In my opinion, it would of really sucked to have been a parent back the days before TV.
I know people have different views on how much screen time is appropriate for kids and I am sure as Orla gets older we will have some boundaries in place to make sure she is not spending too much time in front of a device.
But as a baby, children's TV has been an absolute God send.
So I thought I'd do a review of the kids programme Orla enjoys for a bit of fun.
These shows are not on the same level of the ones I remember as kid. Shows like Doug, Rugrats, Hey Arnold and Jonny Bravo are classics.
As we got older, Round the Twist (you still know all the lyrics to the theme tune don't you?), Sister Sister and Kenan and Kel (you know the lyrics to this as well right?) were the go to shows.
But in 2024, our go to channel is CBBC so most of these are from there.
Let's start with the Godfather of CBBC- Justin Fletcher.
There is very little this guy isn't involved with. Justin's House, Mr Tumble, Giggle Biz to name but a few.
Justin's House
A show about the dynamic between Justin, a talking and human like robot called Robert and a slightly irritating green puppet called Little Monster.
I assume Justin Fletcher is heavily involved in the creation of this and perhaps has an ego problem.
The show is Justin's House. They live in Justin's Town. The local newspaper is called the Justin Times.
It's a show which is a dynamic between the super clean and forever dusting Robert and the chaos of Justin. There are lots of characters that appear to add some colour including the judgemental Mrs Wilson, Cherry the Baker and the magical Cat who has a gift of suddenly appearing in different places whilst trying to helpful to whatever ridiculous situation Justin finds himself in.
Orla loves the songs in this show and truth be told... I quite like them as well. There are at least two songs an episode and I'm pretty confident I know the words to all of them. Orla dances along and even does the actions to a few of them.
So despite the ego and silly plots, this is actually one of the shows I could (and have) watched without any babies present.
**** 4 stars
Mr Tumble
Justin appears in this show (called Something Special) in multiple characters.
He plays himself but also Mr Tumble and a plethora of other characters including a baker and an over the top lady with silly hair.
Again it has Justin's ego all over it but this show finds a balance between education, inclusivity and fun.
Mr Tumble sends Justin on a mission to meet some kids at various locations. These kids are always from an SEN school and weaved through the whole show is Justin doing and teaching us sign language.
It's actually quite a wholesome programme and I hope it is showing Orla that differences in people should be celebrated and being kind to everyone is a must.
Mr Tumble is ridiculous though- Google him if you can't picture who he is.
*** 3 stars
Teletubbies
I remember this starting on TV and also them being a number one song in the charts.
It's had a makeover and the 'Tubbies' are a really simple watch for Orla.
She loves the song at the start and waves to welcome them to the screen. She asks 'where have the Tubbies gone' and always waves them goodbye when they are going.
The big difference with this modern Tubbies is the introduction of the Tiddlytubbies.
Yep, despite the Tubbies being fairly useless, being commanded by a laughing baby overlord who lives in the sun and only being assisted by a vacuum cleaner, the Tubbies are now responsible for looking after 8 babies.
Yes- 8!
Despite the absence of a responsible adult, the Tubbies seem to do a good job at raising the little ones.
They still get up to their usual cheeky mischief and are fixated on their special items - Tinkywinky's handbag, Dipsy's hat, Lala's ball and Po's scooter.
Overall, the episodes are not too long and the bright colours and stupid voices keeps Orla amused.
*** 3 stars
In the Night Garden
I actually don't know where to start with this one.
I would suggest whoever created this was on drugs as some of the characters and stories are so bizarre that no one in their right mind could of imagined them.
Orla loves Upsy Daisy. I think one of the few girls in the show who likes to wheel her bed around with her, pulls her skirt up whilst dancing and frolics in a field of daisies.
Iggle Piggle is the main guy. A sort of blue creature who wonders around with a red blanket but generally seems to have no idea what is going on.
I do think Daisy and Iggle Piggle get a little too close sometimes. If you watch it, when they are on screen together, notice how they kiss each other. A little adult for my liking.
How about Makka Pakka?
I mean...what a strange little man.
His main hobbies are collecting rocks and riding around on a tricycle trying to wash people's faces with a used sponge and some soap.
I have literally no idea what is going on in any episode of In the Night Garden.
However, the episodes are about 20 minutes and there is a mix of songs, dancing and bright colours. It's a good one just before bed and Orla seems to enjoy it (I do wonder if she has any clue about what is happening)
** 2 stars
There are other honourable mentions for kids TV on CBBC.
Go Jetters is pretty decent (it has a disco loving unicorn as the wise Oracle), Duggee is great (ah woof) and Bluey is pretty well written (for adults and kids)
I wanted to finish on Bing.
This is a rabbit who in very simple terms ...is a moaning little irritant who needs to chill out.
Every episode descends into misery as Bing gets upset about something simple happening in his life.
It's always down to his minder (I am not even sure what creature or relationship this is) Flop to calm Bing down.
My wife tells me it's all about showing you the reality of having kids. They get upset about little things and you have to work through it with them.
Not for me...actually what I think it shows is kids can get upset over ridiculous things and will get their own way if they moan enough.
Id suggest that Bing needs to grow up.
Annoyingly, Orla likes Bing because he is a rabbit and I sometimes have to watch through gritted teeth.
*1 star
So what have I learned about kids TV as a parent?
Don't fight it, embrace it.
A lot of the stuff on TV now is about showing kids some good values, teaching them things about relationships and if nothing else, keeps them amused with some good songs.
I say, let them watch
Except Bing...we don't like Bing