Crystal Tipps and Alistair

Crystal Tipps and Alistair

1972 - United Kingdom

The style of animation on this children's cartoon series might well have been influenced by the Beatles full-length animated feature Yellow Submarine which had come out a few years earlier. 

To many, the almost psychedelic look and feel of the series was enough for them to dub it 'Crystal Trips with Alistair.' Creator Hilary Hayton certainly invented a land where everything seemed fab and groovy and where best friends Crystal and Alistair lived in a pop-art world that one could easily envisage being a part of John Lennon's 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.' And just like Lennon's trip into the world of 'LSD' so Crystal and Alistair's world included tangerine flowers of yellow and green as well as tangible rainbows and giant bubbles that enabled them to float up to the sky. 

When they needed more conventional (?) forms of transport Crystal had her own big-propellered biplane. There were no words uttered between the characters, the pictures told the stories clearly enough and to accompany the vivid images there was an equally-expressive score from composer Paul Reade. 

Published on December 5th, 2018. Written by Laurence Marcus for Television Heaven.

Read Next...

Captain Pugwash

Arrr, listen up, ye scallywags! Captain Pugwash be the finest, bumblin’ pirate to ever sail the high seas aboard the Black Pig! With his trusty crew, he be always gettin’ tangled up in misadventures—blast that sneaky Cut-Throat Jake!

Also tagged Childrens Animation

Cloppa Castle

Animated pre-school fun from two of Gerry Anderson's former employees, Cloppa Castle ran for 52 episodes over two series

Also tagged Childrens Animated Series

Noggin the Nog

"Listen to me and I will tell you the story of Noggin the Nog, as it was told in the days of old"

Also tagged Childrens Animation

Lord Peter Wimsey

A British 'Toff' uses his appearance as an upper-class twit to outwit his adversaries.

Also released in 1972

The Jetsons

Hanna-Barbera's animated series that followed The Flinstones - turning stone age into space age seemed a simple enough task. But how did it go down with the television audience of the day?

Also tagged Childrens Animation

Pokémon

Television Heaven recalls an old review from 2000, shortly after the Pokémon craze had hit the UK, we surmised, "Whether the animated Pokémon will ultimately earn a fondly remembered place amongst the ranks of other, much-loved cartoon series will be a question for a future generation to decide..."

Also tagged Childrens Animation

A Charlie Brown Christmas

For Peanuts fans everywhere, it just wouldn't be Christmas without this classic holiday delight.

Also tagged Childrens Animation