Noggin the Nog and Oliver Postgate

At lunch time today I listened to Desert Island Discs as usual. A famous person is asked to choose the 7 pieces of music they’d like to have with them if they were ship wrecked on a desert island. It was a great pleasure to me and I’m sure millions of others, that today’s guest was Oliver Postgate. Do you remember Noggin the Nog, (I have my copy open in front of me as I write and you might just get a quote) Bagpuss (I was too old), Ivor the Engine, The Clangers, The Pogles, Pogles Wood?. Peter Firmin drew things for him and he made his films in the most incredible conditions. I remember his lovely voice and it was a pleasure to hear his choice of music.

They played the piece of music that had been written for Graculus in Noggin the Nog when he returned to where he was born.

“Perhaps you dreamed it Graculus,” said Noggin.
“Dreamed it? Perhaps I did but I know that it I fly over there to the right of the sun I shall see a lake of salt water among tall trees” Graculus craned his neck as if to see over the mountain. “There are fish in the lake,” he added; “blue fish, good to eat”

and so it goes on, and they talk about Graculus’s egg remembering where it was laid; it was very moving to hear it again after all these years…

That was my nice thing that happened to me today along with Peter’s nomination.