Topsy and Tim

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Topsy and Tim is a series of children's books written by Jean Adamson and Gareth Adamson about twins and their adventures with their new friends. They were first published by Blackie in 1960; Topsy and Tim were relaunched in new editions in 1990, 2003 and 2009. [1] In 2020, Topsy and Tim "On the Farm" was reprinted to celebrate 60-years since the first publication.

Contents

Since 1960 more than 130 Topsy and Tim titles have been published with sales of more than 21 million. Since first broadcasting on Cbeebies in 2013, the live-action production of Topsy and Tim has received over 250 million views online.

Origin

In an interview with The Guardian , [2] Jean Adamson said that she and her future husband had been trained as book illustrators at Goldsmiths College. They decided to get married and quit their jobs in order to write and illustrate their own children's books. Their approach was shaped by a visit to a children's bookshop in Newcastle where they realised that there were few books depicting actual contemporary children. She explained that the books were also influenced by the post-war mood:

At that time, not so terribly long after the end of the war, England was just waking up, bright colours were coming in, there was a lovely optimistic feeling in the air. So I said "Why don't we do books with real live little children in, with the little adventures and so on that they have in the house?" [2]

Television series

The books have been adapted for television twice; first, in collaboration with Video Collection International in 1996 and, second, in collaboration with Darrall MacQueen Limited for the 2013 live-action production, first aired on Cbeebies, now available online and on DVD.

Bevanfield Films

Firstly by Bevanfield Films for BBC Studios Home Entertainment, 60 episode 5 minute animated series narrated by Roger Blake and was shown on ITV.

CBeebies

In 2013, a 13-minute live-action series was made for CBeebies, with 3 series produced and 71 episodes made. Further details can be seen here: List of Topsy and Tim episodes . No further episodes have been planned as of 2024. The series was produced by Darrall Macqueen and distributed globally by WildBrain. Series 1 and 2 were filmed from March to October 2013, the Christmas Special was filmed in December 2013 and Series 3 was filmed from June to August 2015.

Characters

Cast list of Topsy and Tim
ActorCharacter
123
Jocelyn MacNabTopsy Main
Joshua LesterTimothy "Tim" Main
Anna Acton Joy Main
Chris HannonBrian Main
Suzy Aitchison Grandma Main
Natahlia ColbourneKerry Recurring
Tom HibberdTony Recurring
Nicole DavisDominique Recurring
Iain CampbellCarson Recurring Guest
Emily ButterfieldElaine Recurring Guest
Barry McCarthyMr Fishwick Recurring
Kayleigh BurkeVinda Recurring
Natalya HibberdJosie Recurring
Jon RummeyMr. Rosen Recurring
Tim HibberdMr. Fen Recurring Guest
Joshua LevinStephen "Stevie" Dunton Recurring
Kemaal Deen-EllisRai Recurring Guest
Tom PricePaul Recurring
Bobby SmalldridgeAndrew Recurring
Emma KershawDr. Walton Recurring
India BrownMolly Recurring
Eva Alexander Miss Terry Recurring
June Whitfield Mrs Higley-Pigley Guest
James WooldridgeMr. Morris Recurring
Glen DaviesDIY Derek Recurring Guest Recurring
Jake UnsworthKevin Guest


List of books

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References

  1. Rigby, Nic (22 January 2003). "Relaunch for Topsy and Tim". BBC News.
  2. 1 2 Pauli, Michelle; Nylind, Linda; Wyse, Pascal (2 November 2010). "Jean Adamson: Living with Topsy and Tim". The Guardian .
  3. "Topsy and Tim: New Lunchboxes: Jean Adamson: 9781846461415".