Torchy the Battery Boy

British children's television series (1959–1961)

Torchy the Battery Boy is a British television series, the second produced by AP Films and Gerry Anderson, running from 1959 to 1961. Directed by Anderson, it was a collaboration with author Roberta Leigh, with music scored by Barry Gray, art direction from Reg Hill and special effects by Derek Meddings. Based on string puppets, the series depicts the adventures of the eponymous boy doll, who has a battery inside him and a lamp in his head, and his master Mr Bumbledrop, voiced by actor Kenneth Connor, who also voiced a number of other characters. The second series of 26 episodes was produced by Associated British Pathé without the involvement of Anderson and AP Films. The show is one of several children's television programmes from the mid twentieth century to exist in its entirety, without loss or damage. Both series have been digitally remastered and released on DVD.

Torchy, the Battery Boy, was created by Mr Bumbledrop, a lonely old toymaker who spends the majority of his days tending to his garden, where the neighbourhood children play. Torchy has a lamp on his head, and when he pushes a button on his jacket and utters a mysterious phrase, the light illuminates and gives Torchy magical insights. Mr Bumbledrop also builds a cardboard rocket ship, which allows the boy to soar through the heavens. The brightest star in the night sky is Topsy Turvy Land, home of all of the abused and neglected toys that once belonged to naughty children. There, the toys spring to life and animals have the ability to speak. Everyone is at home in this mysterious world, with its lollipop fields, cream bun trees, and chocolate puddles. However, Torchy frequently goes to earth to visit Mr Bumbledrop, get replacement batteries, and return with naughty children who need to learn a lesson. In Topsy Turvy Land, humans shrink to the size of toys, and various children are subjected to the same horrors that they unleashed upon their playthings.

Numerous discrepancies in the spelling of names exist throughout the various Torchy materials.

Mr Bumble Drop: A kind elderly man who lets the neighbourhood children play in his garden. He is the creator of Torchy and the owner of Pom Pom. Bossy Boots: A bratty girl who acts as if she's the centre of the universe, demanding that everyone around her should do as she commands. She is plump and wears her hair in pigtails. Former owner of Flopsy the ragdoll and Clinker the money box. Mrs Meanymouth: Mother of Bogey, Mrs Meanymouth is an undesirable woman who's not above stealing. Bogey Meanymouth: An obnoxious boy who openly backtalks to his mother, Bogey is the former owner of Pongo the Pirate. Bobby and Babs: A pair of twins who were once well behaved, but have decided that it's much more fun to be naughty.

Torchy: A battery powered boy who has a magical flashlight on his hat. Torchy is good natured, tries to help anyone in need, and he frequently finds ways to punish naughty children. Clinker: A money box formerly owned by Bossy Boots, who refused to save money, thus starving him. In Topsy Turvy Land, he finds a money tree that keeps him well fed. Daffy: A donkey who pulls King Dithers' coach. She has a remarkable memory, although she's consistently glum, bearing more than a bit of similarity to Eeyore from the Winnie the Pooh series. She used to belong to a boy named Geoffrey. Ena: A hyena who'll laugh at anything, which endears her to Pilliwig the clown. She loves to knit, but the garments that she makes are too big for anyone to wear. Flopsy: Bossy Boots' former rag doll, who was constantly abused by the girl. She hasn't got enough stuffing inside her because it has been pulled out, and the lack of substance in her head has made her a bit dim. Frequently forgetting words, she substitutes the phrase "Piggle poggle." King Dithers: The bumbling King of Topsy Turvy Land. It's repeatedly stated that he lives in an orange peel palace, but his home resembles a run of the mill castle. Gillygolly: The tallest Gullywug in the world. Man in the Moon: The sole inhabitant of the moon, who has grown weary of his nightly responsibilities illuminating the world. Although he's not a resident of Topsy Turvy Land, he appeared to be in a pair of series two episodes (since the puppet makers had moved on to another project). Pilliwig: A clown who lives to entertain everyone whom he encounters. Pollikan: A strange bird who vaguely resembles a pelican, Pollikan loves hiding shiny objects in his mouth, so King Dithers has entrusted the fowl with guarding his crown and jewels. Pom Pom: Mr Bumbledrop's pet poodle. Pom Pom's fur grows straight, so the vain pooch has to put curlers in it each night. Her favourite meal is meatballs in chocolate sauce, and since Mr Bumbledrop would not allow her to eat chocolate, she decides to stay in Topsy Turvy Land, where she can lap up the chocolate puddles. Pongo the Pirate: A toy formerly owned by Bogey Meanymouth, who continuously made him walk the plank and crash into the water. In Topsy Turvy Land, he fashions a boat from a grapefruit husk and is always looking for mischief. Sparky: A young fire breathing dragon who initially terrifies the Topsy Turvy residents. The only one of her kind in the vicinity, Sparky was incredibly lonely before Torchy discovered she was friendly. The dragon survives on a diet of spicy dishes such as peppers, which aid her fire breathing abilities. Squish: An American space boy toy who crash landed and became stranded in Topsy Turvy Land. Although he's not as naughty as the other children of Earth, he sometimes does selfish, reckless things. Ting a Ling: A chiming bird who does his best to help everyone whom he encounters. He is overtly feminine but referred to as male. Whirly: A humming spinning top who was once rusty, until Torchy taught him that peanut oil is a lubricant.

