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Postman Pat and the Tuba

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Postman Pat and the Tuba is a half hour special which was broadcast on 29th May 1994. This episode was written by John Cunliffe from a storyline devised by Ivor Wood.

Plot[]

Pat is out on his round with the letters for the village and spies all the posters advertising the Village Fete, which will take place in a few days. Along the way, he meets Peter Fogg, who is going to a tutor in Pencaster who will show Peter how to play his guitar properly. At the Post Office, while buying some stamps from Mrs. Goggins, Granny Dryden sees one of the posters, reminisces about how her father used to play in the Village Brass Band (but can't remember the instrument he played), and asks Mrs. Goggins to tell Pat to help her look in the attic when he calls. When Pat comes in and tells Mrs. Goggins about how the music in the air is the reason for his jolly mood, Miss Hubbard (coming in with the Reverend Timms) overhears Pat's words, thinks that music could be something for the Fete, and asks the Reverend if his old record player could be used, provided it can still work, to which the Reverend promises to have Ted Glen mend it. Mrs. Goggins then gives Pat Granny Dryden's message and Pat leaves to start his round with the country letters.

Upon arrival at Granny Dryden's cottage, Pat delivers Granny Dryden's letters and she asks for Pat's help in looking in the attic as there are some things that could be useful for the Fete. As Granny Dryden's legs are too old to go up the ladder, Pat goes up into the attic himself. After finding a torch that works, Pat goes about the attic, finding old hats and dressmakers' dummies. During the search, he finds an old chest, opens it, and pulls out a brass instrument. After bringing everything down, Pat blows into the instrument, which frightens Granny Dryden into dropping a dish she's washing from breakfast. Seeing Pat holding the instrument and wearing her father's hat, Granny Dryden remembers right away that her father played the tuba and kindly lets Pat keep it so he can learn how to play it, in the hopes that there can be a new band for the Fete. Pat accepts the offer, thinking the tuba suits him better than the bugle he played for the Scouts when he was a boy, and leaves with the tuba.

Pat stops at Ted Glen's workshop, just as Ted is cleaning a filter from his lorry, and asks for Ted's opinion on the tuba. The first blast nearly makes Ted jump out of his skin. Ted tries oiling the tuba, but the next blast from Pat blows off Ted's hat and rattles the tools in his workshop, so he stuffs rags down the tuba's opening to muffle further blasts. Pat then proceeds to leave, but the van's engine refuses to get started properly. Ted quickly finds that the spark plugs have worn out and the van will have to stay until he orders new spark plugs for it. As Pat wonders how he'll deliver the post without his van, Ted suggests using the Post Bus until the van is mended and offers to give Pat a lift to the village. Not wanting to hear a blast from the tuba while driving, Ted brings Jess into the cab of the lorry and Pat sits in the back. As they drive along through the village, Pat continues to practice, but the blasts make P.C. Selby lose control of his bike and crash into a dustbin, landing in a heap on the road, cause Alf Thompson's hat to jump and think his tractor has blown a tyre, and startle Mrs. Pottage, causing her to drop her shopping basket and call Ted a "road hog", thinking that Ted had deliberately blown his horn at her. They reach the Post Bus at last, with Ted commenting how Pat shouldn't be allowed to make awful noises on the tuba, but nevertheless, with the Post Bus, Pat can now resume his round.

At Thompson Ground, Pat finds a quiet spot, but when he tries again at making music, it makes the hens jump and everything in the tool shed shake, bringing Dorothy Thompson out, armed with a pitchfork. Dorothy tells Pat she thinks the noise was a bomb going off, but without telling her it was the tuba, Pat goes on his way. At another quiet spot, Pat dozes off and has a dream in which he's playing the tuba like a pro for a new brass band. Waking up, he tries again at getting music out of the tuba, but it makes Miss Hubbard, several yards away, accidentally cut her flowers off at the stems when she meant to cut some leaves off the stems. Pat then delivers a parcel to Miss Hubbard, but when Miss Hubbard inquires him about the noise that startled her, he hides the fact it was him and hurries off to deliver more post, leaving Miss Hubbard wondering what's been going on.

