Chocky (TV series)
| Chocky | |
|---|---|
 Chocky Titles | |
| Written by |
John Wyndham (novel) Anthony Read |
| Directed by | Vic Hughes |
| Starring |
James Hazeldine Carol Drinkwater Andrew Ellams Zoe Hart Anabel Worrell Prentis Hancock Glynis Brooks |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) |
Vic Hughes Pamela Lonsdale |
| Cinematography | Alan Jonas |
| Editor(s) | Oscar Webb |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Distributor | Thames |
| Release | |
| Original release | 1984 – 1986 |
Chocky is a 1984 children's television drama based on the 1968 novel by John Wyndham and was broadcast on ITV in the United Kingdom. Two sequels were produced. All were written by Anthony Read and produced by Thames Television. The series was also broadcast and popular in Czechoslovakia where it was dubbed in both Czech and Slovak languages. It was also dubbed in French and broadcast in Canada in the late 1980s and early 1990s; in Spanish and broadcast in Spain in the late 1980s. It was hugely popular in Bulgaria in the early 1990s. All episodes were shown numerous times.
While the 1968 novel was set in an unspecified 'near future', the TV adaptation was set contemporaneously in the mid-1980s in Surrey. The Gore family acquire a second generation Citroen CX car which was marketed as being technologically advanced at the time.
Series synopses
Chocky
Matthew Gore is an intelligent boy chosen by a mysterious extraterrestrial visitor to be a source of information about life on Earth. As his schoolwork and artistic talent improve dramatically he arouses the suspicion of powerful groups who wish to tap into the amazing fund of knowledge to which he is now party.
Chocky's Children
A year has passed since Matthew said goodbye to his alien friend, and in the summer holidays he meets Albertine, a mathematical prodigy, with whom he discovers he can communicate telepathically. One day Chocky returns to warn Matthew that they are both in danger. When he returns to tell Albertine, he finds she has disappeared.
Chocky's Challenge
Chocky hopes, with Matthew and Albertine's help, to help the human race discover cosmic power, which unlike Earth's finite natural resources, will sustain them for as long as the universe itself exists. But their knowledge has aroused a great deal of interest from the military, and they are willing to take drastic action if they don't get what they want.
Starring
- Matthew Gore - Andrew Ellams
- David Gore - James Hazeldine
- Mary Gore - Carol Drinkwater
- Polly Gore - Zoë Hart
- Albertine Meyer - Annabel Worrell
- Arnold Meyer - Prentis Hancock
- Chocky (voice) - Glynis Brooks
- Chocky's Parent (voice) - Norma Ronald
Transmission dates
- Chocky: 9 January - 13 February 1984, repeated in re-edited single episode form during the Christmas 1984 holidays
- Chocky's Children: 7 January - 11 February 1985, and again this was repeated as a single edited-down episode over Christmas 1985.
- Chocky's Challenge: 29 September - 16 October 1986
Video release
The re-edited single episode, originally broadcast at the end of 1984, was released on VHS by Thames Video in the mid-1980s.
DVD release
The complete Chocky saga was available on DVD (all-region PAL, UK) from Second Sight. This set is now out of print. Revelation Films re-released the whole series in August 2010.
References
External links
- Chocky (1984) at the Internet Movie Database
- Chocky's Children (1985) at the Internet Movie Database
- Chocky's Challenge (1986) at the Internet Movie Database
- Little Gems