The show premiered in the Midlands in 1959, but it didn't premiere in London until 1960, where it aired consecutively for 52 weeks as one series. Writer Roberta Leigh obviously wrote several shows for the second series to bridge gaps in the first season's stories (denoted below). Presumably, these were aired on London television in the proper chronological story sequence, but on DVD, the shows were presented in production order as two separate series. TV listings of the era were primitive and online listings feature conflicting airdates, so the tables below list the two series without airdates, just as they appeared on DVD, in an effort to avoid inaccuracies.

Creator Roberta Leigh and producer Gerry Anderson had previously collaborated on the puppet show The Adventures of Twizzle, which was so successful that they were asked to do another show. The pair were able to negotiate more money nearly double what was spent on Twizzle, which afforded them the luxury of bringing more elaborate visuals to the screen. Leigh churned out her scripts quickly, reportedly writing all 52 episodes over a total of 26 days. With her eight year old son in mind as the show's target demographic, Leigh set out to write an adventurous show, claiming that she was not pushing to include morality tales, but morals naturally came through her stories. As with Twizzle, Leigh devised recurring songs for many of the characters and would hum her tunes to composer Barry Gray, who was tasked with translating them into musical chords. Puppet maker Christine Glanville began developing the look of Anderson's later "Supermarionation" shows, crafting the puppet bodies from wood, and sculpting heads with movable eyes and mouths, as well as adding thinner strings to make them less visible on film. Made in her garage, crafting the toys was a family affair, with Glanville's father creating the bodies, her mother sewing the clothes, and Christine sculpting the heads and putting finishing touches on the dolls. The crew began tinkering with automatic lip sync on two minor characters, and Glanville thought thin rubber might be the way to create the mouths, so she sent her father on a quest to buy condoms from various local vendors. This idea wound up being infeasible because the thin rubber was prone to breakage and paint would not stick to it, so they later switched to chamois leather. Reg Hill and Derek Meddings created three dimensional sets using cardboard cut outs and wood, with a higher degree of detail than they could muster in Twizzle. Their Torchy sets included an elaborate miniature town shaped like fruit, with trees, shrubs, and rocks made of coal, as well as fully furnished miniature interior sets. They could not afford a studio, so the production was set up in the ballroom of the Islet Park House, a mansion in Maidenhead on the banks of the River Thames. Unfortunately, a lack of space caused problems. The stage area was only about 20 square feet, with a cramped bridge that spanned the length of it for the puppeteers to perform on When the carpenters turned on their saws to create sets for the next day's shooting, the puppeteers were unable to sync to the audio playback. Complicating matters, the river flooded that winter. Although the mansion's interior remained dry, the only way to get in and out of the location was by rowboat. "When the river overflowed, we would stand on the ballroom's impressive veranda and watch the water rush past us below," recalled set dresser Bob Bell. "It was really quite frightening!" The show was popular, garnering the attention of an up and coming band named The Beatles, who performed the title theme song live at The Cavern Club. At the start of 1969, Paul McCartney even riffed a portion of song during the recording sessions for the band's final album, Let It Be.

