Tikkabilla is a British children's television programme, shown on CBeebies. The programme aims to educate preschool children in an entertaining manner. The title "Tikkabilla" comes from the Hindi word meaning "Hopscotch", a popular children's game.
Format Taking place within a large, colourful house, Tikkabilla is an educational variety series featuring songs, stories, games, and creative activities. A group of rotating presenters, two of whom appear in an episode, present at least two different subjects to a purple dragon puppet named Tamba. Tamba serves as the programme's naïve child where programme's educational content is introduced as the presenters explain things to her.
The show is considered a successor to the BBC's 1964–1988 children's programme Play School and its own successor Playdays. Two of the Tikkabilla presenters, Simon Davies and Justin Fletcher, have had prior experience with the format, with Davies presenting Play School in its later years, and Fletcher portraying Mr Jolly in the Playdays live shows. Play Schools famous square, round, and arched windows are again used as a device to transport the viewer from the studio to the outside, real world. Location items, sometimes featuring the presenters and Tamba and usually including young children, introduce the wider world to the young audience.
Occasionally, special guests visit, normally to demonstrate a special skill or performance.
Presenters Alongside Tamba, who appears in every episode, the presenters rotate from the selection seen below: Justin Fletcher (Series 4) Sarah-Jane Honeywell (Series 4) Simon Davies (Series 4) Lorna Laidlaw (Series 4) Paul Ewing (Series 4) Beverly Hills (Series 4) Veejay Kaur (Series 4) Toni Frutin (Series 4) Amit Sharma (Series 4)
Tamba is performed by puppeteer Sue Eves, who originally voiced the character in the first two series and wrote many scripts for the series. Alison McGowan (series 2 and 3) and Katherine Smee (series 4) later took over as Tamba's voice.
Segments In addition to the mainstream presenter-led portions of the programme, Tikkabilla also features several show-within-a-show segments, normally being showcased within the windows or an item shown below of the Tikkabilla clock. Such segments include: Bonny, Banana and Mo: A 2D animated series featuring a girl, her dog, and a bird. Higgledy House: A live-action comedy series featuring Sarah-Jane Honeywell and Justin Fletcher portraying fictional versions of themselves. The segments were spun off as a standalone programme on CBeebies in 2006. Sami's Worlds Summerton Mill (Series 4): A stop motion animated series set within a ruined mill. Like Higgledy House, this show was also spun off as a standalone programme on CBeebies and was later pre-sold internationally.
Alongside the segments, the show has occasionally shown clips or stock footage from other educational BBC programmes, mainly from Words and Pictures or Numbertime. One episode once showed an animated clip from Hotch Potch House.
Episodes Series 1 (2002) 1. Jungle, Yellow and Melting 2. Birds and Weather 3. Under the Sea and Sheepdogs 4. Dressing Up, Princesses and Castles 5. Goldilocks and the Three Bears 6. Movement and Gardens 7. Kangaroos and Tikkabilla Jive 8. Teatime and Ducks 9. Musical Instruments and Clocks 10. Night-Time Animals and Up and Down 11. Families, Photos and Feelings 12. Colours, Carnivals and Festivals 13. Bears and Dancing 14. Seasons, Sculptures and Junk 15. Tidy Up, Dressing Up and Shoes 16. Dinosaurs 17. Boats and Opposites 18. Ants and Hairbraiding 19. Bees and Sweets 20. Statues, Cats and Jungle 21. Ice Cream and Bowling 