Fredd Bear's Breakfast-A-Go-Go

Fredd Bear's Breakfast-A-Go-Go
GenreChildren's television
StarringTedd Dunn[1]
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
Production
Production locationsMelbourne, Victoria
Running time30 minutes
Original release
NetworkATV-0 for 0-10 Network
Release1969 (1969) –
1972 (1972)

Fredd Bear's Breakfast A-Go-Go was an Australian children's television show which started in 1969 on ATV Channel 0 (now ATV-10).[2][3][4]

Program synopsis[edit]

Fredd Bear's Breakfast-A Go-Go ran five days a week (Monday to Friday from 7am) for three years, with a mixture of cartoons, serials, music clips, news, and entertainment, it was comparable to an early Hey Hey It's Saturday.

The show was hosted by Fredd Bear (Tedd Dunn), a lively non-speaking character first seen on the Magic Circle Club, and Judy Banks. Regulars included Colin McEwan, newsreader Michael McCarthy and magician Ian Buckland. Bruce Rowland was the musical director and wrote the theme tune. In 1975, Tedd Dunn won a Logie Award for Outstanding Creative Effort for his work on the program.[5]

A membership card system was one of the methods by which the show's young audience was encouraged to stay viewing. At intervals of approximately 10–15 minutes, a viewer's membership card number would be superimposed on the screen, entitling the viewer to a prize if they contacted the station.

Since each day's show was videotaped purely for reference purposes and not archived, with the same tape reused every day, almost none of the show remains in existence. The only footage from Fredd Bear's Breakfast-A-Go-Go believed to exist is a performance by former Seekers member Bruce Woodley of his advertising jingle The ANZ Bank Travelling Man.[6] A brief excerpt from what appears to be a promotional film from 1972 is held by the National Film and Sound Archive.[7]

The album Judy Banks - A Paw Full of Songs was produced by her husband Bob Phillips and released in 1972.[8]

In 1969, Sydney's Good Morning!!! breakfast show on TEN-10 was renamed Breakfast-a-Go-Go, bringing it into line with the Melbourne program.

Cast[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Tedd Dunn : Fredd Bear’s Breakfast-A-Go-Go, Jun 14 2010, Television.AU, ...Tedd Dunn, the man who put life into the TV character Fredd Bear, has died from cancer. Dunn, 66, was a fashion designer and was wardrobe manager at the new Melbourne channel ATV0...He created the costume for Fredd Bear (the two Ds taken from his own name) and subsequently ended up wearing it, as he made the costume so big that, with his towering frame, he was the only one who could wear it...
  2. ^ Children's Shows: Little Miss Go-Go! entry on Go-Go-Ology
  3. ^ Channel O; Judy Banks; Fredd Bear (1969), Fan Card - Channel 0, 'Judy Banks with Fredd Bear', circa 1970, Museum Victoria, retrieved 11 January 2019
  4. ^ Sterne Doll Company (1965), Advertising Card - Sterne Doll Company, Fredd Bears, circa 1966, Museum Victoria, retrieved 11 January 2019
  5. ^ "TV Week 1975 Logie Awards". Archived from the original on 21 July 2008.
  6. ^ "Fredd Bear's Breakfast-A-Go-Go": Bruce Woodley - "ANZ Travelling Man" (ATV-O, circa 1970)" on Youtube
  7. ^ National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (24 January 2022). "Fredd Bear". www.nfsa.gov.au.
  8. ^ "Judy Banks – A Paw Full of Songs (Vinyl)". Discogs.