That evening, P.C. Selby is out making inquiries and stops by the church to ask the Reverend Timms if he's heard any strange noises. He explains about how the residents of Greendale have been reporting strange noises (some claiming space aliens could be making the noises), as well as his own incident involving the strange noises earlier that day. As the Reverend offers some advice, they both hear a noise outside and go out to investigate. P.C. Selby shines the light of his torch near a bush, revealing Pat playing his tuba. Seeing that somebody has found him, Pat explains to his friends that he's only trying to learn how to play the tuba. When P.C. Selby asks Pat if he's fallen off his bike too (possibly suspecting amnesia), the Reverend understands that Pat wants to make music and suggests that he could ask Major Forbes to help him learn how to play the tuba properly as the Major used to play the tuba when he was in the Army Band.

A few days later, Greendale starts the preparations for the Fete. Pat, P.C. Selby, and Ted help with the preparations by setting up the banners and bunting. Pat brings over the hats and dummies from Granny Dryden's cottage, telling Alf, whose helping set up the stalls, that they're for the "Knock The Hat Off" stall. During his round, he stops by Thompson Ground where Dorothy is making jam to sell at the Fete. In between his rounds and helping with the preparations, Pat goes to Garner Hall where, under Major Forbes' tutoring, his tuba practice greatly improves until he is playing the tuba like a pro.

On the day of the Village Fete, Pat picks up Mr. Pringle and the children from the Village School and takes them to the village. Upon arrival, Pat assists the Reverend and Ted with the music at the record player. As the fete starts, Alf gives Charlie Pringle a go at the "Knock The Hat Off" stall, in which Charlie knocks off all the hats on his first try and wins a teddy bear. In the middle of the first record that's playing, the record player breaks down. Pat and Ted find all the leads to the speakers are in good working order, but Ted discovers that the record player's old valves have blown and as their type is not being manufactured anymore, that means the record player is broken down for good. As the Reverend knows that it means no more music, Granny Dryden is disappointed as well as she knows there has always been music at the fete (for she's always attended the fete starting from when she was a little girl). Ted doesn't know how they can have music at the fete now, but Pat, remembering what Granny Dryden had suggested when she gave him the tuba, comes up with an idea to get the music going again and requests Ted and Miss Hubbard for their help.

Taking the Post Bus, Pat, Ted, and Miss Hubbard go to Miss Hubbard's cottage and pick up her piano. As they're getting the piano aboard, Peter stops by on his way to the fete and Pat tells him about his grand idea and suggests that Peter bring his guitar. The Post Bus arrives back at the fete and Pat and Ted unload the piano. Pat then tells Major Forbes the plan and invites him to conduct the band, which the Major agrees to do. As Pat, Peter, and Miss Hubbard warm up their instruments, Sarah Gilbertson and Lucy Selby join in with their recorders and even Ted adds his mouth organ (harmonica) to the band. The Major borrows a stick from Mrs. Goggins (who is selling toffee apples) to use as a baton and takes up the makeshift conductor's stand. After a false start from the Major (who briefly forgets he's conducting a band and not an army squadron), the new band starts playing, bringing live music back to the fete. Even Mrs. Goggins tells Granny Dryden that it's just as grand as it was when she was a little girl.

