ANIMATED ART

As you know, I am a bit of an animation nerd and, in addition to loving all forms of animated film-making, have had my own occasional flirtations with the medium: I worked with Nick Park on the original draft of The Wrong Trousers and, later, scripted two 30-minute animated films: one based on the Biblical story of Jonah, the other (left) an adaptation of Herman Melville's Moby Dick ––– don't ask why the obsession with whales!

Also, some years ago I was almost connected with a projected series devised by Martin Cheek, now a master mosaicist, but, at the time, a gifted stop-frame animator who had worked on such successful  TV series as The Wind in the Willows, Paddington Bear, Noddy in Toyland and Portland Bill.

Martin came up with a humorous, film noir-ish series featuring a Philip Marlowesque detective who just happened to be a lizard named – Art Gecko!

My friend composer Dave Hewson and I wrote a theme song for the show and recorded a demo for the show's prospective producers.

In the event we didn't get the gig and the series was never made – tough-talking, lizard gumshoes, machine-gun-toting gangsters and a gila monster heavy obviously not proving suitable fare for the Teletubbies generation!

Anyway, here's the song (and the singer) that got away...