Fingerbobs

[1972]

S Reynolds points out Scampi Theme is also a banger which I totally agree. However I cannot abide Gulliver's (The Seagull) Theme which goes into very irritating almost Tiny Tim territory. The opening Fingerbobs Theme which incorporates Joffy's own little theme tune is also excellent as is the tortoise's tune aka Flash's Theme.

What's the story with Joffy I wonder?

A Canadian paper finger puppet master abroad gets his own show on the BBC. 

A quick glance on the interwebs reveals Joffy aka actor Rick Jones was a Play School presenter in Britain during the 60s and 70s who was involved in a drugs scandal which got him sacked from the BBC.

Rick Jones - Saskatchewan Sunrise (1971)
He had a #26 Canadian hit with this sorta baroque-country Gordon Lightfoot-esque tune. Pretty good.

 

Rick Jones later had a band called Meal Ticket. They did this tune for the The Flipside Of Dominick Hide which was an episode of Play For Today in 1980.

The Flipside Of Domonick Hide (1980)

I don't recall but surely Mark Fisher wrote about this show... I mean it's described as a tale about "genetic time slippage" ffs... actually this predated Back To The Future and fulfils some of the scenarios entertained therein ie. there is some kind of sex with a great-great-grandmother, oh dear this does sound demented, whereby Dominick spawns his own great-grandfather or something...