CITV’s Heyday: Taking a Trip Down Memory Lane

On 1 September 2023, iconic British children’s channel CITV stopped broadcasting after more than 40 years on the air.

I was sad to hear the news, as me and my sibling (and occasionally my parents) would switch on CITV after a day at school to watch such classics as Jungle Run, Horrid Henry, Almost Naked Animals, Chowder and My Parents Are Aliens.

CITV broadcasted some weird and wonderful cartoons over the years. I take a look at a few of my most memorable favourites from CITV’s heyday.

Almost Naked Animals

Almost Naked Animals was one of the weirdest cartoons out there. Following a bunch of animals that run a holiday resort, this Canadian cartoon was full of wild antics.

Every character had their own personality. There was Narwhal, the egomaniacal lounge singer and Radiation Rooster, a stupid Radioactive Microwave Sales Rooster who regularly loses his limbs.

Yes, it’s as crazy as it sounds… Needless to say, Almost Naked Animals led to hours of after-school fun for me and my family!

Horrid Henry

Running from 2006 to 2020, Horrid Henry told the story of naughty schoolboy Henry, as well as his brother Perfect Peter, friend Rude Ralph and neighbour Moody Margaret.

My friend didn’t get the channel on her TV (yes, that used to be a thing) – and she still says one of her favourite memories is coming around to my house to watch Horrid Henry after school.

Me and my Dad took our love for the cartoon even further when we attended a talk by director Dave Irwin in 2013, including a special preview of a new episode.

Horrid Henry offered children across the world a chance to explore their devious side – and I think everyone ended up siding with the mischievous Henry over his obnoxious brother and parents.

In fact, I recently saw the question: “Was Horrid Henry really that horrid?” trending on Twitter (X) – four years after the show went off the air! Henry clearly made an impact on our generation.

Chowder

Well, what can I say about Chowder? It was bizarre! Following the story of a hungry young chef apprentice, the cartoon was full of hilarious characters and storylines.

Every character was named after a food or dish – and they lived in a bright, colourful make-believe world.

I was slightly older when I watched this cartoon, tuning in with my younger sibling. There were a lot of funny adult jokes I might have missed as a child!

Chowder ran from 2008 to 2010, originally premiering on Cartoon Network before coming to CITV. We were definitely left wanting more from this weird and wonderful show.

To sum up

For me, CITV was something to look forward to after a day at school.

In the times before Netflix, me and my sibling would tune in to watch a host of funny shows – many of them previously shown on other networks before they came to us.

Cartoons like Horrid Henry, Almost Naked Animals and Chowder offered funny characters and crazy worlds to lose yourself in, even if they were a little strange…

Thank you to Jon at Animated for featuring my Animated Anecdote. It was fun to take a trip down memory lane and I love reading all his latest newsletters.

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Eleanor Jones is a freelance writer based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire.

She writes for websites across the world, using her words to help business owners reach out to new customers and readers. She’s created an ebook about writing and she regularly writes about freelancing on her blog.

Say hi to Eleanor on LinkedIn or Twitter (X).