Highlights
Blue Peter

Blue Peter - 1979-1980 (1979)

Audience Score
76

1979-1980 Episodes

1. Expedition Egypt: Treasure and Camels

September 10th, 1979

Of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, only one still stands today, the massive Pyramids of Cheops, Chephren and Mycetimus, built by the Pharaohs, nearly 3,000 years before the birth of Christ. Join Simon, Christopher and Tina as they explore these vast, burial chambers that were once filled with gleaming treasure. Simon finds that riding the ship of the desert can be a bruising experience as he and his camel part company, but the 80 pantomime horses that invade the studio today are a bit more docile. Find out how you can turn into a horse and how the four-legged members of the Blue Peter team have got on during the holidays.

2. Fit for a Queen

September 13th, 1979

A teddy made of chrysanthemums, a koala bear with a plum for a nose and an owl sitting under a banana moon were just three of the hundreds of stunning floral displays admired by Her Majesty The Queen when she made her first-ever visit to Westminster Cathedral for the International Year of the Child Flower Festival. Blue Peter film cameras were there to record this historic event and so were nine Blue Peter viewers aged from five to 16 -winners of the Flower Picture competition. For Cristian, Kate, Una, James, Christine, Rebecca, Lesley, Jenny and Sarah, who were all presented to Her Majesty, this particular Friday the 13th was one they'll remember for the rest of their lives!

3. Expedition Egypt: Hall of Pillars

September 17th, 1979

Simon and Tina explore one of the Wonders of the World-the temple built in honour of the great god Amun, at Karnak. One hundred and thirty-four massive columns cover an area the size of Westminster Abbey, with the 12 largest big enough for 100 people to stand comfortably on each one!

4. Transglobe Ahoy!

September 20th, 1979

Ran, Ginny and the crew will be reporting back to Blue Peter throughout the Transglobe Expedition's 55,000-mile voyage. Chris was on board the Benjamin Bowring for a behind-the-scenes look at the final preparations for this first-ever polar circumnavigation of the world.

5. The Gardening Family

September 24th, 1979

Are there michaelmas daisies at the bottom of your garden? Do you grow lilac, gladioli, tradescantia, Virginia creeper, or tulip, plane and acacia trees? All these plants and trees were brought to this country by one family, the famous Tradescants. Chris traces their extraordinary story that ends in a Lambeth churchyard.

6. 'Expedition Egypt'

September 27th, 1979

Do you know what an oil tanker, a grand opera, a French engineer and an empress have in common? You can find out in today's report from Egypt, where Tina and Simon go snorkelling in the Red Sea and Chris tries his hand at underwater photography.

7. Goldie Goes to School

October 1st, 1979

Ex-guide dog trainer Richard Duckworth puts pupils of all breeds and temperaments through their paces at his unusual school for dogs.

8. Expedition Egypt

October 4th, 1979

The amazing child weavers of Herrania, whose tapestries are sought after by collectors all over the world.

9. Episode 9

October 8th, 1979

It's smelly work down on the farm as Simon and Goldie get to grips with silage-making to feed the cows this winter.

10. 1066 and All That....

October 11th, 1979

It's 913 years since Britain was successfully invaded and next Sunday marks the anniversary of the famous battle that took place at Hastings. Christopher has taken Blue Peter film cameras to Caen and Bayeux in France and Battle and Hastings in England to follow in the footsteps of King Harold and William the Conqueror.

11. 21st Birthday Programme

October 15th, 1979

Join in the celebrations with Simon, Chris, Tina and the animals, including the first-ever presentation of the Blue Peter 'Award for Outstanding Endeavour'. With William the Conqueror and 14 dinosaurs in the studio, plus the band of the Royal Marines, anything might happen! Producer RENNY RYE

12. Episode 12

October 18th, 1979

13. Episode 13

October 22nd, 1979

Good news for model railway fans today! Vintage '00' gauge ocos dating from the 1920s will be chugging along the Blue Peter layout-making what may well be their last public run. before they're put up for auction next week.

14. Episode 14

October 25th, 1979

'Oh I wish I'd looked after me teeth' - says Pam Ayres who will be in the studio today rendering her famous poem with its awful warning to compulsive sweet-suckers.