A small assortment of merchandise was issued during the show's run, most notably a series of books by creator Roberta Leigh, including an annual "Gift Book" from 1960–1964. Many of the featured stories were short adaptations of her scripts. Other merchandise included the board game Torchy's Race to Topsy Turvy Land, a children's playsuit which was packaged with a cardboard Torchy puppet, a pocketwatch, and a Torchy marionette by popular toymakers Pelham Puppets

Torchy appeared weekly from August 1960 to August 1961 across 52 issues of Harold Hare's Own Paper. The majority of characters were featured in the single page comic strip, but Flopsy was referred to simply as Rag Doll (and she had normal eyes, as opposed to buttons), there was no Mr Bumble Drop, and Whirly and Ena never appeared. Torchy did occasionally venture back to earth to contend with Bogey and Bossyboots (whose name, like PomPom'''s was condensed to one word). In 1968, Leigh was the editor of "Wonder," a weekly comic book that was sold at Esso petrol stations. Each issue featured a tie in coverstory for her subsequent show Wonder Boy and Tiger, as well as a strip titled Bossy Boots. The character bore no physical resemblance to the puppet (she sported glasses and wore her hair in a ponytail), but like her Torchy'' counterpart, Bossy Boots loved to tell everyone what to do.

Roberta Leigh loosely adapted her own stories from numerous episodes for the untitled strips, but many of the details were altered. # DateSummaryNotes 1 1960 08 20 On his birthday, Torchy emerges from his Pineapple home and stumbles on a Penny Farthing bicycle, which his friends have wrapped and left on his doorstep. Torchy rides it right into Rag Doll, who insists he get a bell, and Ting a Ling Bird offers to do the job. Adapted from "A Bell for a Penny Farthing." In the show, King Dithers gives him the bike, and he crashes into Pilliwig. Torchy appears on the front cover, and the comic strip begins its run regularly placed on page 7. 2 1960 08 27 Torchy learns that the toys are frightened of something inside the cave, so he goes inside and discovers Sparky the dragon. Adapted from "Torchy and the Strange Animal." Features the strip's only appearance of Gillygolly. In the absence of Whirly, there is a small gaggle of teddy bears. 3 1960 09 03 Pilliwig needs a home, so Torchy helps him pluck an apple from the tree, and PomPom pulls it on a sled to Frutown, where it's hollowed out and turned into a house. Adapted from "The Building of Frutown." The cover includes a small image of Torchy's head, with his light shining onto the banner headline: "Meet Torchy the Battery Boy Inside!" 4 1960 09 10 PomPom agrees to give Rag Doll some hair for stuffing, provided she gets her remaining fur rolled up in curlers. Adapted from "Topsy Turvy Land." 5 1960 09 17 King Dithers cannot find his gold medal, so Torchy uses his magic beam, and they discover Pollikan, who has the medallion in his mouth. The king decides to make the bird the keeper of the royal jewels. Adapted from "King Dithers Loses His Crown." 6 1960 09 24 Rag Doll's silver teapot is missing, and so is King Dithers crown. They soon discover that Pongo the pirate has stolen the treasures, along with the Pollikan bird. Adapted from "The Polliken Bird is Stolen." 7 1960 10 01 As they rocket back to earth, Torchy and PomPom see Bogey knocking over statues in the park, so they decide to scare him. Adapted from "Bogey and the Statues." 8 1960 10 08 PomPom runs away to avoid donating more fur to Rag Doll, so Torchy produces a dog whistle and promptly swallows it. No one can get the whistle out until Daffy the Donkey passes by and offers to pull it free with her magnetic hooves. Adapted from "Torchy Has an Accident." 9 1960 10 15 Pilliwig's suit is dirty, so Torchy washes it and Sparky dries it, but then they discover the garment was overstarched. Adapted from "Washing Day in Topsy Turvy Land." 10 1960 10 22 Rag Doll knits a scarf for Torchy that's too long. The Battery Boy notices Pilliwig on the swing just moments before the vines break and the clown goes toppling to the ground, so he retrieves the scarf and uses it as a rope to hold the swing. Original story. 11 1960 10 29 Torchy sees Bogey tying a can to a puppy's tail, so he brings the boy to Topsy Turvy Land, where Daffy the donkey sews a tail and can onto him. Adapted from "Bogey is Naughty Again." 12 1960 11 05 Bogey fills Rag Doll full of nuts and bolts, so the king weighs the boy down with a suit of armour. Adapted from "Bogey Learns Another Lesson." 13 1960 11 12 All of the toys are sick from eating too many sweets, so King Dithers teaches them to grow and eat vegetables. Adapted from "The Toys Get the Collywobbles." 14 1960 11 19 PomPom insists on going to the beach alone, so Torchy and Rag Doll hide in a decoy picnic basket and scare her. Adapted from "Flopsy Goes on a Picnic." Squish had not yet been introduced, so PomPom takes Flopsy's place, and she takes Squish's. The strip is moved to page 10, beginning in this issue. 