original 1970s TV series only featured 8 characters (Bulgaria, Tobermory,
Mdm Cholet, Orinoco, Bungo, Wellington, Tomsk and Cairngorm MacWomble).
Some of those puppets were dressed up as other charcters from the original books
most likely to be used, as they were, on merchandise (the Annuals and puzzles).
Given the time these photos first appeared, it would seem to be after the second
series was finished. If you look carefully at the "other" characters (you
mention Shansi and Alderney) they are the regular puppets dressed up.
I don't have the photos in front of my as I type, but from memory, Bungo was
dressed as Cousin Yellowstone and Wellington dressed as Cousin Botany. I think
Orinoco was dressed as Alderny and Madame Cholet dressed as their Great Aunt.
The illustrations of some of those characters in the Annuals are based on those
re-dressed puppets if I remember correctly.

The Heads/faces of those early puppets each had their own shape (unlike the
later puppets that were all based on the same design), so you may be able to
match the face shape and hair style of the re-dressed puppets in those photos to
their original owner. I think you can see the marks where Wellington's glasses
rested on his nose in the photo of the puppet re-dressed as Cousin Botany in one
of the photos on a puzzle.

TC

Hello. Just noticed that on one of the annual covers, there's an early-designed
Shansi puppet. As far as I know, Shansi wasn't introduced to the screen until
the newer TV series.

Another thing I noticed is that, on a jigsaw, there's also an Alderny puppet in
the same early design.

Just want some clarification. Were the puppets made for the annuals and jigsaws,
or did they appear once on the original TV show, or at least, in the specials
'World Wombling Day' and 'The Wandering Wombles'?

That's great to hear Bob, I guess a letter to the Island with her name on
would stand a good chance of getting to her then!
If anyone might happen to have a phone number that would be gratefully
recieved (as we are short on time, the American Freecycle Network has pushed
us to act quickly).

Thank you so much for the help!

Tom

On Thu, Sep 10, 2009 at 8:41 PM, winterchild <winterchild@...> wrote:

>
>
> Elisabeth Beresford would be the one to approach, I have spoken to her
> before in regards to a Wombles Fan club we were going to set up before
> I left England. She lives on Alderney in the Channel Islands, and it
> being so tiny she shouldn't be hard to find if you mail her a letter.
> I have been living in NZ a while now and have lost her contact details
> but sge is very approachable.
>
> Good luck..nice idea...
>
> Bob
>
>
>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Elisabeth Beresford would be the one to approach, I have spoken to her
before in regards to a Wombles Fan club we were going to set up before
I left England. She lives on Alderney in the Channel Islands, and it
being so tiny she shouldn't be hard to find if you mail her a letter.
I have been living in NZ a while now and have lost her contact details
but sge is very approachable.

Good luck..nice idea...

Bob

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "random.cake" <redders@...> wrote:
>
> Hi,
>
> Is anyone aware who owns the Wombles trademark these days?
>
> I am a Group Owner on a Freecycle group, we're currently facing a split from
the Global Freecycle Network as a result of a complete lack respect for UK base
volunteers, so we're looking for a new name and I and a few others feel that a
Wombles theme would be superb, if we can do it legitimately!
>
> Thanks for reading,
>
> Tom
>

Hi Tom,

the TV episodes are managed by The Cookie Jar Company (a Canadian company) you
may be able to find out from them...

http://www.thecookiejarcompany.com/cj_shows_wombles.php

... the Womble name would still be the copyright of writer Elisabeth Beresford,
so you may have to approach her agent or publishers.

Tony Clark.

Hi,

Is anyone aware who owns the Wombles trademark these days?

I am a Group Owner on a Freecycle group, we're currently facing a split from the
Global Freecycle Network as a result of a complete lack respect for UK base
volunteers, so we're looking for a new name and I and a few others feel that a
Wombles theme would be superb, if we can do it legitimately!

Thanks for reading,

Tom

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "Neil Matthews" <namtravel@...> wrote:
>
> Hello everyone,
>
> I'm the proud owner of a (singing) Orinoco, a Great Uncle Bulgaria and a
Bungo.  Can anyone advise on how and where I can obtain reasonably small,
reasonably priced:
>
> Wellington
> Tomsk
> Madame Cholet
>
> Thanks
>
> Neil
> namtravel@...
>

Just a recent convert here, but here are a few suggestions.

Perhaps you can try looking on Amazon and see if anyone has them used. Failing
that, try looking on eBay. I've seen plenty on there, some of them even buy now.