15. The Long Sleep

October 29th, 1979

Tortoises Maggie and Jim make positively their last appearance before their winter hibernation!

16. Where are they Now?

November 1st, 1979

News of the eight puppies born to Petra in September 1965.

17. Episode 17

November 5th, 1979

Next Saturday's Lord Mayor's Show features a covered wagon from Alberta, Canada, birthplace of the new Lord Mayor. Meet the four outriders as they mosey along to the Blue Peter studio, together with cowboy Doug Johnson.

18. Episode 18

November 8th, 1979

Top cook Delia Smith joins the team for the results of the Gorgeous Grub competition. Find out if you've won one of the unique Blue Peter aprons and whether your recipe has been chosen for the Gorgeous Grub Cook Book to help raise funds for the International Year of the Child.

19. Episode 19

November 12th, 1979

Catch up with the latest news about The Great Blue Peter Bring and Buy Sale... Find out how your gifts are helping to save the lives of the starving children of Cambodia.

20. Episode 20

November 15th, 1979

21. Episode 21

November 19th, 1979

22. Episode 22

November 22nd, 1979

Make your pocket-money go further and give your friends and relations home-made cards this Christmas. They're cheap and cheerful and different from anything you'll see in the shops.

23. Episode 23

November 26th, 1979

Flying Cats Jack and Jill take to the skies and jet their way to Dunfermline for a guest appearance at the Edinburgh and East Scotland Cat Show. Blue Peter cameras follow their flight from Gatwick to Edinburgh.

24. Episode 24

November 29th, 1979

George Cansdale, who's bringing a mysterious animal to the studio. George has travelled all over the world in search of rare animals and birds - he once carried some exotic snakes from Hong Kong to London wrapped in his pyjamas. Find out what George turns up with today - you'll be in for a surprise!

25. Episode 25

December 3rd, 1979

26. Episode 26

December 6th, 1979

27. Episode 27

December 10th, 1979

28. Episode 28

December 13th, 1979

With only four Blue Peters to go before Christmas Day, it's time to light the first candle on the Advent Crown. Chris will be demonstrating another gastronomic treat to delight your family and friends, so have paper and pencil handy.

29. Episode 29

December 17th, 1979

Two hundred years ago this week the most famous pantomime star of all time was born. His name was Joseph Grimaldi , and everyone from King George III to flower-girls in the gallery knew his catchphrase 'Here we go again!' Chris tells the story of Grimaldi's amazing life and shows one of the clown costumes he wore at Drury Lane.

30. Episode 30

December 20th, 1979

Hurry, Hurry, Hurry! This week's your last chance to join in with the Great Blue Peter Bring and Buy Sale before the Oxfam shops take down their posters this Saturday. Thanks to you, the lives of starving Cambodian babies, children and adults are being saved - watch out for the latest news on today's programme.

31. Christmas is Coming!

December 24th, 1979

And today you can see the results of the Great Blue Peter Bring and Buy Sale Auction and find out how Blue Peter viewers all over Britain have given help and hope to thousands of suffering Cambodian babies, children and adults. Join in, too, with carols round the tree with the children of Allfarthings School, Warlingham County Secondary School and the Band of the Chalk Farm branch of the Salvation Army.

32. Episode 32

December 31st, 1979

Question: What do Her Majesty The Queen, Rameses II, Yul Brynner, the Prime Minister, James Callaghan and 80 pantomime horses have in common? Answer: They've all taken part in Blue Peter during 1979. If you don't remember seeing them, find out today where and when they all appeared, in Blue Peter's highlights of the past 12 months.

33. Episode 33

January 3rd, 1980

34. On the Trail of the Lonesome Pine

January 7th, 1980

Join Simon and Goldie deep in the heart of the Scottish Highlands and discover how an artist's sketches drawn on a wall in a mountain lodge have provided a clue to the age of the trees in the glen.

35. In the Swim

January 10th, 1980

Chris spends the day with Britain's 800m Women's Freestyle record holder, 14-year-old Jackie Willmott from Southend. Jackie swims a gruelling 10,000m per day and starts her training at 4.30 every morning - going on till after dark with lessons squeezed in between. Will all the effort pay off? Watch the 1980 Olympics to find out!

36. Frightful Flies to Freedom

January 14th, 1980

The remarkable story of the baby kestrel rescued and hand-reared by student Wendy Page of Loughborough University.