22. Spiders and Bears 23. Jumping, Hopping, Jiving and Delicious Food 24. Bears and Different Sizes 25. Kittens and Haircuts 26. Hide and Seek and Treasure 27. Skittles, Bubbles and Balloons 28. Opposites and Indian Dancing 29. Tiddywinks, Making Masks and Looking in Mirrors 30. Colours, Hand Puppets and Guitars 31. Horses and Gingerbread 32. Opposites, Digging and Dinosaurs 33. Jack in the Box, Vegetables and Dressing Up 34. Didgeridoos, Loud and Quiet 35. Balloons, Feelings and Cows 36. Bakers and Tigers 37. There Was A Princess Long Ago 38. Sweets 39. Eating, Growing and Printing 40. Blue Animals, Painting and Hokey Cokey 41. Ropes and Weather 42. Printing and Opposites 43. Colours, Tomatoes and Paper Flowers 44. Snow and Penguins 45. Christmas Special 46. Lighthouses and Dinosaurs 47. Hats, Sleeping and Breakfast 48. Windmills 49. Posting Letters 50. Animals' Tails, Balancing and Circus 51. Meerkats and Teddy Bears Picnic 52. Babies, Caterpillars and Guessing 53. Shakers, Recycling and Sami's World 54. There Was A Princess Long Ago 55. Shopping, Rabbits and Five 56. Birds and Paper Airplanes 57. There Was A Princess Long Ago 58. Opposites and Cats 59. Vegetables, Tulips and Saris 60. Boats and the Letter S 61. Gardens and Houses 62. Rowing and Paddle Boats 63. Crisps and Noises 64. Gooses and Music 65. Snakes, Orangutans and Finger Painting 66. Bubbles, Marbles and Animals 67. Firefighters and Sea Animals 68. Butterflies, Diggers and Beetles 69. Night-Time Animals 70. Kurdish Dancing, Hiding Animals and Tikkabilla Jive
Series 2 (2003) 1. Stuck in Mud 2. Stained Glass and Hoops 3. Light and Shadows 4. Water 5. Animals, Lost and Found 6. Buildings and City Animals 7. Love, Shops, Counting and Bedtime 8. Pop-Up Puppet and Jack-in-the-Box 9. There Was A Princess Long Ago 10. Jelly, Insects and Spoons 11. Transport and Homes 12. Chicken and Eggs 13. Magic 14. Garden and Colours 15. Weather, Chinese Fans, Beaches and Boats 16. Bugs and Soap 17. Eid 18. Food, Veg Face and Higgledy Pie 19. Animals in Trees and Feathers 20. City Dwellers, Hot Air Balloons and Shops 21. Fish Tank and Patterns 22. Face Paint and Dark 23. Snow and Bears 24. Creepy Crawlies 25. Bridges and Transport 26. Painting, Sunflowers, Giants, Farms and Scarecrows 27. Movement and Noise 28. Noisy and Signing 29. Art Gallery and Senses 30. Umbrellas and Flamenco 31. Music, Chocolate and Food 32. Steel Bands, Huskies and Drums 33. Water and Coins 34. Counting and Opposites 35. Teddy Bears, Cakes, Shops and Hugs 36. Biscuits, Flowers and Tails 37. Hobby Horse and Red 38. Sheep and Movement 39. Snakes and Ladders 40. Hedgehogs and Rubbish 41. Pancakes and Planes 42. Finger Animals, Frogs and Firefighters 43. Moving and Painting 44. Colours, Trains and Movement 45. People Who Help Us 46. Big, Deep and Bonny, Banana and Mo Sshhh! 47. Mountains, Caves and Weather 48. Dinosaurs and Chairs 49. Circus and Rocket 50. Porridge 51. Farm and Harps 52. Opposites, Ducks, Recorder and Seashore 53. Head to Toe 54. Bedtime, Feely and Teapot 55. Diwali 56. Clocks and Teatime 57. Balloons and Hiccups 58. Violins and Happy Songs 59. Shops and Senses 60. Water, Fish and Friends 61. Shoes, Animal Sounds, Football and Jungle 62. Transport and Bugs 63. Sky, Blue and Higgledy 64. Photo and Flying 65. Pets and Happy 66. Noises 67. String 68. Food and Tidy Up 69. Marching, Bridges, Sky and Space 70. Friends and Babies
