Penny Crayon is a children's television series that was produced for the BBC in the United Kingdom in 1989. It was first broadcast on BBC One from 14 September 1989 to 1 October 1990 and was made by Maddocks Animation, which had previously produced Jimbo and the Jet-Set and The Family-Ness.
Penny Crayon is a thirteen episode programme about the adventures of a mischievous schoolgirl who loves to draw. Using the magic crayons she always carries with her she brings everything she draws to life, usually creating a world of chaos for her and best friend Dennis until it's either rubbed out or washed away.
Penny Crayon is voiced by comedian Su Pollard and Dennis is voiced by Peter Hawkins.
Episodes[]
- Tower of London (14 September 1989)
- The Cookery Class (21 September 1989)
- Circus Lion (28 September 1989)
- Amusement Park (5 October 1989)
- Waxworks Museum (12 October 1989)
- Pantomime (19 October 1989)
- Haunted House (26 October 1989)
- The Needle and the Damage Done (2 November 1989)
- Silly Daydream (9 November 1989)
- Camping Holiday (16 November 1989)
- Treasure Hunt (23 November 1989)
- A Dickens of A Mess (30 November 1989)
- Little Shoe of Horror (1 October 1990)
Characters[]
- Penny - Penny is a bright and resourceful schoolgirl who
loves drawing. She has magic crayons and pencils that can draw on any surface including brick walls, cave interiors and even the inside of a whale's mouth.
- Dennis - Penny's best friend. A good-natured simple boy, often to be heard praising Penny's cleverness or bravery
- Tara - is Penny's seldom seen evil cousin who has a magical
eraser of doom and can permanently erase any of Penny's drawings. She was an unpopular character but had a major role in the final episode 'Little Shoe of Horrors (with robots)'*
VHS and DVD Releases[]
In the early 1990s Parkfield Publishing released two videos from the first Pennny Crayon series.
| VHS video title | Year of release | Episodes |
|---|---|---|
| Penny Crayon: Volume 1 (MKC 0001) | 1989 | The Circus Lion, Waxworks Museum, Cookery Class, Pantomime, |
| Penny Crayon: Volume 2 (MKC 0002) | 1989 | Tower of London, Amusement Park, Camping Holiday, Treasure Hunt |
In the mid-1990s Hallmark and Carlton Home Entertainment released a single video with four episodes.
| VHS video title | Year of release | Episodes |
|---|---|---|
| Penny Crayon: As Seen on TV (30073401430) | 1994 | Camping Holiday, Waxworks Museum, Haunted House, and The Cookery Class |
Repeats[]
Penny Crayon has been shown several times on BBC1 and BBC2 in the 1990's and 2000's. CBBC on Choice premiered Penny Crayon on Saturday 25th March 2000 at 7.45am, 11.00am, 2.15pm and 5.30pm until Saturday 13th May 2000. The next showing was a weekday slot on Monday 7th May 2001 - Wednesday 23rd May 2001 at 9.20am, 12.20pm, 3.20pm and 6.20pm. The third showing was a weekday again on Wednesday 24th October 2001 - Friday 9th November 2001 at 8.35am, 11.35am, 2.35pm and 5.35pm and the final showing was a weekend from Saturday 5th January 2002 - Sunday 10th February 2002 at 7.10am, 10.10am, 1.10pm and 4.10pm. It has been repeated once on CBeebies in Summer 2002.