'Are you thinking what I'm thinking?': The truth behind how beloved Bananas in Pyjamas TV show began
By Merryn Porter |
Before there was Bluey, there was another much-loved Australian children's TV show.
Bananas in Pyjamas began as a live action TV show that aired during the 1990s to early 2000s. An animated version followed, which ended its run 21 years ago.
But not everyone realises the show had its origins right back in the 1960s when the Bananas in Pyjamas song was first played on Play School, before a children's TV producer came up with the concept that saw B1 and B2 take on the world.
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The Bananas in Pyjamas story starts in the late 1960s, when the song of the same name first aired on the ABC children's TV show Play School.
The song was written by British composer Carey Blyton, who is also credited for his work on the TV show Doctor Who, although he didn't write its famous theme song.
In 1972, Blyton released a children's book, Bananas in Pyjamas: A Book of Nonsense.
It featured illustrations by Tom Barling of three rather sinister-looking bananas descending a regal staircase clad in pyjamas, which in this case were red, pink, white and black striped. They also wore pink nightcaps on their heads.
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The song remained on Play School's rotation over the years, with various hosts singing the lyrics about "Bananas in Pyjamas coming down the stairs."
It was later accompanied by an animation depicting bananas in blue-and-white striped pyjamas. A plush toy banana was eventually created as part of the "toy cast", which included the likes of Big Ted, Little Ted and Jemima.
The song was also used in the Play School live shows. Helena Harris was at one such show with her two young daughters when the song caught her ear.
The former ABC film editor and director, who moved into children's TV after starting a family, became convinced there was potential for the bananas to have their own show.
"In Play School they were one of the few characters that had personality. They chased teddy bears and I was sure we could make them younger, less ugly and the children would love them," Harris told The Manly Daily in 2016.
Her input into the development of the show is nowhere more evident than in the names of two of the characters. Bears Amy and Morgan were named after her own children, while the third, Lulu, was a tribute to Amy's best friend.
The show was set in Cuddles Avenue, Cuddlestown, and featured the main characters B1 and B2, teddy bears Amy, Lulu and Morgan, and Rat in a Hat.
Harris originally wanted the show to be animated but this was too costly, so a live action version was planned.
"There's no way that we could afford animation, but I wanted to make it look like a comic book come to life," she said of the original.
"The reality is that it actually worked so well as suited characters."
But before the show could be filmed, actors had to be found to wear the cumbersome banana suits.
Ken Radley was cast as B1.
A classically trained actor, he attended the prestigious drama school NIDA in the 1980s with Nicholas Opolski, who was cast as B2.
In a 2017 interview with the ABC, Radley reflected on the role.
"[Director] Roger Bailey said, 'Look, we don't know if it's going to work, but it's this idea'. I said, 'OK I'd love to do it'," he said.
"I expected it to be just a little quirky kind of thing that was a bit of fun that went on just before Play School."
Radley ended up spending 10 years in the suit and said it was a privilege to work alongside Opolski.
Opolski, who was the banana given the famous line: "Are you thinking what I'm thinking B1?" told ABC: "It was a wonderful journey to share with my friend here."
The show was a massive hit. About 300 episodes and four specials were made, and the show was screened around the world, including the US.
After the series ended in 2001, an animated version began production in 2011 and resulted in 156 12-minute episodes, which are still available to view on ABC iview and YouTube.
Harris later told the ABC she preferred the live action version of the show, even though animation was her preferred option when she first came up with the idea.
Harris went on to create the TV show Hi-5, and was behind a plan to bring back Humphrey B. Bear several years ago before the idea was shelved.
