Muzzy

Muzzy is the mascot of the BBC Early Advantage program, an educational system that teaches children and young adults how to speak various world languages. He was created in the 1980s and has appeared in multiple short animated films. Muzzy was voiced by English actor Jack May, who also appeared in BBC Radio productions of The Lord of the Rings, Dr. Who, and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

Muzzy is a large, furry, greenish-blue alien who visits the realm of Gondoland for kid-friendly adventures, which pause periodically for educational interludes. He first appeared in the 1986 animated short Muzzy in Gondoland, in which he is initially jailed for eating parking meters. The viewers learn that Muzzy is an omnivore who feeds on normally indigestible objects; his favorite food of all is clocks. In jail, Muzzy meets a gardener named Bob who is in love with a princess, but who is being prevented from declaring his love by a cruel vizier named Corvax who also loves Princess Sylvia. After saving the kingdom from hundreds of Sylvia duplicates accidentally created by Corvax’s computer, Muzzy takes off in his spaceship again, now good friends with the people of Gondoland. The film was released in Russia in 1990.

In 1989, a second Muzzy movie was released, titled Muzzy Comes Back. It told the story of Muzzy’s return trip to Gondoland, and how he saved Bob and Sylvia’s daughter Amanda from Corvax’s revenge scheme (which involved turning her invisible and kidnapping her).

The underlying purpose of Muzzy was to teach children foreign languages, including French, Spanish, Italian, and German. The series gained substantial popularity when its commercial was put on regular rotation on the American Nickelodeon network. In 2013, the series was revived with new animation and music by the DMP Organization.

Cast
Jack May – Muzzy
Willie Rushton – King Nigel
Miriam Margolyes – Queen Erza
Susan Sheridan – Princess Sylvia
Derek Griffiths – Bob, Corvax

Pictures