37. Shampoo and Set

January 17th, 1980

Tina shows how to make a dolls' hairdressing salon, complete with basins, showers and driers.

38. Cleopatra's Needle

January 21st, 1980

Each year thousands of tourists visit London's famous obelisk on the banks of the River Thames. Simon and Tina explore the quarry in Egypt where this gigantic granite block was hewn.

39. Operation Oily Bird

January 24th, 1980

A mysterious oil-slick off the coast of Somerset has resulted in the biggest bird rescue operation since the Torrey Canyon disaster. Tina helps John Hughes, Warden in charge of the RSPCA's animal centre at Little Creech, near Taunton, clean up some of the 2,000 guillemots and razor-bills whose lives are in danger.

40. Episode 40

January 28th, 1980

41. Episode 41

January 31st, 1980

Join Simon on a trip back in time on the Severn Valley Railway and discover how you can win a ride on the footplate of a famous old loco.

42. Episode 42

February 4th, 1980

Deep in the heart of Buckinghamshire, lepidopterist Margaret Beer has come up with a world first. By breeding death's-head hawk moths in captivity she has succeeded where international experts have failed. Blue Peter film cameras were there and reveal the secret of her remarkable success.

43. Welcome World ... We're Ready!

February 7th, 1980

That's the claim of Lake Placid, the small mountain village in the United States of America where the 13th Winter Olympic Games open next week. Tina reports from the Adirondack Mountains on how the people of Lake Placid prepared for the invasion of 1,200 competitors and 600 officials.

44. Champions All

February 11th, 1980

There's a studio full of celebrities today with Crufts' Supreme and Obedience Champions and, ' Great Balls of Fire', none other than rock 'n' roller Jerry Lee Lewis.

45. Episode 45

February 14th, 1980

46. Eager Beavers

February 18th, 1980

Barney and Bumble, two seven-month-old Canadian beavers bred at Chessington Zoo, try out the pond in the Blue Peter studio, with animal expert George Cansdale keeping an eye on them from the bank.

47. Calling All Gardeners

February 21st, 1980

Now is the time to be making plans for a bumper crop of spring vegetables and flowers. Percy Thrower joins the team in the Blue Peter garden with more helpful hints for saving money and producing mouth-watering home-grown food.

48. Episode 48

February 25th, 1980

49. Vote, Vote, Vote!

February 28th, 1980

Do metres and milligrammes drive you dotty? Are you flummoxed by feet and ounces? Today is your chance to join in with Blue Peter's nationwide Weights and Measures Poll and tell us whether you want Metric or Imperial measures used on the programme.

50. Episode 50

March 3rd, 1980

Ever seen a duck with six wheels? Now's your chance as Simon drives one at the Grange Cavern Museum -a mysterious labyrinth of caves underneath a Welsh hillside.

51. Operation Newt!

March 6th, 1980

The Cheltenham Tote Gold Cup horse race is in jeopardy-the water jump is full of great crested newts. Chris reports from the course on their rescue.

52. Episode 52

March 10th, 1980

With Mothering Sunday only six days away, now's your chance to beat the high cost of flowers in the shops and make some everlasting violets that cost only a few pence. (Have a paper and pencil handy to jot down the instructions.)

53. Mountain Rescue!

March 13th, 1980

Chris takes to the hills on exercise with the RAF Valley Mountain Rescue Team and helps in the search for injured mountaineer Simon Groom.

54. Episode 54

March 17th, 1980

A special programme for St Patrick's Day.

55. A-Z of Space

March 20th, 1980

Since 1957 five planets in our solar system have been photographed and men have walked on the moon. Reg Turnill, who reported for the BBC on the space programmes, investigates what the future holds for interplanetary explorers.

56. "I name this ship..."

March 24th, 1980

With the traditional crash of a champagne bottle, Tina launches the latest cross-channel ferry at Harland and Woolff's shipyard in Belfast. Watch out for details of a competition that could win you a trip on the ferry's maiden voyage.

57. Episode 57

March 27th, 1980

58. The Great Everest Mystery

March 31st, 1980

Fifty-six years ago two English climbers, GEORGE MALLORY and ANDREW IRVINE , made a bid to reach the summit of Mt Everest -and were never seen again. New evidence may solve the greatest mystery of 20th-century exploration.

