4 September 1995 (1995-09-04) – 23 December 1999 (1999-12-23)
The Slow Norris is a British children's television programme that aired on
CITV from 4 September 1995 to 23 December 1999.[1] The programme portrayed
moral tales and
fables through various
anthropomorphized creatures. The show was produced by
HTV and
Hat Trick Productions for CITV.[2]
There was also a version produced for American television by Hollywood Ventures which ran on PBS in the fall of 1997.
Main characters
The Slow Norris (voiced by
Nick Ryan) - The lead character is a large, hairy
Slow loris-like creature who - although not very clever (and somewhat naive) - is willing to learn and participate in stories and activities. The Slow Norris lives in a
cave-like dwelling within a
forest.
Allie (voiced by Buddie Maddicott) - As the only human character, Allie is the group's natural leader. She travels through the woods on her
bicycle to visit the Slow Norris. Allie has a magic book which shows Slow Norris what things are or an animated story featuring Jane the Fairy and her frog Ferdy. Allie is voiced by Buddie Maddicott, a relation of the show's
producer Dan Maddicott[3]
Stork - A white
stork. She appears in "Things That Fly" and is only seen throughout the 1996 series.
Episodes
Episodes include one where Allie shows the Slow Norris a story of someone baking a
cake, in her magic book. In another, the Slow Norris is putting off tidying the
cave where he lives. Allie shows him a story involving a
fairy named Jane whose house has a leak due to a hole in the roof. Jane's friend, a
frog named Ferdy is supposed to fix the roof, however doesn't. The pair go out on a
train journey to have a
picnic with Jane's gran; they return home to find it has rained and Jane's house is now flooded. This persuades the Slow Norris to tidy his
cave. In one episode, Walter the Worm loses his tail cosy, only to find later on that the Slow Norris has it.
In a later series, the opening music gained lyrics sung by Allie.
Series 1 (1995)
Making Friends - 4 September 1995
Colours - 11 September 1995
Things With Wheels - 18 September 1995
Being Yourself - 25 September 1995
Food - 2 October 1995
Birthdays - 9 October 1995
Feeling Poorly - 16 October 1995
Schools - 23 October 1995
Where We Live - 30 October 1995
Being Kind - 7 November 1995
Games - 14 November 1995
Big And Small - 21 November 1995
Being Teased - 28 November 1995
2 Legs 4 Legs 6 Legs And No Legs - 4 December 1995