Bob Godfrey
Meowww! – Bob Godfrey has been
a leading figure in the animation
field for nigh on fifty years. His films
and series have a particular
wit and sharpness to them. They’re anti-establishment,
but not
confrontational, and there always seem
to be a dry sardonicness
about his leading characters. Godfrey specialises
in cel and 2D
media and his most famous children’s creations
– Roobarb, Noah
and Nelly, and Henry’s Cat – are wholly unique,
wobbling wonders
of Tea-Time Tv, still as popular today as when
they were first
broadcast…
Godfrey
was actually born in Australia, in 1921 but moved here
shortly after with his British parents,
where he has remained
ever since. He started out as a background
artist in a small Mayfair
studio working for W M Larkins, but soon
realised that background
artists frequently ended up in the background
of the production
process too, so after five years he became
co-founder of the
Biographic Studio. The most notable productions
during
this period were Polygamous Polonius (1958),
The Do-It-Yourself
Cartoon Kit (1959) and commercials for Don’t
Forget The Tv Times
and Esso Blue. Godfrey went solo in 1964, forming
Bob Godfrey’s
Movie Emporium. This title was later shortened
to Bob Godfrey
Films – the company he still owns and operates
today…
From here on in Godfrey’s animation output
falls into three
distinct areas of application: There are the
quick-witted, pacey
shorts of like L’Art Pour L’Art (1965),
Rope Trick (1967) and most
famously, the breathless mixed-media extravaganza
called Great
(1975).Next there are a range of cheeky sex
parodies, real
end-of-the-pier affairs, including Henry
9 Till 5 (1969), Kama Sutra
Rides Again (1971), Dream Doll (1979),
Instant Sex (1980) and
Bio Woman (1981). With a role call of titles
like that it’s no wonder
Godfrey ended up adapting those ‘naugthy’ Wicked
WIlly books
into animated form in 1990…
For the general public at large, however,
it is Godfrey’s crazy,
wobbling, felt-tipped children’s productions
which remain most
memorable. Over the years he’s brought
us Roobarb And Custard
(1975), Noah
And Nelly In SkylArk (1977), Henry’s
Cat (1983) and
Bunbury Tales (1987). The first three have
proven to be tv classics,
famous for their wildly catchy theme tunes
and witty asides and
caterwauls and an all-round childish, gleeful
stupidity. And now
they’re being made available to us Bigger Kids
all over again
on spanking new DVD and video compilations
– such is their
enduring popularity…
That’s a shot from Dream Doll, above.
I remember stumbling
upon Godfrey’s more ‘adult’ output for the
first time late at night
on C4 when I was in my teens – what a world
away from Roobarb
and co! Here were frank, and frankly very
funny, sexual toons
breaking all the rules of rudeness, but
not in an erotic way – no –
these toons depicted the great taboos
in a thoroughly down-to-
earth manner you could instantly recognize
and chuckle at…
It’s incredible to learn that Godfrey
actually has four Oscar-
nominated productions under his belt,
including Great, the
super-fast, super-smart history of Isembard
Kingdom Brunel
which went on to snatch the coveted prize.
Godfrey’s work
has a real ‘home-toiled’ feel to it. He has
produced and directed
most of his productions, has had final
edit on the scripts
and has even narrated (eg: Henry’s Cat).
You can almost see the
sweat and tears effort that has gone into
each and every
production. Oddly, in spite of repeated television,
short film
and commercial success no one has invited
Godfrey to produce
an animated feature – Shame on them! – Still,
he remains a short
film genius, a talkative artist keen to expound and
inform about
his craft, and the effort and complexities involved
in its production.
And above all else, an animated inspiration
to us all…
Bob Godfrey: Animator and creator of Roobarb, Henry’s Cat and more
Bob Godfrey
Meowww! – Bob Godfrey has been
a leading figure in the animation
field for nigh on fifty years. His films
and series have a particular
wit and sharpness to them. They’re anti-establishment,
but not
confrontational, and there always seem
to be a dry sardonicness
about his leading characters. Godfrey specialises
in cel and 2D
media and his most famous children’s creations
– Roobarb, Noah
and Nelly, and Henry’s Cat – are wholly unique,
wobbling wonders
of Tea-Time Tv, still as popular today as when
they were first
broadcast…
Godfrey
was actually born in Australia, in 1921 but moved here
shortly after with his British parents,
where he has remained
ever since. He started out as a background
artist in a small Mayfair
studio working for W M Larkins, but soon
realised that background
artists frequently ended up in the background
of the production
process too, so after five years he became
co-founder of the
Biographic Studio. The most notable productions
during
this period were Polygamous Polonius (1958),
The Do-It-Yourself
Cartoon Kit (1959) and commercials for Don’t
Forget The Tv Times
and Esso Blue. Godfrey went solo in 1964, forming
Bob Godfrey’s
Movie Emporium. This title was later shortened
to Bob Godfrey
Films – the company he still owns and operates
today…
From here on in Godfrey’s animation output
falls into three
distinct areas of application: There are the
quick-witted, pacey
shorts of like L’Art Pour L’Art (1965),
Rope Trick (1967) and most
famously, the breathless mixed-media extravaganza
called Great
(1975).Next there are a range of cheeky sex
parodies, real
end-of-the-pier affairs, including Henry
9 Till 5 (1969), Kama Sutra
Rides Again (1971), Dream Doll (1979),
Instant Sex (1980) and
Bio Woman (1981). With a role call of titles
like that it’s no wonder
Godfrey ended up adapting those ‘naugthy’ Wicked
WIlly books
into animated form in 1990…
For the general public at large, however,
it is Godfrey’s crazy,
wobbling, felt-tipped children’s productions
which remain most
memorable. Over the years he’s brought
us Roobarb And Custard
(1975), Noah
And Nelly In SkylArk (1977), Henry’s
Cat (1983) and
Bunbury Tales (1987). The first three have
proven to be tv classics,
famous for their wildly catchy theme tunes
and witty asides and
caterwauls and an all-round childish, gleeful
stupidity. And now
they’re being made available to us Bigger Kids
all over again
on spanking new DVD and video compilations
– such is their
enduring popularity…
That’s a shot from Dream Doll, above.
I remember stumbling
upon Godfrey’s more ‘adult’ output for the
first time late at night
on C4 when I was in my teens – what a world
away from Roobarb
and co! Here were frank, and frankly very
funny, sexual toons
breaking all the rules of rudeness, but
not in an erotic way – no –
these toons depicted the great taboos
in a thoroughly down-to-
earth manner you could instantly recognize
and chuckle at…
It’s incredible to learn that Godfrey
actually has four Oscar-
nominated productions under his belt,
including Great, the
super-fast, super-smart history of Isembard
Kingdom Brunel
which went on to snatch the coveted prize.
Godfrey’s work
has a real ‘home-toiled’ feel to it. He has
produced and directed
most of his productions, has had final
edit on the scripts
and has even narrated (eg: Henry’s Cat).
You can almost see the
sweat and tears effort that has gone into
each and every
production. Oddly, in spite of repeated television,
short film
and commercial success no one has invited
Godfrey to produce
an animated feature – Shame on them! – Still,
he remains a short
film genius, a talkative artist keen to expound and
inform about
his craft, and the effort and complexities involved
in its production.
And above all else, an animated inspiration
to us all…