Knightmare.com

Sad to see a new poll of the best 50 kids TV shows in this week's Radio Times doesn't actually include the best kids TV show of all time.

Finders Keepers is in there but no Knightmare. Seriously?!

Panel of experts indeed...

Yes, I was most surprised at this and disappointed.

Don't get me wrong, there are some wonderful shows in the list and quite a few favourites of mine (Postman Pat, Rainbow, Motormouth, Press Gang, The Tomorrow People) but there were also some shocking omissions.

No Thomas The Tank Engine?

No Mr. Men?

No Thunderbirds or Captain Scarlet?

But equally, if not more shocking was the exclusion of Knightmare!

Had they not even seen Knightmare, or even have an awareness of how groundbreaking it was, and in many ways still is?

But as with any 'Best Of' list they are often designed to spark debate as much as anything else, so I will try not to pull too much of my hair out.

Knightmare will always be Knumber 1 in my Spellbook! :-)

Here's the top 50 (as published online by Radio Times):

1. Blue Peter, 1958-present, BBC 31 in The 100 Greatest Kids' TV Shows
2. Grange Hill, 1978-2008, BBC 5 [1 in the Classic KidsTV 50 Greatest Kids' TV Shows]
3. Newsround, 1972-present, BBC 59
4. Tiswas, 1974-1982, ITV 49 [13]
5. Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, 1976-1982, BBC 45 [47]
6. Vision On, 1964-1976, BBC 78
7. Live & Kicking, 1993-2001, BBC
8. Going Live! 1987-1993, BBC [45]
9. Play School, 1964-1988, BBC 42
10. Crackerjack, 1955-1984, BBC 39 [27]
11. Play Away, 1971-1984, BBC
12. Pingu, 1986-2006, BBC
13. Rentaghost, 1976-1984, BBC 12 [10]
14. SM:TV, 1998-2003, back this year, ITV 27
15. Animal Magic, 1962-1983, BBC 57
16. Byker Grove, 1989-2006, BBC 41 [8]
17. Jackanory, 1965-1996, BBC 63
18. The Box Of Delights, 1984, BBC [31]
19. How, 1966-1981, ITV 70
20. The Borrowers, 1992, BBC
21. Finders Keepers, 1991–2006, ITV
22. Record Breakers, 1972–2001, BBC 65
23. Bagpuss, 1974, BBC 4 [7]
24. Dick & Dom In Da Bungalow, 2002–2006, BBC
25. Horrible Histories, 2009-present, BBC
26. Postman Pat, 1981–present, BBC 23 [50]
27. Adventures Of Parsley, 1970-71, BBC
28. Press Gang, 1989-93, ITV 47
29. Flower Pot Men/Bill And Ben, Various years, BBC 55
30. Rainbow, 1972-1997, ITV 7 [16]
31. Junior Showtime, 1969-1974, ITV 99
32. The Really Wild Show, 1986–2006,      returning 2018, BBC
33. Get Your Own Back, 1991–2004, BBC
34. Wacaday, 1985–1992, TV-am, ITV
35. Why Don’t You? 1973–1995, BBC 43
36. Roger And The Rottentrolls, 1996–2000, ITV
37. Chorlton And The Wheelies, 1976–1979, ITV 34 [23]
38. Chucklevision, 1987–2009, BBC
39. Hangar 17, 1992–1994, BBC
40. Teletubbies, 1997–2001, 2015–     present, BBC 90
41. The Tomorrow People, 1973-79,  1992-95, ITV 46
42. Take Hart, 1977-83, BBC
43. Here Come The Double Deckers!1971, BBC 66
44. The Saga Of Noggin The Nog, 1959–1965, 1979–1980, BBC 72
45. Motormouth, 1988-1992, ITV
46. Mr Benn, 1971-1972, BBC 6 [6]
47. The Queen’s Nose, 1995-2003, BBC
48. Clapperboard, 1972-1982, ITV
49. Clangers, 1969-1974, 2015-present, BBC 13 [33]
50. Peppa Pig, 2004-present Channel 5,   Channel 5/Nick Jr

And below are those who were polled (as published online by Radio Times): '30 experts' who each got to make five nominations. Even if you count the Chuckle Brothers and Dick & Dom as one person each, it's still more than 30:

Noel Edmonds, Floella Benjamin, Frank Skinner, Russell T Davies, David Walliams, Edwards Barnes, Lenny Henry, Peter Purves, Phillip Schofield, Chuckle Brothers, Biddy Baxter, Dick & Dom, Chris Packham, Sally James, Clive Doig, Steve Backshall, Pat Sharp, Timmy Mallett, Michaela Strachan, Richard Marson, Ayo Akinwolere, Malorie Blackman, Neil Buchanan, Ade Adepitan, Jake Humphrey, Iain Stirling, Justin Johnson, Andi Peters, Janet Ellis, Barney Harwood, Konnie Huq, Joe Goodwin and Ewan Vinnicombe.

Interesting how so many of the experts have shows which they created or hosted in the list.

Pat Sharp's in the panel and Fun House isn't on the list?

Outrageous!!

I wonder if a professional rivalry exists in the likes of Sharpe and Buchanan. In many respects Knightmare was seen as a competitor (<whispers> Buchanan!)

Or alternatively, maybe they didn’t make the cut. Knightmare could have had several votes and fallen short.

I've edited my previous post to show where each show came in Channel 4's The 100 Greatest Kids' TV Shows (2001), if anywhere. The shows were selected by Channel 4 but the public voted for them; Knightmare beat Blue Peter by 15 places.

Pat Sharp doesn't seem the type to hold or provoke any rivalries. He's had a long career in radio and TV and would surely have made more friends than enemies. Fun House's reputation in media circles could have taken a knock last year with the failed crowdfunding campaign.

Perhaps. On the other hand, he didn't hesitate to unfairly use his position to promote funhouse in previous polls that were open to the public voting.

Quite a disparity between the two polls.

What's particicurly irking on this is that by opting for 'experts' they have completely ignored the public consensus on previous polls of this nature even those hosted by themselves in previous years. As the public are the ultimate arbiters of success or failure of a show on transmission I'd be more steered to their opinion.

https://www.knightmare.com/fanzone/arti ... -show.html

Nuff said.

Agreed.

You can see through the PR behind this one. They know that the nostalgia of "children's TV shows" works. So they keep doing the same poll over and over again. This year's particular spin is using a bunch of "experts" (who apparently have several links with Blue Peter).

I've edited my earlier post once more to include results from Classic KidsTV's 50 Greatest Kids' TV Shows vote, released a couple of days ago. Whereas Radio Times had 30 pre-selected voters with five nominations each, Classic KidsTV was open to all Twitter users and invited 10 nominations each. The order of each Top 10 had a bearing on the results but it's not clear how.

Grange Hill was Number 1 with 54 votes. Knightmare was in second place. Given how much longer Grange Hill ran for, I can live with this, even if the escapist value of a series about school was questionable.

It's absurd that Knightmare isn't included in the initial list, can only imagine whoever put together the shows presented had never seen an episode of our great programme. Newsround was a strange choice for number 3, can remember it from the 1980s with John Craven, but it's (or was) an information program, not so much a show for children ?

Furthermore no room for inclusion programmes like Button Moon, The Flumps or Moomins (that I can recall from an earlier age) Relief that Rainbow was in it, but at position 30 ? , Yes it's that kind of list.