''Play Away'' is a

British television Regular television broadcasts in the United Kingdom started in 1936 as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the first demonstration of a transmitted moving image in 1926. Currently, the United Kingdom has a collection ...

children's programme. A sister programme to the infants' series '' Play School'', it was aimed at slightly older children. It ran from 1971 until 1984, and was broadcast on Saturday afternoons on

BBC 2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

.Alistair McGow
"''Play Away'' (1971–84)"
BFI screenonline While ''Play School'' had a more gentle, intimate feel, featuring just two presenters in a studio with the usual collection of toys, ''Play Away'' was much more lively, including songs, games and many jokes. The first eight series were shot in a studio, usually at

BBC Television Centre Television Centre (TVC) is a building complex in White City, London, White City, West London, that was the headquarters of BBC Television between 1960 and 2013. After a refurbishment, the complex reopened in 2017 with three studios in use for ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, but certain episodes were recorded in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. Later episodes were recorded in front of a live studio audience. The format was a little like a music-hall

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

or 'end-of-the-pier' show. The musical director was Jonathan Cohen on piano, with

Spike Heatley Brian John Heatley (17 February 1933 – 10 November 2021), better known as Spike Heatley, was a British jazz double bassist. Early life Heatley was born in Muswell Hill, North London in February 1933. Career He appeared with Vic Ash's sextet ...

on double bass and Alan Rushton on drums, often with accomplished guest musicians such as trombonist George Chisholm. In Australia the series aired on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

at 4:30 after the Australian version of '' Play School''. In New Zealand the series aired on TV One during the 1970s and 1980s. Presenters during the 13-year run included familiar ''Play School'' presenters such as

Brian Cant Brian Cant (12 July 1933 – 19 June 2017) was an English actor of stage, television and film, television presenter, voice artist and writer. He was best known for his work in BBC television programmes for children from 1964 onward, most notably ...

Toni Arthur Toni Arthur-Hay (born Antoinette Alice Priscilla Wilson; 27 December 1940) is an English theatre director, former folk singer and television presenter. Early life and education Arthur was born in Oxford, England. She describes her childhood ...

Derek Griffiths Derek Griffiths (born 15 July 1946) is a British actor, singer, and voice artist who appeared in numerous British children's television series in the 1960s to present and has more recently played parts in television drama. Career Griffiths was ...

Lionel Morton Lionel Morton (born Lionel Walmsley, 14 August 1942) is an English former musician and television presenter. Morton was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, England. In the early 1960s, he was the lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist of the group, the ...

Chloe Ashcroft Chloe Ashcroft (born 7 July 1942) is an actor and former presenter of several BBC children's TV programmes, including '' Play School'', '' Play Away'', ''Hokey-Cokey'', ''Excuse Me'', ''All Change'', and ''Pie in the Sky''. She also appeared in ...

Floella Benjamin Floella Karen Yunies Benjamin, Baroness Benjamin, (born 23 September 1949GRO Register of Marriages: SEP 1980 14 0207 LAMBETH – Keith D. Taylor=Floella K.Y. Benjamin) is a Trinidadian-British actress, singer, presenter, author, businesswoman, ...

Johnny Ball Johnny Ball (born Graham Thalben Ball; 23 May 1938) is an English television personality, a populariser of mathematics and the father of BBC Radio 2 DJ Zoe Ball. Early life Ball was born in Bristol and attended Kingswood Primary School on th ...

Carol Chell Carol Chell (born 1941) is a British children's television presenter and TV executive. She originally qualified as a teacher, and produced many educational TV shows in the 1960s. She is best known for her work as a long-serving presenter from 196 ...

and Julie Stevens, as well as lesser known presenters including Janine Sharp,

Matthew Devitt Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Chi ...

and

Kim Goody Kim Goody (born 19 February 1960, London, England) is an English actress, composer, singer and songwriter. One of her earliest stints as a singer was providing backing vocals on Dave Davies' 1983 album ''Chosen People''. She has appeared in telev ...

. ''Play Away'' also played host to future stars such as

Jeremy Irons Jeremy John Irons (; born 19 September 1948) is an English actor and activist. After receiving classical training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Irons began his acting career on stage in 1969 and has appeared in many West End theatre ...

Julie Covington Julie Covington (born 11 September 1946) is an English singer and actress, best known for recording the original version of "Don't Cry for Me Argentina", which she sang on the 1976 concept album Evita. Early life Julie Covington was born in Lon ...

Anita Dobson Anita Dobson (born 29 April 1949) is an English stage, film and television actress, and singer. She is best known for her role from 1985 to 1988 as Angie Watts in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. In 1986, she reached number four in the UK Sing ...

Tony Robinson Sir Anthony Robinson (born 15 August 1946) is an English actor, author, broadcaster, comedian, presenter, and political activist. He played Baldrick in the BBC television series ''Blackadder'' and has presented several historical documentaries ...

and

Alex Norton Alexander Hugh Norton (born 27 January 1950) is a Scottish actor. He is known for his roles as DCI Matt Burke in the STV detective drama series ''Taggart'', Eric Baird in BBC Two sitcom '' Two Doors Down'', DCS Wallace in ''Extremely Dangerous' ...

. According to the ''Kaleidoscope Children's Guide'' and the Lost Shows website, much of this series is no longer in the archives. Out of 191 editions, 132 no longer exist,"Missing or incomplete episodes for programme ''Play Away''
lostshows.com (Kaleidoscope) with some episodes having been

wiped Lost television broadcasts are mostly those early television programs which cannot be accounted for in studio archives (or in personal archives) usually because of deliberate destruction or neglect. Common reasons for loss A significant prop ...

in the early 1990s.

References

External links

''Play Away''
at

bbc.co.uk BBC Online, formerly known as BBCi, is the BBC's online service. It is a large network of websites including such high-profile sites as BBC News and BBC Sport, Sport, the on-demand video and radio services branded BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, t ...

1971 British television series debuts 1984 British television series endings 1970s British children's television series 1980s British children's television series BBC children's television shows Lost BBC episodes {{child-tv-prog-stub