Oliver Postgatersquo;s death last December was greeted with great sadness. For over forty years his name was synonymous with the best in childrenrsquo;s television ndash; Bagpuss; The Clangers; Ivor the Engine; The Pogles; Noggin the Nog; Pingwings. Oliver wrote and narrated the stories; while Peter Firmin illustrated the characters and made the puppets. Their classic films are still loved by viewers of all ages. In this delicious autobiography Oliver Postgate describes how he came to create his stories and characters; developing innovative techniques of animation and puppetry alongside his friend and co-producer Peter Firmin. Amazingly; almost all of Oliverrsquo;s films were made in a cowshed in Kent on a budget of next to nothing. But the path to film-making was far from conventional; or even planned. Oliver Postgate was the grandson of George Lansbury; leader of the Labour Party in the 1920s; and his father was Raymond Postgate; who became famous as the founder and author of The Good Food Guide. Oliver followed in neitherrsquo;s footsteps. Before his first TV production; Alexander the Mouse in 1958; he had already been a war evacuee; a conscientious objector; a farm labourer; a relief worker in post-war Germany; an artist; an actor; and an inventor. The story of Oliver Postgatersquo;s extraordinary and adventurous life; and the wonderful characters who populated it; both real and imagined; is witty; charming; beautifully remembered and beautifully told.
#732939 in eBooks 2009-11-20 2009-11-25File Name: B002XYFUCE
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Imagining Mary McCarthy and Lillian Hellman as play mates.By Priscilla NemethWhat a clever and refreshing way to revisit two iconic writers: Lillian Hellman and Mary McCarthy. This sharp and digestible play imagines the two women having an extended interchange and even finding a sliver of common ground. Some of the devices that Ephron uses in the play would make for great staging today.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A witty delightBy Jean E. SlangerAs an avid reader of the works of both Mary McCarthy and Lillian Hellman I found Nora Ephrons play not only witty and insightful but wickedly funny. Id be happy to see it staged. I read it first to myself and later with a friend who liked it despite knowing next to nothing about the characters on whom it was based.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. RIVALRY EXPOSED HUMOROUSLYBy dorothy koppelmanI LIKED THE IMAGINATIVE WAY OF DEALING WITH TWO WOMEN WHO WERE SO TALENTED. SO ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THINGS IN A PUBLIC WAY. AND YET SO PERSONALLY AND DAMAGINGLY CONTEMPTUOUS.
