Blue Peter Part II - 60 years!

On Tuesday October 16th at five o' clock in the afternoon I sat to watch the 60th Anniversary of the British children's tv show, Blue Peter on its current CBBC channel home where it has been since 2012.
60 years is quite an achievement in terms of broadcasting  for a single program and does in fact now hold a Guinness book of records certified award for the worlds longest running children's program.
My own involvement with the program stems from childhood where it was always on with having a sibling which was born just at the right time for its launch in 1958 watching and becoming a half hour show later on for my parents to just put it on.
Saying that then it is clear I saw it from as soon as I was able to take in tv and my first hand recollections tend to be from around the age of six getting stronger from about a year and half on where I recall whole adventures and appeals for various good causes that in various ways I was involved in of which a later example was the 1979 bring and buy for Cambodia which was done at boarding school and also on release I took part in my own community.

In that respect the show was very much a integral part of my own childhood and an influence for the good.
Not unsurprisingly for a boy who adored the show, every year in my Christmas stocking there was a Annual which had features on the highlights of the previous 12 months  shows, cartoons, features around history and the 'makes' where using everyday items craftwork was encouraged.
It isn't so odd then that I still have those annuals when some other effects from the same era I had end no doubt enjoyed have gone although things like some of Top Trumps from the late 70's are still here.
Looking at it this way, the adult-boy in 2018 who sat watching todays special edition  intently as presenters who he knew well and others just more aware of talked about their roles, presented various awards to today's children and showed footage of current challenges felt like that boy in 1974.
Moreover he sat watching just as he did from junior school in his grey shorts, ribbed socks and blue sweater enjoying it just as much even if the stage set was different to that that he'd grown up with and the style of presentation from Radzi and Lindsey the current presenter is different.
I saw the same show I loved and am glad today's children are getting from it what I did at the time.

Happy Sixtieth birthday, Blue Peter!