23 Comments
User's avatar
Colin Chick's avatar

"I can see you're going to have to have a chat with Mr. Manners!"

-Nanny

Absolutely brilliant show!

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

What a line. It was such a great show, thanks for commenting 🤩

David Perlmutter's avatar

The show hit Canadian TV just around the time it debuted in Britain- I know because I saw it there.

Luke @ This's avatar

I had almost completely forgotten this little gem of a show until you reminded me! Thank you for the nostalgia bomb!

Kate Jones's avatar

I loved Count Duckula and his subversive, rebellious vegetarianism! Thank you for sharing :)

K.J. Wilsdon's avatar

What a wonderful reminder of Count Duckula , I got all nostalgic - thank you. I loved Igor.

Matthew Long's avatar

Great write-up Jon. I had forgotten all about this fellow until reading your article.

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

Thanks Matthew. It was a great research project.

Kathlyn's avatar

I’ll admit that I was a huge fan of this at the time (being bang in the target audience), so I bought the DVD box set when it came out. I’ve recently been showing it to my nieces (10 and 8 years old) and got them hooked too! 😁

Yes, some of the episodes do play with national stereotypes, in a way that was far more acceptable in the time it was made than it is now, but in the show’s defence, they did it just as much to the British as to everyone else. The characters and script are what carry it, not cheap gags at other people’s expense. It’s been fun rewatching this over the spring and summer, and seeing it through current youngsters’ eyes.

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

What a great comment. That is such a good idea, getting the younger generation hooked on brilliant animation. 🥳

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

The theme tune was a cracker, it was. Nanny was a fantastic character. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

Everything about it was spot on. The voices, comedy and characters just bang on. Thank you so much for commenting and reading.

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

Cod grove Hall made so many classics.

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

Thank you so much, a much under rated classic

Mata Haggis-Burridge's avatar

"Blood!"

"I'LL GET IT!!!"

Nanny's cry of 'I'll get it' from the title sequence lives on in our household, and I think the theme tune will be in my brain until the day I die. Great stuff!

Joe Douglas's avatar

"Duckula is a cowardly, fame-obsessed vegetarian"

So like most modern influencers, then. 😅

Count Duckular is one of my favourite series ever. It was hugely popular in Australia, as we're many of the series from the same studio. He was just as popular as Danger Mouse Down Under and we even got an Aussie exclusive release of the series on DVD. Just brilliant!

Mark Edward Randall's avatar

I would have been a child when this aired but I never caught it at the time. I loved Cosgrove Hall's Wind In The Willows though.

Kathlyn's avatar

It was at that time when you were a ‘BBC family’ or an ‘ITV family’. We mostly watched the Beeb, but kids tv was the exception - me and my brother would happily swap between the two depending on what was on after school. Dangermouse and Count Duckula were ITV must-sees for us, along with some of the school holiday morning programmes (he loved Timmy Mallett, I didn’t, but he had ok cartoons)

J. Michael Whalen's avatar

Wow! I almost forgot all about this show and how unique it was! Great piece!

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

It is just so good. Thanks for commenting and reading.

Jules's avatar

I had never seen Count Duckula so I've been checking out a couple of clips on YouTube. It sounds like a hoot! Thanks for your thorough exploration - I enjoyed it.

Nothing to do with Duckula except for the obvious, but did you ever see "Duckman" Jon? I really liked that! 😄

Jon (Animated)'s avatar

Thanks Jules. Never seen Duckman, to my shame. Have made a note to watch, thank you so much.

Jules's avatar

If we get a "Duckman" article from "Animated" I'll know you liked it! 😁