Wombles Glastonbury gig on new YouTube channel

And while we're on about new stuff - there's a new Wombles YouTube site.  The first items to go up are videos of songs performed at the 2011 Glastonbury Festival.  The Wombles gig didn't make it onto the TV coverage at the time, so this is great.

All together now:

'Nashville Wombles play guitar real fine...'

New Wombles coming...

Mike Batt says it is only a 'teaser'. Presumably this means the details have to be worked out.  But, according to Batt:

'In a deal signed this week, Dramatico, my company has acquired the major shareholding in a company called Wombles Copyright Holdings Ltd – formerly owned 50/50 by ourselves and the estate of Elisabeth Beresford. This announcement can only be a teaser I’m afraid, regarding planned activity and probable project partners. Suffice to say we have plans for two new 26-part TV series’, a feature length movie and an interactive online “Wombles World” experience.'

He also refers to 'new musical productions we shall be mounting'.  This could be The Wombles: The Musical or something along those lines - the advantage being that, if it were done using a compilation of songs as per Mamma Mia, We Will Rock You etc, then the music's already done.

Apparently the rights to Elisabeth Beresford's Wombles books remain with her children, Kate and Marcus.

Perhaps we shouldn't get too excited at this stage - even if all these plans come to fruition, it's going to take time.  Even so - exciting, eh? Even Orinoco might wake up and pay attention to this...

Full statement by Mike Batt

Happy Birthday to you...

It's a year tomorrow since Journeys from Wimbledon Common was published. I can't send cake via the internet (and Orinoco has eaten it all anyway), but let's have a little sing-along at least... "Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Wombles... Happy Birthday to you!"