15 1960 11 26 Pilliwig falls in a chocolate puddle and gets a stain on his suit. PomPom tries to lick the chocolate off and attempts to cover it with flour; Rag Doll offers to sew a patch over it. Ultimately, Torchy uses his magic beam and finds paint to cover the stain. Original story. 16 1960 12 03 Daffy the donkey doesn't want to pull the king's coach in the hot sun, so Torchy holds an umbrella over the mule's head to shade him. Original story. Combines elements of "Daffy's Birthday" and "The Obstinate Donkey." 17 1960 12 10 As they repaint his house, Torchy, Rag Doll, and PomPom are slopping paint everywhere, so they recruit Daffy to use her tail to paint the house. Once the donkey is done, they clean his tail and invite everyone over for dinner. Original story. 18 1960 12 17 King Dithers burns his finger on the stove, and in the absence of a bandage, Torchy uses his magic beam to find nettles. In his rush to catch up to the Battery Boy, the King stubs his toe and requires a walking stick. Torchy pleads with Pongo to use his oar for a cane, and when the pirate refuses, Daffy chases him away. As the King returns to the castle with the oar under his arm, he thanks Torchy for his assistance by giving him an orange. Original story. 19 1960 12 24 On Christmas Eve, Torchy and PomPom convince King Dithers to pose as Father Christmas, but the King gets stuck in Rag Doll's chimney. Original story. 20 1960 12 31 Pilliwig enlists PomPom and Sparky to star alongside him in a circus performance, which they decide to throw at night. The sky is too dark for the Topsy Turvians to see what's going on, so Torchy uses his magic light to illuminate the show. Original story.211961 01 07Sparky is tired of living in the caves, so Squish and Torchy build her a house with a mound of logs that they found in the forest. Unfortunately, they initially forget to build a chimney, and the dragon's breath smokes up the house. Torchy's magic beam leads him to King Dithers, who lends him a top hat to use as a smokestack. Original story. First appearance of Squish. Mistakenly includes the first of two teasers for "next week['s]" story about Gluebells.221961 01 15PomPom's mirror falls off the wall and shatters. Squish suggests that she should use the water in the river to see her reflection, but the clumsy poodle falls in. As Rag Doll dries her and rolls her fur into curlers, Torchy utilises his beam to find a brass tray. After some polishing, PomPom uses the tray as a mirror. Original story.231961 01 21Rag Doll feels unwell, so Pilliwig brings her orange juice and sticky gluebell flowers. The clown then attempts to cheer her by juggling her dishes, but they drop and shatter on the floor. Torchy's magic beam shines onto the gluebells, which they squeeze the nectar from to glue the plates back together. Original story.241961 01 28King Dithers insists Daffy should take him into town in the rain, but when the King insists on using his umbrella, the mule bucks him off and straight into Torchy's window. Torchy uses his magic beam to find a deck chair, which they fashion into a covered wagon so Daffy can keep her umbrella. Original story.251961 02 04Pongo steals Torchy's bicycle and buries it on the beach. When Torchy's magic beam shines his way, the pirate claims that he doesn't have the bike, but the tide rolls in and washes the sand away, revealing the treasured pedal cycle. Original story.261961 02 11Everyone is spring cleaning but there are no brooms to be found, so Torchy fashions some from sticks and ferns. Rag Doll sweeps so hard that her stuffing falls out, so Torchy replaces it with ferns. Original story.271961 02 18The wind blows so hard that it pushes everyone's homes into the lollipop fields, where a flood ensues. Torchy is baffled when the magic beam directs him toward the bed, but he realises the sheets can be used to fashion sails for the houses, to help glide them back to Frutown. Original story.281961 02 25King Dithers sends the toys on a scavenger hunt which returns them to his kitchen, where they find a giant cake awaiting them. Original story.291961 03 04Currently unknown. The previous week's teaser said "The Battery Boy helps make such a lovely bonfire. "Original story.301961 03 11Torchy's battery is running low, so he returns to Earth with PomPom to replace it. His cell completely drains, so as Pom Pom goes to buy a new battery, Bossyboots finds Torchy and puts him in her toy cupboard, where he gets buried. As PomPom searches the cabinet, a cat leaps onto the toys, which sends them toppling out, revealing Torchy. Original story. Sole appearance of Bossyboots.311961 03 18Rag Doll is absent from the party at King Dithers' castle, and they soon discover the reason why: Her cherry