''Dòtaman'' (Scottish Gaelic for "spinning top") is the longest running

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

children's TV programme for pre-schoolers. It began 17 October 1985 starring Donnie Macleod, formerly of

Na h-Òganaich Glasgow-based Gaelic folk group Na h-Òganaich (Scottish Gaelic for 'the young ones' though often translated as 'young blood' ) formed early in 1971, following a concert in Dunoon where Mod Gold Medallist singer Margaret MacLeod first met guitar ...

, whose appearances made him a cult figure. Donnie was primarily the singer across the many series of the programme. The programme featured a presenter who carried the bulk of the programme presentation although Donnie shared some of the role, particularly when telling the time at the end of the programme.

Presenters

The presenters were: Donnie Macleod, Rhoda Macleod, Cathy Macdonald, John Urquhart, Gaelic singers Mairi Macinnes and Anna Murray also presented the programme. The first series also featured Anne Sinclair as the singer. She didn't wear hats and accompanied herself on a pink piano.

Premise

Donnie wore various different silly

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

s, which were decorated with something relevant to the song and the programme. Donnie was often seen wearing a default seagull hat when the theme didn't lend itself to be illustrated with a hat. Many of the hats were designed and constructed by costume designer Kirsty Colam. The programme featured 6

puppet A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or Legendary creature, mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. The puppeteer uses movements of their hands, arms, or control devices such as rods ...

s. Nelson and Napoleon are a pair of

parrot Parrots, also known as psittacines (), are birds of the roughly 398 species in 92 genera comprising the order Psittaciformes (), found mostly in tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three superfamilies: the Psittacoid ...

s who squawk their way through the 'what's the time' sequence at the end. Cagnaidh the

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...

and Crotal the

rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...

were usually involved with the activities at the opening of the programme. Oighrig the

hippo The hippopotamus ( ; : hippopotamuses or hippopotami; ''Hippopotamus amphibius''), also called the hippo, common hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extant ...

and Ealasaid the

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...

mainly sat about and listened to stories. The

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...

s were about everyday things that matter to children, while the style and structure of the songs were traditionally Gaelic. The songs were written to a pre-determined theme by a team of scriptwriters with each writer being responsible for a few programmes across the series. Both Donnie and some of the scriptwriters set the lyrics to music. Most of the songs related to Gaelic culture or Scottish rural life. The show's theme tune was "Scarecrow Wedding" by Bobby Heath, Eric Peters and Robert Hunter from the Spectrum Moods Library of which was previously used for the theme to '' The Further Adventures of Noddy'' (a standalone pilot based on

Enid Blyton Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer, whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her books are still enormously popular and have be ...

's books of the 'Toyland' series).

Influence

It could be argued that most young Gaelic speakers today learned much of their early vocabulary from the programme. Many young singers and musicians were influenced by the style of the music to write and play in their own tradition. Dòtaman is referenced in the 2019 song 'Fairytale of Stornoway' by Western isles band Peat and Diesel, featuring Mairead Fay Nicholson. The song is a reworked version of the Pogues classic 'Fairytale of New York' and is making a bid for Christmas Number 1.

References

Fairytale of Stornoway' Stornoway Gazzette

External links

Clip on BBC Scotland

Scottish Gaelic mass media British television shows featuring puppetry 1985 Scottish television series debuts 1980s Scottish television series 1990s Scottish television series 2010s Scottish television series 1980s British children's television series 1990s British children's television series 2000s British children's television series 2010s British children's television series BBC Scotland television shows BBC children's television shows British preschool education television series 2000 Scottish television series endings {{UK-kids-tv-prog-stub

Presenters

Premise

Influence

See also

References

External links