25 Much-Loved Kids’ TV Shows From The 90s You’d Probably Forgotten About
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While kids these days are increasingly turning to YouTube for entertainment, there was a time where we all rushed home from school to watch all of our favourite shows on CBBC and CITV.
A few of them such as Blue Peter and Newsround are still on air to this day, while 90′s favourites like Sabrina The Teenage Witch, The Demon Headmaster and Power Rangers are still very much in the public consciousness due to recent reboots.
Many shows though were consigned to the TV vaults after their original runs ended – but with everyone enjoying some blasts from the past at the moment, we thought we’d have a good old rummage to unearth some oft-forgotten 90′s classics for a serious nostalgia hit.
How many of these did you remember?
Spatz
Spatz was a sitcom set in a 1930s-themed fast food joint that aired on CITV from 1990 to 1992.
Many famous faces passed through the restaurant’s doors, including David Harewood, Rhys Ifans, Gary Lineker, Danny John-Jules and Nicholas Parsons, while former EastEnders star Samantha Womack also appeared as a member of staff.
Round The Bend
There was a lot going on in Round The Bend. It was supposed to be a parody of Saturday morning magazine shows, and was set in a sewer and fronted by a grumpy crocodile called Doc Croc who linked between various satirical cartoons.
But we mostly remember it for its opening titles that began with viewers getting flushed down the toilet.
Zzzap!
Zzzap! was giant 18ft comic that had been brought to life, featuring ridiculous characters like Cutherbert Lily (he was “dead silly”), Daisy Dares You and Smarty Arty, who you might not have realised was played by Art Attack host Neil Buchanan.
Greenclaws
Greenclaws was a friendly green monster who lived in a greenhouse and would grow a variety of fabulous seeds inside a Riddle Tree.
The whole premise of the show was pretty bizarre, but for many 90′s kids, Greenclaws was their answer to Alan Ttitchmarsh.
Tots TV
Made by the same people as Rosie & Jim, Tots TV featured three ragdoll friends – Tilly, Tom and Tiny – who lived in a country cottage together (quite where the adults were was anyone’s guess), as they regularly got up to mischief, taught us a bit of literacy, numeracy and some French, as well as doting on the donkey that lived next door.
Wizadora
Long before Sabrina, there was Wizadora – a preschool show about a trainee wizard who had problems with getting her spells right.
She had many weird and wonderful friends, including a living scarecrow, a talking telephone and three sock puppets who lived in the drawers in her kitchen.
Miami 7
While S Club 7 are still remembered as one of the biggest pop bands of the late 90s and early 00s, they actually started out on kids TV, where they played fictionalised versions of themselves as a struggling group starting out in the US.
The first series acted as promotion for S Club’s debut single Bring It All Back, while later series relocated the group to LA, Hollywood and Barcelona.
Count Duckula
Count Duckula was conceived as a spin-off from the popular Dangermouse, having been a recurring villain in the popular 80′s cartoon.
And while he was based on Bram Stoker’s vampire, this count – voiced by David Jason – was a vegetable-loving duck who was obsessed with becoming famous. He also had no fangs.
Playdays
Viewers would board the Playdays bus which would drop you off at a different stop each day.
On Mondays, we checked in with Why Bird in the lost property office, while on Wednesdays we caught up with Mr Jolly at the Roundabout Stop, while on Friday we’d pay a visit to Poppy the cat’s house.
The Animals Of Farthing Wood
This very cute cartoon followed a group of wild animal pals who were forced to move to a park after humans drove them out of their own home, and gave us our first lessons in wildlife conservation without us even realising.
Cleopatra: Comin’ Atcha!
Any 90′s pop fan will remember the 10/10 classic Cleopatra’s Theme from the girlband of the same name. They achieved scored three UK top 10s and went on to support the Spice Girls at Wembley and ended up signing to Madonna’s music label Maverick.
At around the time of their debut release, the Higgins sisters – made up of Cleo, Yonah and Zainam – also had their own sitcom on CITV, in which they played fictionalised versions of themselves along with their mum and younger sister Terri.