Characters[]

Characters Introduced[]

Vehicles[]

Locations[]

Cast[]

  • Ken Barrie as Pat, Ted Glen, Alf Thompson, the Reverend Timms, P.C. Selby, Granny Dryden, Peter Fogg, Major Forbes and the Main Narrator
  • Carole Boyd as Mrs. Goggins, Dorothy Thompson, Mrs. Pottage, Charlie Pringle and Miss Hubbard

Trivia[]

  • Recording date: March 7, 1994.
  • This is the Official Introduction of Jeff Pringle.
  • This episode features the Proper Sound song.
  • This episode marks the introduction of the "jazz-style" opening music.
  • The box that Nell cut her finger on in the "Bertha" episode "The Tea Nurse" can be seen in the post office. Also the net holding the balls was previously used in the "Bertha" episode "The Big Sneeze". Also in the net with other balls, is the blue and yellow ball that Tom got in Postman Pat's Finding Day.
  • The following characters who made up the orchestra at the end of this episode are:
    • Woodwinds (Recorders): Lucy Selby and Sarah Gilbertson.
    • Piano: Miss Hubbard.
    • Mouth organ (Harmonica): Ted Glen.
    • Guitar: Peter Fogg.
    • Tuba: Postman Pat.
  • The tune playing on the old record player before it blew a valve was the instrumental of "Proper Sound". Additionally, the instrumental of said song is also played by the orchestra at the end of the episode.
  • This is the only time where P.C. Selby was referred to as "officer" in an episode.
  • The Bible verse that Reverend Timms quoted was an excerpt from Psalm 98:4.
  • Granny Dryden's attic is really the attic set that was used for Gran's attic from the "Gran" episode "Gran the Camper".
  • This episode reveals that Granny Dryden's late father had played the tuba when he was young, and was a member of the Village Band.
  • The treasure chest where Pat finds the tuba is the same one from the "Charlie Chalk" episodes "Arnold's Night Out", "Edward Keeps Fit", "There Are No Roads On Merrytwit" and "Mildred's Day Off".
  • The red oil can from "Bertha" is used when Ted oils the tuba.
  • Gran's lawn mower from the "Gran" episode "Gran's Goat" can be seen outside Miss Hubbard's Cottage.
  • Two Spottiswood & Company crates from "Bertha" and a big barrel from "Charlie Chalk” can be seen at the fete.
  • Pat's brass band outfit in his dream is reminiscent of the outfits tailored for the Beatles album "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band".
  • The log lifter from Postman Pat's Windy Day can be seen at Thompson Ground.
  • The VHS versions on Postman Pat and the Tuba/Postman Pat and the Barometer (VHS) (1994) and Postman Pat's Special Delivery (1999) are slightly different from other releases in terms of audio:
    • When Pat says goodbye to everyone in the post office, the Reverend Timms can also be heard as well as Miss Hubbard.
    • Pat does not say "Whoops" before he slips and falls to the ground from the near bottom of the ladder.

Goofs[]

  • Mrs. Pottage has Dorothy’s voice at the beginning.
  • When Pat arrives at Granny Dryden's cottage, he leaves Jess inside the van. Later, Jess is seen inside Granny Dryden's cottage.
  • Pat says it's so dark up in Granny Dryden's attic that he won't be able to see a thing without a torch, even though there is a big blaze of light coming in through a skylight in the roof.
  • P.C. Selby should have remembered to take his helmet off before he went into the church.
  • Alf anounces that the "Knock-the-Hat-Off" stall costs five pence for three balls, but one of the three dummies has not got a hat and he only gives Charlie two balls for the only two dummies that do have hats.
  • At various points, the narrator changes from past tence to present tence.
  • In real life it would be illegal for Pat to ride in the back of Ted's lorry.
  • Pat does not take the post with him on the way to collect the post bus.
  • Pat arrives in Miss Hubbard's garden with her parcel within seconds of playing the tuba on top of the hill in the field next to her house.
  • At the end of the episode, before and when everyone plays the "Proper Sound" song, Ted's music note table keeps switching from his right to in front of him.
  • When Ted says, “It (Pat’s van) needs a new plug”, Pat is heard opening the driver’s door of the van but it doesn’t move. In the next scene, it’s open just before he closes it.
  • When Miss Hubbard plays an A-note key on her piano, it plays the wrong note. Instead, she played an E-note key.

Home Media Releases[]

Video[]

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