______________________________________________________________________
‘Time flies by when I’m the
driver of a train
And I ride on
the footplate there and back again…’
______________________________________________________________________
A short distance from Trumpton,
and a quick drive away from Camberwick
Green you’ll find the quiet hamlet of
Chigley. Life in Chigley focuses around
the activities at Winkstead Hall, The
Chigley Pottery, Treddles Wharf and
The Biscuit Factory. What a contrast to Trumpton
life, or the bustle of
Camberwick Green! Chigley days are lazy,
languid days, where time passes
at a more respectable pace and folk can
potter through each day at ease
with the world. And if a problem arises – a
broken crane at Treddles Wharf,
or an overabundance of fruit in Lord Belborough’s
orchard – everything is certain
to have been solved by the close of the day.
Which is the cue for the 6 o’clock
whistle, marking the end of the shift at the
Biscuit Factory and the
commencement of the Tea-Dance at the park.
Presumably the selfsame park
featuring at the end of every Trumpton episode
(Was there ever any clashing
of venues, we wonder?)
If there was a Chigley ‘star’ as such, it was
surely Lord Belborough. He dwelt
at Winkstead Hall with his faithful
butler Brackett. It was a crumbling estate,
open to the public and maintained by funds
generated from the entrance fee.
Belborough was passionate about trains and
frequently took his renovated
steam engine Bessie for a spin along the
railway, through the Trumptonshire
countryside to Treddles Wharf to collect
deliveries or assist folk in some way…
Chigley was the third and last of Gordon
Murray’s Trumptonshire series,
and the show built upon established
elements and characters
from both
Camberwick Green and Trumpton. Indeed Chigley
episodes invariably
started in Trumpton Town Square, or Camberwick
Green. Characters
like Mr Antonio The Ice Cream Man or Micky
Murphy The Baker then made
their way to the little hamlet. Of course the
world has moved on a pace from
the days of the Trumptonshire series and
Chigley’s world is perhaps the one
most dated now. The Biscuit Factory would
have been forced out of business
long ago, Treddles Wharf would have closed
and Winkstead Hall no doubt
transformed into up-market apartments
but to focus on such developments
is to miss the point. Chigley and
indeed the whole of Trumptonshire provide
us with a snapshot of English life from
a slightly earlier, innocent era. A
place where folk had simple jobs, knew
their place in the scheme of things
and greeted each day with a smile and
wave. Yes, we can all mock its ‘dated’
depiction but let’s be honest, its an era we
wouldn’t mind returning to if
we could….
Trumptonshire creator Gordon Murray had
previously brought us the puppets
of Rubovia. He later brought us Skip
And Fuffy and The Gublins. Animators
Bura And Hardwick also brought us the delights
of Toytown featuring
Larry
The L-L-Lamb whilst scriptwriter Alison Prince had
previously written the
adventures of Joe…
Like both previous series only thirteen
Chigley episodes were ever filmed,
and repeated ad-infinitum over the years,
perpetuating the myth that many
more had been made. A myth perpetuated
further by the myriad of Trumptonshire
tie-ins that were launched alongside the
three series and which continue to be
made to this day. In particular Robert
Harrop’s superior figures, musical boxes
and buildings which have caught the eye
of many a collector of late…
Chigley and its neighbors Trumpton and Camberwick Green
______________________________________________________________________
‘Time flies by when I’m the
driver of a train
And I ride on
the footplate there and back again…’
______________________________________________________________________
A short distance from Trumpton,
and a quick drive away from Camberwick
Green you’ll find the quiet hamlet of
Chigley. Life in Chigley focuses around
the activities at Winkstead Hall, The
Chigley Pottery, Treddles Wharf and
The Biscuit Factory. What a contrast to Trumpton
life, or the bustle of
Camberwick Green! Chigley days are lazy,
languid days, where time passes
at a more respectable pace and folk can
potter through each day at ease
with the world. And if a problem arises – a
broken crane at Treddles Wharf,
or an overabundance of fruit in Lord Belborough’s
orchard – everything is certain
to have been solved by the close of the day.
Which is the cue for the 6 o’clock
whistle, marking the end of the shift at the
Biscuit Factory and the
commencement of the Tea-Dance at the park.
Presumably the selfsame park
featuring at the end of every Trumpton episode
(Was there ever any clashing
of venues, we wonder?)
If there was a Chigley ‘star’ as such, it was
surely Lord Belborough. He dwelt
at Winkstead Hall with his faithful
butler Brackett. It was a crumbling estate,
open to the public and maintained by funds
generated from the entrance fee.
Belborough was passionate about trains and
frequently took his renovated
steam engine Bessie for a spin along the
railway, through the Trumptonshire
countryside to Treddles Wharf to collect
deliveries or assist folk in some way…
Chigley was the third and last of Gordon
Murray’s Trumptonshire series,
and the show built upon established
elements and characters
from both
Camberwick Green and Trumpton. Indeed Chigley
episodes invariably
started in Trumpton Town Square, or Camberwick
Green. Characters
like Mr Antonio The Ice Cream Man or Micky
Murphy The Baker then made
their way to the little hamlet. Of course the
world has moved on a pace from
the days of the Trumptonshire series and
Chigley’s world is perhaps the one
most dated now. The Biscuit Factory would
have been forced out of business
long ago, Treddles Wharf would have closed
and Winkstead Hall no doubt
transformed into up-market apartments
but to focus on such developments
is to miss the point. Chigley and
indeed the whole of Trumptonshire provide
us with a snapshot of English life from
a slightly earlier, innocent era. A
place where folk had simple jobs, knew
their place in the scheme of things
and greeted each day with a smile and
wave. Yes, we can all mock its ‘dated’
depiction but let’s be honest, its an era we
wouldn’t mind returning to if
we could….
Trumptonshire creator Gordon Murray had
previously brought us the puppets
of Rubovia. He later brought us Skip
And Fuffy and The Gublins. Animators
Bura And Hardwick also brought us the delights
of Toytown featuring
Larry
The L-L-Lamb whilst scriptwriter Alison Prince had
previously written the
adventures of Joe…
Like both previous series only thirteen
Chigley episodes were ever filmed,
and repeated ad-infinitum over the years,
perpetuating the myth that many
more had been made. A myth perpetuated
further by the myriad of Trumptonshire
tie-ins that were launched alongside the
three series and which continue to be
made to this day. In particular Robert
Harrop’s superior figures, musical boxes
and buildings which have caught the eye
of many a collector of late…