Outside the internet, the only thing I can think of is looking in Car Boot sales
or charity shops.

I hope the advice I've given you can help you in some way. And if that isn't
much advice, I'm sure the rest of the members here can help you.

Hello everyone,

I'm the proud owner of a (singing) Orinoco, a Great Uncle Bulgaria and a Bungo. 
Can anyone advise on how and where I can obtain reasonably small, reasonably
priced:

Wellington
Tomsk
Madame Cholet

Thanks

Neil
namtravel@...

> > RIGHT TO THE BOTTOM. IT SAYS 2011!! I'M EXTATIC
>
> Don't be so quick to judge. I checked other sources and couldn't find
heads nor tail of this mysterious Series 5 that popped up on Wikipedia.
Any others managed to pick up a source on this?
>


Ah, Wikipedia, the font of all knowledge.
Likewise, I haven't seen any announcement elsewhere either.   It may
have been in the pipeline and suffered a stumbling block (funding
maybe), it happens very often with TV programmes. Such things are
announced to raise interest (merchandise, and/or co-production deals).
Tony Clark.



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "womblejonny" <newcastlerules@...> wrote:
>
> OMG!! I THINK THEY'RE MAKING NEW WOMBLES EPISODES:
> GO TO  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wombles_(TV_series)
> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wombles_%28TV_series%29>  AND SCROLL
> RIGHT TO THE BOTTOM. IT SAYS 2011!! I'M EXTATIC


Don't be so quick to judge. I checked other sources and couldn't find heads nor
tail of this mysterious Series 5 that popped up on Wikipedia. Any others managed
to pick up a source on this?

Hi folks

The Wombles will be making a special visit to Ness Botanic Gardens in Cheshire
on Sunday 7 June.

The Green Garden Festival weekend is combined with the 15th anniversary of World
Environment Day (5 June). This year's theme is 'Your planet needs you - UNite to
combat climate change'.

More about Ness Gardens: http://www.nessgardens.org.uk/
More about World Environment Day: http://www.unep.org/wed/

Tara (http://www.tidybag.co.uk/)

Hi,

I've just bought a copy of 'The Very Best Of The Wombles' and am really pleased
with it, however I have seen another version with a different cover and wondered
if there were any other difference. My version is the same as the one on the
tidybag website http://www.tidybag.co.uk/images/cd-very-best-of-the-wombles.jpg
and has no liner notes but I have seen another version with a slightly different
title on a beige banner. Does anyone know if the title graphics are the only
difference?

Thanks,
Richard

I know this refers to a message long posted, but I have only just joined the
group.

I was recently in the garden centre in West Vale,nr Elland in West Yorkshire and
I bought 4 figures there. hence the renewed interest in the wombles

Hi folks

For people in the London area: the Wombling Free film is on tomorrow morning
(Saturday, 18 April) at the Kids' Club at the Electric Cinema in Portobello
Road.

http://www.electriccinema.co.uk/kids.php

Children must be accompanied by an adult; it doesn't say whether adults must be
accompanied by a child...

Tara (http://www.tidybag.co.uk/)

Does anyone have the songs "The Womble Bashers" and "Womble Bashers Wock" as
performed by The Bashers? I'd love to buy the single, but I can't find it
anywhere.

Anyone have a spare copy of the single? MP3s? Anything?

OMG!! I THINK THEY'RE MAKING NEW WOMBLES EPISODES:
GO TO  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wombles_(TV_series)
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wombles_%28TV_series%29>  AND SCROLL
RIGHT TO THE BOTTOM. IT SAYS 2011!! I'M EXTATIC



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

News from the Redditch Advertiser:

WOMBLES, stilt walkers and dragons will be in Redditch to help
celebrate the re-launch of the town's new look open air market.

Following major improvement work, the Redditch Council-run market has
been moved back to its permanent home in Alcester Street with new
stalls, skirts, electrical points and lighting.

And to mark its return, the council has organised events and
activities running until Saturday, November 1 to keep shoppers
entertained.

Young market visitors will be able to take part in a colouring
competition with The Wombles or take a ride on the fun fair.

There will also be street entertainers, face painters and a chance to
find out more about Redditch's different charities.

At noon on Saturday, November 1, Redditch's mayor, Councillor Jack
Field, will unveil the new market plaque and 102 Touch Radio will be
there to broadcast a live show from 10am-1pm.

http://www.redditchadvertiser.co.uk/news/3781603.Entertainment_for_all_at_market\
_re_launch/

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "askew.christopher"
<askew.christopher@...> wrote:

> I have recently learnt that B&Q sold a set of 4 Womble garden figures
> in 2005. They were made by a company called Slotz Ltd; does anyone
> know where i could get my hands on these, or at least one. So far my
> search has been fruitless, even Ebay has let me down!!