Series 3 (2004) 1. Shops, Rocks and Hands 2. Bodies 3. Shapes, Maps and Spiders 4. Birds, Bears and Dressing Up 5. Noises and Food 6. Little Peter Rabbit 7. Sick 8. Owl and Pussycat 9. Fruit, Trees and Birds 10. Jobs 11. Weather, Harvesting and Animals 12. Cakes, Fish and Cars 13. Body, Midas, Sandcastles and World 14. Rain, Flowers and Finding 15. Families, Dogs and Wishes 16. High and Jungly 17. Clothes and Boats 18. Food, Tents and Games 19. Big/Small 20. Sheep, Dogs, Rockets and Searching 21. Dogs, Farms and Clouds 22. Flowers, Photos and Paintings 23. Transport, Snow and Weather 24. Skittles, Hands and Hats 25. Wings 26. Dogs 27. There Was A Princess Long Ago 28. Happy 29. Hunting and Noises 30. Cola Trees and Green Queens 31. Tartan, Decorating and Pets 32. Friends, Pairs and Boots 33. Eid 34. Hands and Seeds 35. The Wheels On The Bus 36. Music, Boots and Feet 37. Weather 38. Shoes and Moving 39. Movement, Mouth and Snails 40. Families and Flying 41. Birds, Fishing and Machines 42. Old MacDonald Had a Farm 43. Three Wishes 44. Hospitals and Colour 45. Little Peter Rabbit 46. Feet 47. Body, Clothes, Holidays and Jelly 48. Sizes and Jobs 49. Baskets, Bagpipes & Scottish Dancers 50. Old MacDonald Had a Farm 51. Shapes, Colours and Hands 52. Wallpaper 53. Food and Siblings 54. Movement, Mouth and Snails 55. Growing Things 56. Weather, Homes and Mice 57. Carnival, Clothes and Frogs 58. Journeys, Hunting and Games 59. Sleeping, Dancing and Moving 60. Itchy Animals 61. Musical Owls 62. Picnic and Patterns 63. The Wheels On The Bus 64. Dancing and Underwater Life 65. Mirrors, Pretending and Food 66. Hiccups, Sounds and Homes 67. Weather and Boats 68. Penguins 69. Shapes, Hats and Cars 70. Christmas Special
Series 4 (2005) 1. Trampoline 2. Dinosaurs 3. Honey Biscuits 4. School and Stickers 5. Ballet, Magic and Pickle 6. Little Peter Rabbit 7. Pretend Friend and Sausages 8. Tamba's Car 9. Stomp 10. Suitcase 11. Eggs And Sock Thing 12. Grumpies and Gravity 13. Noisy Big Ears 14. Bird Plumage And Mrs Naybhur's Vegetables 15. Fruit and Jungle Animals 16. Diwali 17. Penguins And Wingnuts 18. Eid 19. Rapunzel 20. Hairbraiding 21. Birds of Paradise 22. Plasters and Jobs 23. Birds and Bagels 24. Floating and Treasure 25. French and Juggling Feet 26. Dog Bathing, Movement and Sea Make 27. There Was A Princess Long Ago 28. Kite Flying and Pigeons 29. Frogs and Bear Hunt 30. Walking Holiday 31. Birds and Bears 32. Tortoises and Houses 33. Snowplay 34. Messy, Incy and TV 35. Getting Around 36. Seasons and Ducks 37. Camping 38. Balancing Things 39. Dressing Up and Sharks 40. Hide and Seek 41. Farm and Penguins 42. Diwali 43. Twins and Sunflowers 44. House that Jack Built 45. Little Peter Rabbit 46. Wiggles and Wingnuts 47. Rainbow 48. Collections 49. Dancing Tiger 50. Tooty Fruity Lassi 51. Grumpy Tamba 52. Water Play 53. Signs and Odd One Out 54. Moon, Eyes and Hands 55. Cakes and Bubbles 56. Space and Wellies 57. Diwali 58. The Wheels On The Bus 59. Dog Bathing, Movement and Sea 60. Green Frog and Three Cornered Hat 61. Shapes and Cows 62. Special Photo and Dressing Up 63. Party Time 64. Duke, Frog and Road 65. Jungle, Wingnuts and Weather 66. Rhythms and Eggs 67. Spilt Water and a Hole in My Bucket 68. Tamba's Lambs 69. Flatpack Bed 70. Toys and Babies
Production Beverly Hills (actress)|Beverly Hills wrote the script for the series, as well as for its sister show The Story Makers. Francis Haines and Liz Kitchen wrote the majority of the programme's music. Francis Haines and Jake Hook co-wrote one of the songs.
Home media BBC Worldwide released several VHS and DVDs of the series in the United Kingdom.
TitleRelease datePlaytime: Introducing Tikkabilla4 October 2004Tikkabilla Jive!12 September 2005Incy Wincy and Other Stories26 March 2007
External links
CBeebies - Tikkabilla at bbc.co.uk (archived)