59. Dr Who's Spring Clean

April 3rd, 1980

The BBC's travelling Dr Who exhibitions are constantly changing to keep pace with the latest monsters the Doctor tackles. Tina goes behind the scenes, to lend a hand with this very unusual spring clean.

60. Octavia Aviator!

April 10th, 1980

Twelve-year-old Paul Sharp from Retford won Blue Peter's 'Name the Owl' competition and two days as a VIP guest of the RAF's Number 8 Squadron at Lossiemouth. As well as meeting the squadron's Great Eagle Owl mascot, newly-named Octavia, Paul joined the crew on a training flight over the North Sea in one of the squadron's historic Shackle-ton aircraft! Chris took to the air with Paul to report on the trip every plane enthusiast will envy!

61. Metric or Imperial?

April 14th, 1980

The results of a nationwide survey of 19,000 viewers are announced on today's programme. Find out how children voted in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and whether their mums, dads, and grandparents agreed with them!

62. Episode 62

April 17th, 1980

Chris goes behind-the-scenes with the Mines Rescue Service - the emergency teams on 24-hour call to cope with pit disasters.

63. Crack Pots

April 21st, 1980

Do you throw away your broken plates and cups and saucers? They don't in Guernsey! Simon and Goldie investigate the Channel Island's famous crockery-covered Chapel.

64. St Christopher Ahoy!

April 24th, 1980

The results of the competition to design a mural for the newest cross-channel ferry. Find out whether you have won a vip trip on the St Christopher's maiden voyage for you and your family.

65. The Rochdale Pioneers

April 28th, 1980

It's hard to imagine life without supermarkets and nowadays we take clean shops and clearly-marked prices and weights for granted. But 130 years ago finding a shop you could trust was very difficult indeed - until a group of writers in Rochdale started Britain's first co-op.

66. Episode 66

May 1st, 1980

67. Episode 67

May 5th, 1980

68. Episode 68

May 8th, 1980

69. Episode 69

May 12th, 1980

70. William and Dorothy

May 15th, 1980

Dorothy Wordsworth's diary was the inspiration behind many of her brother's most famous poems Tina and Chris go back in time and become 19th-century detectives as they explore the Lake-land countryside where William and Dorothy lived and worked.

71. Episode 71

May 19th, 1980

72. Episode 72

May 22nd, 1980

A ginger tom-cat and Britain's oldest garden under continuous cultivation are two of the unexpected finds Tina makes when she explores Westminster Abbey.

73. Portable Pavement

May 29th, 1980

A replica of the largest Romano-British pavement north of the Alps fills the Blue Peter studio today-all 115,052 pieces of it! Simon, Chris and Tina help to fit the giant jigsaw together and meet Bob and John Woodward, who've painstakingly re-created the famous Wood-Chester pavement.

74. Episode 74

June 2nd, 1980

75. Episode 75

June 5th, 1980

76. Episode 76

June 9th, 1980

Fred, the bionic tortoise, shows off his new shell after a death-defying encounter with a tractor-drawn mower.

77. The Fishers of Mousehole

June 12th, 1980

Sarah goes mackerel fishing and eats Starry Gazey Pie.

78. Episode 78

June 16th, 1980

Twelve years ago schoolboy Ray Gluckman grew a crystal in an eggcup. See it today in a dustbin - tipping the scale at 40 lbs and still growing!

79. ' Dear Tina, Can you still cut your toenails? '

June 19th, 1980

Find out today and hear Tina's baby's heartbeats through an electronic stethoscope.

80. Highland Fling!

June 23rd, 1980

Goldie barks open the Irvine New Town Highland Games, Jill's kittens make their first-ever studio appearance and the team prepare for the summer expedition.

81. Goldie Special with Simon Groom

June 30th, 1980

Britain's best-loved golden retriever gets a programme all to herself today starting with a flashback to her first-ever appearance on Blue Peter on 18 May 1978. Simon joined Blue Peter on the same day too, and you can see how his training of Goldie has paid off as she comes face-to-face with cows, sheep, goats and chickens, to say nothing of giant St Bernards, without so much as a growl. Training dogs the Groom way has been very successful - see if you can pick up a few tips to make your dog as good as Goldie!

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