To think Topsy and Tim should start bloody school sometime this century?

[WhispersOfWickedness]

The poor darlings are going to be about 27 by the time they start at this rate

Topsy and tim must be in their late 30s dd had the books and she is in her 20s the poor buggers let them go to school. The simpson children should be working by now lisa simpson is no way 8 she lies

They are at least my age. I read the books when I was a child and I'm very nearly 53!

Nope they are older than that!

First published in 1960

Yes, Hemlock, that was my view. I'm 50 and I can remember the books from when I was very small. I had one where they went to a fancy dress party and dressed up as gypsies and their mum made up a paste of cocoa powder and water to make them look swarthy. They also had a small black adopted sister called Tansie - is she still around or has she been conveniently airbrushed out?

And what's with this telly nonsense??!!

Gah. I do hope My Naughty Little Sister ended up with Bad Harry. I bet she's got loads of tattoos by now and Mr and Mrs Cocoa Jones shake their heads sorrowfully when she comes back to visit her parents.

Oh topsy and tim are older than me I can't remember them

OMG SonorousBip I clearly remember the gypsy one with the cocoa powder! I used to love the books as a child.

The Grandma on this week is their paternal one. Last week Joyce went to look after her own mother!
Not that I end up analysing it or anything!! DS 5 loves it and DDs 14 and 11 and I groan at the slow pace and super maturity of the children. Which incidentally, is to give the young actors a fighting chance. RL 4 year olds would find it hard to perform as required.
HTH

I remember being dressed as a gypsy was a thing in the 70s fqncy dress birthday parties a dozen gypsy girls wi th scarves on their heads

Rockdoctor - do you remember that one of their friends - Tony someone - was dressed as a matchbox? I always thought that was supercool!!

They should have been at school in the 1980s. They were in nursery the same time as me.

What?!? You mean they won't even start school this series?! FFS
Also, surely their birthday must be September 1st, as they are turning 5 but starting school after the birthday party

Ok, just had a look at an episode list, the first day at school episode is a week today Then the last one in the series is a memories one, ffs

Can you imagine what it would be like getting actual 4 year olds to act though!

I guess they have to keep the number of series to a minimum otherwise the actors get too old.

I love T&T. It is so simple and more realistic than a blue polar bear driving a submarine octonauts

The original stories were written by a husband and wife - she was the ilustrator, he the writer. As was usual in the 50s and 60s, he wrote all the stories with an active little boy doing stuff and a passive little girl being good and nice. She swapped the character's names round so Topsy was able to have some fun.

Never occurred to me that Topsy and Tim were feminists, but that line from the illustrator did amuse me. (She does both words and pics now as her husband died a few years back.)

They aren't even twins, check the credits :o

Wait, what? The very end?!? No more series?! How am I going to break it to the DC?!

Is Joyce the mum? If so, she is weirdly nice - clearly having an affair and is compensating to assuage her guilt.

Didn't the BBC get loads of complaints that the actors were too old for the parts they were playing? Think they said that kids any younger wouldn't be able to act at the same level.

Oh God my DDs love T&T and we have to make up stories at bedtime about them too. Usually that Tim is being very, very naughty and ends up losing his trousers. Yes, we're twisted here.

My SIL thinks they are actual pre-schoolers (her DC has just turned one!). She's in for a huge schock when she realises what a pre-schooler can actually do. And photocopying ain't one of them.

Can't bear it - they are all so nice. Why don't the parents argue / shout / moan like normal parents! Having said that, I am weirdly addicted to it, and am rather partial to the man who pops round with a cake just after they move in, is that the neighbour? I can sit through that episode a lot

Yes where is Tansy?

Looking forward to the episode when they are sixteen, it might not all be so harmonious then.
And that's when Mum said " well, if you hadn't taken the drugs you wouldn't be in this mess" or similar.

When's that really fit fire fighter/ model coming back? Kerry's dad I think. He helped build the swings- way better looking than the next door neighbour.

DD is 5 & we still read my T&T books from the early 80's.
They had Tansy, the adopted sister & later on adopted Teddy, Chinese baby.
My a Dad still knows the books word for word without looking! He was most put out when he was reading a new version to my Niece & Tansy & Teddy had been airbrushed out!
Last night DD asked if I wanted to be more like T&T's Mum.