Not sure if these are the ones sold in B&Q...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Great-Uncle-Bulgaria-Madame-Cholet-Womble-Plant-
Stick_W0QQitemZ270281549368QQcmdZViewItem?
hash=item270281549368&_trkparms=72%3A1301%7C39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%
7C240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14


Tony C.

Hey Guys

I have recently learnt that B&Q sold a set of 4 Womble garden figures
in 2005. They were made by a company called Slotz Ltd; does anyone
know where i could get my hands on these, or at least one. So far my
search has been fruitless, even Ebay has let me down!!

Cheers

Chris

Hi fellow members
Just to let you all know that currently on sale on ebay.co.uk are 2 x Peter
Fagan Colourbox Tobermory & Bungo pieces. Item number: 160283007254.
These peices were made as "The Clock" piece and although these do not have the
clocks intact, they are still incredibly rare to find. I searched for over 2
years before I found my peice to complete the Colourbox set. As they are on a
Buy it Now at £4.99 and £2.40 p&p these are certainly worth taking a look at.
Photo of item is attached.
Regards
djo5555




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

That's fine and dandy
but, I live in the US
and The Wombles are in obscurity here
 
Hence why i'm asking for mp3s of the 2 songs i noted

--- On Fri, 9/12/08, tarastockford <yahoo@...> wrote:

From: tarastockford <yahoo@...>
Subject: [Wombles] Re: request
To: Wombles@yahoogroups.com
Date: Friday, September 12, 2008, 9:03 AM






Hi Jimmy

Wombling White Tie And Tails is on 'The Best Wombles Album So Far', so
it's available to download from various services including iTunes,
Napster and 7digital.com (for around 79p or 89p per track).

Wombling In The Rain is on 'The Wombles Collection', but I don't know
if there's anywhere to download it legally, so you would have to get
hold of the CD (which also contains Wombling White Tie And Tails).

Cheers

Tara

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups .com, "Jimmy McKee"
<cyberfoxdigitalfur ry@...> wrote:
>
> does anybody have the mp3s of these songs
> "Wombling White Tie and Tails"
> "Wombling in the Rain"
>
> If anybody give me mp3s of these tunes (in high quality as possible) i
> would appreciate it
>


















[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hi Jimmy

Wombling White Tie And Tails is on 'The Best Wombles Album So Far', so
it's available to download from various services including iTunes,
Napster and 7digital.com (for around 79p or 89p per track).

Wombling In The Rain is on 'The Wombles Collection', but I don't know
if there's anywhere to download it legally, so you would have to get
hold of the CD (which also contains Wombling White Tie And Tails).

Cheers

Tara


--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "Jimmy McKee"
<cyberfoxdigitalfurry@...> wrote:
>
> does anybody have the mp3s of these songs
> "Wombling White Tie and Tails"
> "Wombling in the Rain"
>
> If anybody give me mp3s of these tunes (in high quality as possible) i
> would appreciate it
>

does anybody have the mp3s of these songs
"Wombling White Tie and Tails"
"Wombling in the Rain"

If anybody give me mp3s of these tunes (in high quality as possible) i
would appreciate it

--- In Wombles@yahoogroups.com, "tarastockford" <yahoo@...> wrote:

> Tonight's episode of Panorama (Monday, 8:30pm, BBC1) is about litter
and fly-tipping, with the author Bill Bryson.

> So look out for a potential Wombles appearance in this programme!


There are couple of photos of Bill with The Wombles on the BBC Picture
Publicity web site, and one on the Panorama homepage...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/default.stm

...so they may well feature at some point.

Tony C.

Hi folks

Tonight's episode of Panorama (Monday, 8:30pm, BBC1) is about litter
and fly-tipping, with the author Bill Bryson.

Bill Bryson is the president of the Campaign to Protect Rural England
(CPRE), and earlier this year the Wombles joined him to launch the
Stop the Drop campaign:

http://www.cpre.org.uk/campaigns/stop-the-drop/litter-and-fly-tipping

http://www.cpre.org.uk/campaigns/stop-the-drop/litter-and-fly-tipping/litter-pho\
to-gallery/litter-photo-gallery-launch-01

So look out for a potential Wombles appearance in this programme!

