THE TRUMPTONSHIRE TRILOGY

CAMBERWICK GREEN,TRUMPTON AND CHIGLEY

So,how many of the above did you actually remember   ?

There are the Pughs & Barney McGrew,and Windy Miller of course.Oh,and PC McGarry No.4_5_2.

But how about after that  ? Well,not many in my case.

Which is slightly surprising given how much time I'd spent watching them.But never underestimate the contribution of a supporting cast,just because you struggle to think of much to say about them.

If only life imitated art eh  ?

We'd all links arms and waltz off into the sunset.

So it's hardly a surprise that so many people look back at Trumps rather whistfully.

It's just such a lovely exercise in the art of wishful thinking.A sort of identikit existance based on only the best bits

An opportunity to re-acquaint yourself with some of the better elements of human nature that seem to have got lost along the way.

And a chance for kids to experience the world of care-free happiness that childhood should always be.

Oh,and the opportunity to be able to ignore historical and period anomalies purely in the name of entertainment.

Edwardian looking doctors in a boneshakers,women with floor-length dresses,and working windmills,all rubbing shoulders with helicopters,Corbusier style concrete monoliths and a young girl wearing a groovy 60's style dress.

Yep,it was all over the shop.But few would've noticed and even fewer would've cared.

Although,just for the record,let's look at what else was thrown into this Trumptonshire melting pot..........

So that'll be the Butcher,Baker and Candlestick Maker then......Well,you'd probably assume that was a pretty safe bet, and I doubt you'd really have cause to be too fazed by an appearance from the GingerBread Man to top it all off.

But Trumps always had its' feet firmly planted in reality,even if we're not absolutely sure what that particular reality was.

So the Baker,yes.But no Candlestick Maker- probably too retro even for Trumps.Or maybe just a victim of that thorny problem of successfully animating flame which meant Barney Mac and friends had such an easy life.

I'm not entirely sure why there wasn't a Butcher's though.Other than it might have been a little too distressing seeing the dismembered relatives of Farmer Bell's livestock on screen.Although the thought of the proprietor sloshing around ankle-deep in entrails does put a smile on this particular big kid I have to say.There's nothing like a bit of gooey slop !

Hmmm,well maybe not,and certainly not from Auntie Beeb in the 1960's.

The presence of shops like a fishmonger's is a nice reminder though that such things did actually exist as stand-alone businesses outside of supermarkets........and,thankfully,still do if you look hard enough.

A world without supermarkets,fast food outlets,or coffee shops.Who'd have thought it   ?

But people did indeed manage to function without them,and that more genteel pace of life is further reinforced by characters like the bargee, milliner and rag n bone man.All of whom would barely register with any of today's audience and are evidence that perhaps the series should be shown in schools as pieces of social history if nothing else !

CAMBERWICK  - FOR PICS & FULL BIOGS SEE CAMBERWICK Pt2

PETER HAZEL - Postman

MR.CROCKETT- Garage Owner

DR.MOPP - G.P.

JONATHON BELL - Farmer

ROGER VARLEY - Chimney Sweep

PC McGARRY No.452 - Bobby (on motorbike)

MR.DAGENHAM - Salesman (of anything and everything)

MR.CARRAWAY - Fishmonger

MRS.DINGLE - Postmistress.Owns a puppy called PACKET

THOMAS TRIPP - Milkman.Owns a black cat called TABITHA

WINDY MILLER - Miller,smallholder,cider-maker,whittler

MRS.HONEYMAN & BABY - Local Gossip & wife of Chemist- husband unseen,as is shop.

THE MURPHY FAMILY - Bakers -MICKEY & DORA MURPHY and kids MARY & PADDY.

CAPTAIN SNORT - In charge at Pippin Fort

SGT MAJOR GROUT - 2nd in command....

....of the "soldier boys"

ARMITAGE,FEATHERBY,HIGGINS,HOPWOOD,LUMLEY & MEEK

TRUMPTON - FOR PICS & FULL BIOGS SEE  TRUMPTON Pt2

THE MAYOR

PHILBY His Chauffeur, and MR.TROOP,The Town Clerk

MR.ANTONIO - Ice Cream Man

MR.BOLT- Borough Engineer

MR.CLAMP - Greengrocer

MR.CRADDOCK - Park Keeper

MR.MUNNINGS - Printer

MR.PLATT- Clock Maker

MR.ROBINSON - Window Cleaner

MR.WANTAGE & FRED - Phone Engineers

MR.WILKINS - Plumber

MISS LOVELACE - Milliner.Owns 3 pekenese, MITZY,DAPHNE, and LULU

MRS.COBBIT - Flower Seller

NICK FISHER - Bill Sticker

CONSTABLE POTTER - Bobby (on motorbike)