Dr Zitbag’s Transylvania Pet Shop
This wacky cartoon originally aired in France and was re-dubbed for a British audience in 1994. It saw scientist Dr Zitbag set up his own pet shop in an old castle after being fired from his job, creating new weird and wonderful animals in his laboratory.
The Riddlers
Over 20 years on from the series finishing, we’re still totally creeped out by The Riddlers, which focussed on the adventures of two humanoid puppet creatures Mossop and Tiddler, and also had the one of the most disturbing theme tunes for a kids show.
Are You Afraid Of The Dark?
This US series saw a group of kids get together in the woods to tell ghost stories, with each week’s episode bringing to life a different spooky tale.
We’ve got goosebumps again just thinking about it.
Short Change
Short Change was essentially a kids’ version of Watchdog, tackling a variety of consumer issues each week.
The show aired from 1994 to 2005, and over that time featured presenters including Ortis Deley, Angelica Bell Andi Peters and Zoe Ball.
Cone Zone
Being a sitcom set in an ice cream parlour, Cone Zone was like a sister show to CITV’s previous comedy Spatz, except with less burgers and more wafers.
You might recognise The Crown and Doctor Foster star Victoria Hamilton as owner Zandra, while later series starred EastEnders’ Little Mo (aka Kasey Ainsworth) and Bad Girls’ Shell Dockley (aka Debra Stephenson).
Brum
Brum told the story of a small yellow replica car who would secretly leave a motor museum when the owner’s back was turned and get up to all sorts of adventures in the Big Town.
Each episode ended in the same way, with Brum just managing to return home to the museum before it was locked up for the night.
Woof!
Based on the book by Allan Ahlberg, Woof! followed the adventures of a young boy who shape-shifted into a dog.
In what is the only comparison it bares to 00′s teen drama Skins, there were three generations of the show, each of which starred a different lad with this unusual condition.
Finders Keepers
While Fun House was undoubtedly CITV’s trademark gameshow, we’d argue that Finders Keepers was actually just as – if not more – fun, seeing two teams of friends having to raid rooms for hidden objects in a specially built house.
Pinky And The Brain
Pinky And The Brain began life as a sketch on another of Warner Bros’ animated series, Animaniacs, but the characters proved so popular they eventually earned themselves their own show.
Each episode followed the two lab mice as they plotted (and failed) to take over the world.
Fully Booked
Everyone remembers Live & Kicking, but what about BBC Two’s Saturday morning kids magazine show, Fully Booked?
The show – which was hosted by the likes of Zoe Ball, Gail Porter, Tim Vincent and Vernon Kay over the years – was set in a hotel and would air in the summer months when L&K was on a break.
Mike And Angelo
Prior to CITV’s other sitcom about aliens, My Parents Are Aliens, came Mike And Angelo, which saw alien Angelo befriend young boy Mike having crash-landed in his house (via a wardrobe) after leaving his home planet of Ptarg.
During the series’ 11-year run, there were four different ‘Mikes’ and two different ‘Angelos’.
Jungle Run
This late 90s game show was much like The Crystal Maze and was a natural successor to previous CITV series Fun House.
It saw a team of intrepid explorers having to complete a number of jungle-themed challenges to win time inside the temple and better their chance of taking home the top prize.
Funnybones
This cartoon was an adaptation of the series of children’s books by Janet and Allan Ahlberg about two skeletons and their skeletal dog.
It was originally broadcast in Welsh, but was later recorded in English with comedian Griff Rhys Jones serving as the narrator.
Children’s Ward
As you might have guessed from the title, this drama set in the children’s ward of the fictitious South Park Hospital, telling the stories of the young patients and the staff who worked there.
The show became famous for featuring many young actors who went on to become big names, including EastEnders’ Danny Dyer, Line Of Duty’s Stephen Graham, Two Packets star Will Mellor and Coronation Street’s Tina O’Brien, Samia Ghadie and Jane Danson.