house is on fire! The toys race back to the castle for water and are able to put out the fire before much damage occurs. Original story.321961 03 25Rag Doll is proud of the hollyhocks that she's been growing, but Squish and PomPom trample the flowers. Torchy shines his magic light on Pongo, who uncharacteristically donates his oars to hold up the blooms. Original story.331961 04 01Squish climbs a tree and uses a hollow stick as a straw to shoot cherries at an unsuspecting PomPom. The poodle seeks aid from Torchy, who uses a water pistol to flush the space boy out of the branches. Original story.341961 04 08Squish doesn't realise his own strength and pushes the swing so hard that Rag Doll flies into the field, where she gets covered by lollipops. Torchy makes Squish pull King Dithers' coach, to prove that the space boy is more muscular than he thinks. Original story.351961 04 15Torchy brings Bad Boy Bogey to Topsy Turvy Land and instructs him to paint Rag Doll's cottage, but he paints her face as she sleeps, and the doll awakens, believing she has the measles. Original story.361961 04 22Torchy and PomPom go in search of nuts to play conkers, but they cannot get into the magic wood without crossing a river, so they construct a bridge made from lollipops. On their way back from retrieving the conkers balls, the bridge collapses and PomPom gets wet. Torchy suggests that he puts in her curlers, and then they can play the game. Original story.371961 04 29While berating Daffy the donkey for oversleeping, King Dithers falls into a hole. Daffy finds Torchy, who ties a rope to his bicycle and pulls his highness back up to Topsy Turvy Land. Original story. Beginning with this issue and for the remainder of the comic's run, the Torchy strips were bumped up to page 5 and reduced to two thirds of a page, with the remaining space filled by the paper's weekly "Once Upon a Time" stories by Donald Bisset.381961 05 06As Rag Doll helps Torchy wallpaper his home, he falls into the bucket of paste, and the doll has to scrub him down. Then the Battery Boy realises he's run out of wallpaper, so they head into the magic wood, where they retrieve leaves to adorn the walls. Original story.391961 05 13Flopsy knits a sweater that's too big for Torchy and Sparky, so they give it to King Dithers. Original story.401961 05 20The toys never know what time it is, so Torchy rockets back to earth to retrieve a toy Policeman with a pocket watch from the rubbish bin. Original story. Torchy and PomPom talk to a toy shop owner who resembles Mister Geppetto from Disney's version of Pinocchio. 411961 05 27Torchy and PomPom create a mailbox from an old log and toadstool, and they enlist Daffy to deliver it. Original story.421961 06 03Pilliwig's tooth hurts so badly that he cannot go to King Dithers' party, so Torchy uses his beam to find a clove tree to provide the clown with some pain relief. Original story.431961 06 10Rag Doll wants an apricot to bake a pie, but when the fruit proves to be too large to move, Torchy decides to fasten it to a pair of rollerskates and pull it home. Original story.441961 06 17While frolicking at the seaside, Sparky gets so wet that she cannot breathe fire. Torchy asks Pongo to use his sail to dry her, and he steadfastly refuses, but while they argue, PomPom borrows the sail and dries the dragon. Original story.451961 06 24Rag Doll is sad over the decaying state of her dress, so Torchy uses his magic beam to lead them to a pile of shiny leaves, which she uses to fashion a new dress. Original story.461961 07 1The toys are bored by the playground equipment, so Torchy finds a ladder and wooden plank to construct a slide. Original story.471961 07 08As Pilliwig and Torchy enjoy their tea, Daffy arrives with a load of balloons for them to blow up for King Dithers' birthday party. To speed the process, Torchy inflates them with his bicycle pump. Original story.481961 07 15Rag Doll doesn't have enough fabric to curtain one of her windows, so Torchy picks berries and leaves and helps paste them to the glass. Original story.491961 07 22Rag Doll puts her hair in curlers, but when it doesn't dry quickly enough, Torchy enlists Sparky to blow dry her hair. Original story.501961 07 29Torchy and Squish play ball at the seaside. When the current drags their ball away, Torchy uses his bicycle pump to inflate an orange so they can continue to play. Original story.511961 08 05When the Ting a Ling bird gets distracted and flies off of Torchy's bicycle, he attaches a cuckoo clock to serve as a bell. Torchy attempts to startle Squish with the clock, but his plan backfires and he falls off the bike. Just then, Ting a Ling bird returns from his flight. Original story.521961 08 12Rag Doll cannot keep her washing on the line on a windy day, so Torchy borrows PomPom's hair grips to use as clothespins. Original story. Final Torchy comic of the series.