RAGGY DAN - Rag n Bone Man

WALTER HARKIN - Painter & Decorator

"THE ARTIST" - Un-named transient artist

CHIPPY MINTON,WIFE DORA AND SON,NIBBS- Father & Son Carpentry business & Dora is a house mum

CAPTAIN FLACK & Firemen  PUGH,PUGH,BARNEY McGREW, CUTHBERT,DIBBLE AND GRUBB - Legendary Fire Brigade.

"AUNTIE" - Fireman Cuthbert's,& only ever called "auntie"

CHIGLEY - FOR PICS & FULL BIOGS SEE CHIGLEY

LORD BELBOROUGH - Owner of Winkstead Hall     BRACKETT - His Butler     MR.BILTON - His Gardener   BESSIE - His rolling stock steam engine     BINNIE - His static steam engine (water pump)

MR.CRESSWELL- Biscuit Factory Owner MR.FLETCHER - Factory Manager  WILLIE MUNN - Worker (Mr.Clamp's nephew)

MR.SWALLOW - Wharf operator  MR.RUMPLING - Barge Owner

MR.CLUTTERBUCK - Builder  HORACE AND CYRIL - His Brickies

HARRY FARTHING - Potter  & daughter, WINNIE

MR.GUBBINS & MR.SNEED- Dustmen. Well,they've been widely referred to as that.But those names are never actually mentioned throughout the 1 episode in which they appear -"Lord Belborough's Lucky Day".Where the most we get is when one says "me and my mate Harry".So they were probably added later for one of the LP's. (yet to be confirmed)

ON THIS PAGE -At-a-glance character lists,plus a wider look at their place in Trumptonshire society and how it functions.

( don't worry,it's not quite as dull as it sounds ! )

That said,in Trumptonshire society no-one's really labelled as a support act.

It's far more like your average bee or ant colony,than your typical disfunctional human society.

Each individual has a clearly defined role and each is ultimately dependant on one another.

'a place for everything,and everything in it's place.' And very much a sum of all its' parts.

Not a whole lot different from the real world.But the major difference in Trumptonshire is that they're all perfectly comfortable with it and it's actually viewed as a positive rather than simply a necessity.

Everyone rallies round to help others when required -ranging from Camberwick's soldier boys and Trumpton's firemen right down to the likes of the ice cream man who pitches in to repair Mrs Cobbit's ceiling.And even Chigley's Lord Belborough mucks in and transports goods on his railway and plays the organ for the Biscuit factory workers at close of play each day.

So it's little wonder then that any problems and discord never last longer than 15 minutes.

Any other omissions from this fully functioning society   ?

Well,unsurprisingly,none of the usual cradle to grave necessities are shown.No hospital,church,undertaker,graveyard or crematorium.Birth was at least recognised as a pre-requisite for existence by the presence of Mrs Honeyman's baby although there are only ever 3 kids on show besides that,which is somewhat odd.(Mary,Paddy and Winnie)

But you'd hardly expect death to loom large and the good news is that it doesn't "loom" at all.

Yep,no-one dies in Trumptonshire.Perish the thought.......if not the inhabitants.Although,of course,Mr.Murray did later relent and add a crematorium (ho-ho).

The remarkable Doc Mopp appears to keep all illness at bay single-handedly.Although there is mention of a hospital in Trumpton but it's never shown.A fate that also seems to befall anyone who might be considered the wrong side of 

middle age.Because apart from Mr.Carraway and Barney Mac,I can't immediately think of anyone who looks remotely old aged.....

"Troop.Have we got a pension deficeit  ?"

"No your Worship.We haven't got any pensioners"

"Ah.Splendid."

Funny eh  ? Well,maybe it seems that way to us now.But as a kid it all seemed fair enough of course,because anyone over 20 was old.   Sigh.

But all-in-all a nice mixed bag of characters that meant that things were never dull.

And if you couldn't find someone to warm to,then you really were a very hard nut to crack for one so young  !

Did you know......that the only Camberwick character that appeared in Trumpton in anything more than a bystander or crowd scene capacity was...........Mr.Crockett  ? It's true.And more on crossovers

Trumptonshire - Life as we'd like to know it   ?