Jackie McGregor: Mirror Mirror: Did Miss Helen see you? The changing face of kids TV
Something strange happened as I unwrapped the beautiful, silver, hand mirror my mother had given me decades ago. As I looked into it, I was transported back to my childhood.
I don’t know where the words came from, like an incantation conjuring up the past, I began to recite: “Romper, bomper, stomper, boo. Tell me, tell me, tell me, do. Magic Mirror, tell me today, did all my friends have fun at play?”
These were the words Miss Helen would say at the end of each episode of the 70s TV show ‘Romper Room’. She would look into a pretend mirror and call out the names of children she imagined watching at home.
This was a very exciting moment for Northern Irish kids watching UTV.
When she whipped out that mirror I waited with bated breath, hoping she’d notice me.
Not once in all those years did Miss Helen (or Miss Adrienne before her) call out my name. The disappointment was crushing. These days they would probably have to accompany this programme with a helpline for those affected by the trauma of not being seen.
Children’s television shows in the 70s were a gentle, simplistic affair, usually containing a moral lesson. I adored them. Their theme tunes and iconic phrases are ingrained in my mind.
Shows including The Clangers, Rainbow, Bagpuss, The Wombles (I can still sing the theme tune), also, Chigley and Trumpton.
No doubt, those of a certain age can still recite the roll call of the Trumpton fire brigade: “Pugh, Pugh, Barney McGrew, Cuthbert, Dibble, Grub.”
The aim of these programmes was to educate through politeness, teaching how the world works, using characters like Windy Miller in cozy villages like Camberwick Green, creating a safe universe just for kids.
There was no dealing with social issues or big emotions. The biggest conundrum was trying to guess which window the Play School team would be looking through that day - the round, the square or the arched window? Exciting times!
Fast-forward to modern day children’s programmes and it’s a whole different ballgame. Kid’s programmes now reflect modern life, including diverse family structures.
Peppa Pig made global news in 2022 with the introduction of its first same-sex couple, Penny Polar Bear’s two mums.
Children’s programmes now move past the basic learning skills of alphabet and focus on feelings, emotional coping skills and broach topics like bullying. They’ve gone from ABCs to DEI (diversity, equality, inclusion.) Content is socially conscious and sometimes controversial.
People look beyond the stories for hidden meanings, for example there are speculations that SpongeBob is gay, or perhaps a cross dresser, because he has occasionally worn women’s clothing.
However, the creator stated that SpongeBob has no sexual orientation and that scenes like him wearing a dress are meant to poke fun at traditional gender roles.
In the 1970s, storylines were so innocent that no one considered such things.
We’d eagerly gather to watch simplistic shows like my favourite, Mr Benn.
He enjoyed paying visits to a backstreet shop where, “as if by magic the shopkeeper appeared,” (whose real name was Smasher LaGrue according to the books, an inmate Mr Benn had met on a prison adventure).
Smasher would take his former cellmate into his changing room and choose costumes to dress Mr Benn up in. Em…good wholesome stuff!