Tara

The blurb on the inside of the first book states that the Wombles
are "a bit like teddy bears to look at", and, indeed, that was how
the uillustrations in the first editions of The Wombles and The
Wandering Wombles portrayed them. Their appearance was changed for
the TV series to the familiar long pointy nosed creatures, at the
behest of Monica Sims, who ran BBC Children's programming at the time
the series was in production. She rejected several of Ivor Wood's
designs until he came up with one that she thought looked like a
Womble should look like. (This information came to light in a recent
article on Elisabeth Beresford so you can google it.)

I've always thought they were related to raccoons (procyon lotor)
because of the long nose and plump body - though they lack the bushy
tail and the "mask" on the face. Anyone who has had to deal with
raccoons knows they are very dextrous and very crafty. "Utterly
devious" in other words (as  in the Wombling Song (Full Version)).
Their human-like hands have been known to open the latches on
camper's coolers. Plus raccoons have a very large variety and range
of vocalisations, which would come in handy should they attempt to
sing. And both are attracted to rubbish- but with different purposes
and outcomes.

Raccoons are related to panda bears and pandas aren't really bears in
a strict taxonomic sense so these two seem the best related family of
creatures into which one would put a womble. That gives you the
distinctness of a teddy bear while allowing for variation such as a
long nose. But then that is almost like saying that a gibbon is on
the same family tree as a gorilla and a chimpanzee. And Great Uncle
Bulgaria would be rather annoyed at the suggestion, insisting that
Wombles are Wombles as a genus unto themselves and not just a species
or sub-species of another genus.

So a full taxonomic description might looks as follows:
Kingdom: Animalia (Animals)
Phylum: Cordata (Cordates  i.e. have spinal cord)
Sub Phylum: Vertebrata (have backbone)
Class: Mammalia (Mammals)
Order: Carnivora (Carnivore - have teeth and jaws suited to eating
meat)
Sub Order: Caniformia (body shape possibly, as canis is latin for dog)
Family: Procyonidae
Genus: Procyon
Species: Womblus (assumed Latin for Womble)
Sub Species: Wimbledonium (assumed Latin for Wimbledon)

And don't forget that there are water wombles ("Nessie") and giant
wombles (yeti, sasquatch, bigfoot?)!

Now some are going to take objection at the carnivore designation as
Wombles are vegetarian but placing them in the herbivore order really
complicates things. I like to think they are carnivores who have
chosen NOT to eat meat, preferring to respect the lives of their
fellow animals. Note that Wombles also cook their food - which would
certainly render vegetable matter more digestable.

If you insist on herbivore as a designation it practically eliminates
the possibility of well developed dextrous paws and simple digestive
systems.

That leaves these possibilities:
Rodentia (rodents)
Lagomorphs (rabbits)
Opossums
Hedgehogs
Wombats

Wombles are not rodents, despite popular misconception. Rodents have
prominent front teeth and must gnaw consistently as their teeth keep
growing. You couldn't furnish a burrow without gnawing at the
furniture or roof supports, which defeats the purpose of a burrow in
the first place.

Rabbits, while burrowing animals, also have the ever-growing teeth
problem. Plus they need to eat their meals twice to fully digest
them, which isn't very appealing to a creature that describes itself
as "tidy and clean".

Opossums are almost worth consideration since they do look a bit like
raccoons. But then there's the pink nose, the ratty tail, and the
fact they don't live in burrows.

Hedgehogs, on the other hand, appear more promising and there is a
blond species found almost exclusively on Alderney - coinicidently
the place where Elisabeth Beresford retired to. But Wombles aren't
spiny by any means, nor are they solitary creatures which hedgehogs
tend to be.

  And I think the comparison with wombats is insulting - wombats have
very little intelligence whereas Wombles are very intelligent - aside
from one or two silly young Wombles we won't mention here. : )


Frederick


> --- On Wed, 18/6/08, charlie_steff <charliesteff@...> wrote:
>
> From: charlie_steff <charliesteff@...>
> Subject: [Wombles] what animal are the wombles if any
> To: Wombles@yahoogroups.com
> Date: Wednesday, 18 June, 2008, 7:24 PM
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Well i think the Subject says it all but:
>
> what animal are the wombles if any as me and a friend have a bet
going
> and i need to win....Really i do need to win!!!
>
> Any help would be great ;)
>
> cheers
>
> charlie
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>       __________________________________________________________
> Sent from Yahoo! Mail.
> A Smarter Email http://uk.docs.yahoo.com/nowyoucan.html
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>