The Magic Roundabout - Brian - Code MR04 Ref: MR04 Robert Harrop The Magic Roundabout - Brian - Code MR04 In 1964, French animator, Serge Danot, accepted a comission from the French television channel ORTF to create a childrens series. That series was Le Manege Enchante. First broadcast in black and white, Le Manage Enchante was set in a magic garden with a roundabout operated by Pere Pivoine, this series featured a host of endearing characters which included an eccentric spring known as Zebulon, a little girl called Margote, Flapy the rabbit and a legless dog called Pollux. When the BBC brought Le Manage Enchante to the UK, it went a transformation which resulted in the creation of one of the all-time classics of children's television. Eric Thompson (late father of actress Emma Thompson) was selected as narrator. He did not translate the French dialogue or storylines directly, but invented his own plots to match the bizarre on-screen action. Thus Pere Pivoine, with his top hat and orange moustache, became Mr. Rusty; Zebulon became Zebedee, a jack-in-a-box with magical powers and Flapy was transformed into Dylon. In subsequent episodes, other characters were introduced, including Azalee, who came to be known to us as Ermintrude and Ambroise, alias Brian. At one stage, The Magic Roundabout commanded over 8 million viewers. No other children's series reached an audience of even half that size, and the series even rivalled the news as the UK's most-watched programme. Price: £24.23 (Including VAT at 17.5%)