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The Clangers are unique, imaginary creatures; a family who live on a blue planet in space.

They are inquisitive and adventurous creatures, who are loving and supportive of each other and their friends, communicating with their now famous high-pitched Clanger whistles.



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History

It all began in 1969...

Clangers was originally broadcast by the BBC in 1969–1972, and enjoys a cult following in the UK.

The first episode was broadcast on 16th November 1969, with a further 25 episodes being made. The series was made by Smallfilms, the company set up by Oliver Postgate (writer, animator and narrator) and Peter Firmin (modelmaker and illustrator). Firmin designed the characters, and his wife knitted and "dressed" the Clangers.

Clangers originated from a series of children's books which developed from another Smallfilms production, Noggin the Nog. In the 1967 story Noggin and the Moonmouse, a spacecraft landed which contained a mouse-like character in a duffel coat, who wanted fuel for his spacecraft.

When the BBC asked Smallfilms to produce a new series for colour television, but did not specify a storyline, Postgate concluded that because space exploration was particularly topical, the new series should be set in space. Postgate adapted the Moonmouse from the earlier story, removing its tail "because it kept getting into the soup!"

The name "Clangers" derives from the sound made by opening the metal coverof one of the creatures' crater-like burrows, each of which was covered with a door made from an old metal dustbin lid, to protect against meteorite impacts.

The distinctive whistles made by the Clangers, performed on swanee whistles, have become as identifiable as the characters themselves, much imitated by viewers. These whistles followed the rhythm and pitch of a script in English.

In October 2013, it was announced that a new series would be produced. The new series of Clangers began broadcasting on CBeebies (UK) and Sprout (US) in 2015.