Worzel Gummidge Down Under

Worzel Gummidge Down Under
Created by	Keith Waterhouse Willis Hall
Based on	Characters by Barbara Euphan Todd
Starring	Jon Pertwee Una Stubbs Bruce Phillips
Country of origin	New Zealand United Kingdom
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	22
Production
Running time	25 minutes
Production company	Grahame J. McLean & Associates
Original release
Network	Television New Zealand, Channel 4 (UK)
Release	4 October 1987 (1987-10-04) – 16 April 1989 (1989-04-16)

Worzel Gummidge Down Under is a New Zealand-British television series that aired from 1987 to 1989. Adapted from the books written by Barbara Euphan Todd, it is a sequel/continuation of the 1979-81 British television series Worzel Gummidge, starring Jon Pertwee. The story continues in New Zealand when Worzel's beloved Aunt Sally (played by Una Stubbs) is sold to a museum owner in New Zealand and Worzel follows her there. The first seven episodes were from scripts written in 1983 for a spin-off series called Worzel Gummidge in Ireland. The series was abandoned, so the scripts - plus three new episodes, were rewritten for a New Zealand setting.

Though the original Worzel Gummidge series was made by Southern Television for the ITV network, the Down Under series was co-produced by Television New Zealand and the UK's Channel 4, which screened the series. Pertwee and Stubbs were the only actors to reprise their roles from the original.

Worzel Gummidge Down Under ran for two series between 1987 and 1989, before being cancelled.

Cast

• Jon Pertwee as Worzel Gummidge
• Bruce Phillips as The Crowman
• Jonny Marks as Mickey
• Olivia Ihimaera-Smiler as Manu
• Una Stubbs as Aunt Sally
• Wi Kuki Kaa as Travelling Scarecrow Maker
• Maria James as Eloise

Episodes

Series 1

1. "As the Scarecrow Flies" (4 October 1987)
2. "The Sleeping Beauty" (11 October 1987)
3. "Full Employment" (18 October 1987)
4. "Worzel's Handicap" (25 October 1987)
5. "King of the Scarecrows" (1 November 1987)
6. "Ten Heads Are Better Than One " (8 November 1987)
7. "Worzel to the Rescue" (15 November 1987)
8. "Slave Scarecrow" (22 November 1987)
9. "The Traveller Unmasked" (29 November 1987)
10. "A Friend in Need" (6 December 1987)

Series 2

1. "Stage Struck" (29 January 1989)
2. "A Red Sky in T'Morning" (5 February 1989)
3. "Them Thar Hills" (12 February 1989)
4. "The Beauty Contest" (19 February 1989)
5. "Balbous Cauliflower" (26 February 1989)
6. "Weevily Swede" (5 March 1989)
7. "Elementary My Dear Worty" (12 March 1989)
8. "Dreams of Avarish" (19 March 1989)
9. "The Runaway Train" (26 March 1989)
10. "Aunt Sally, R.A." (2 April 1989)
11. "Wattle Hearthbrush" (9 April 1989)
12. "The Bestest Scarecrow" (16 April 1989)

DVD release

• Worzel Gummidge Ultimate – Series 1–4, Christmas Special, and Down Under – Region 2 (UK)

External links

• Worzel Gummidge Down Under at IMDb