Noddy Goes to Toyland

How can you not say yes to Noddy? It’s all he can say to you.

This charming colour cartoon of Enid Blyton’s timeless toy boy was produced as a pilot episode for an unrealised series. It is a faithful but curtailed version of Blyton’s book of the same name, first published in 1949. The abandoned orphan Noddy is treated with suspicion by the overly officious authorities and taken to court to prove he is of the correct profile to join the community (i.e. a toy). No wonder it’s a timeless classic.

Arthur Humberstone was the key creative behind the film. After working at Gaumont-British Animation in the late 1940s he was a key animator on a number of British cartoon classics including Animal Farm (1954), Yellow Submarine (1968) and Watership Down (1978).