Blue Peter Special Assignment
{{unreferenced|date=July 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2012}}
{{Infobox television
| image =
| caption =
| alt_name =
| genre = Children's Documentary
| creator = Edward Barnes
| developer =
| writer = Edward Barnes
Dorothy Smith
| director = Edward Barnes
Daniel Wolf
David Brown
Harry Cowdy
Peter Ridsdale Scott
Dorothea Brooking
Sarah Hellings
Hugh David
David Turnbull
Alex Leger
David Hargreaves
| creative_director =
| presenter =Valerie Singleton
Peter Purves
Lesley Judd
| theme_music_composer =
| open_theme =
| end_theme =
| composer =
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| num_series = 7
| num_episodes = 39
| list_episodes =
| executive_producer = Biddy Baxter
| producer = Edward Barnes
| editor =
| location = Various
| cinematography =
| camera =
| runtime = 25 minutes
| company =
| channel = BBC1
| first_aired = {{Start date|1973|01|07|df=yes}}
| last_aired = {{End date|1981|06|07|df=yes}}
| related = Blue Peter
}}
Blue Peter Special Assignment is a factual BBC TV series broadcast in the 1970s and early 1980s, the first spin-off from the long running BBC series Blue Peter. It ran regularly from 1973 until 1981, usually at weekends on BBC1, and was heavily promoted on Blue Peter itself.
The concept for the series was developed after Valerie Singleton had presented a successful documentary 'special' with HRH Princess Anne when she had visited Kenya in 1971. The Special Assignment series was mainly produced by Edward Barnes and presented initially by Valerie Singleton and later by Peter Purves and Lesley Judd both of whom had been presenters on Blue Peter itself.
Series guide
Series One featured Valerie Singleton looking at six European Capital Cities. These included Rome, Paris, London, Edinburgh, Amsterdam and Brussels. The first programme to be filmed was the one featuring Rome and included a personal address to the children of Britain from Pope Paul VI in The Vatican.
Series Two continued to feature Singleton looking at European Cities and included Dublin, York and Madrid. Later series looked at Islands and included The Isle of Wight, The Isle of Man, Hong Kong, Malta and Venice, even though Venice had also featured in an earlier series as a 'city'. Later the show began to look at famous houses or famous individuals and included biographies of Vivaldi, The Brontë Sisters, The Duke of Wellington, Saint Therese of Lisieux, Marie Antoinette and Rudyard Kipling and both Lesley Judd and Peter Purves began presenting the series in place of Singleton.
The series in 1977 was presented jointly by Peter Purves and Lesley Judd, with the theme of 'twin towns'.
The final series was co-presented alternately by Singleton and Peter Purves, being broadcast in 1981. The series theme was 'Rivers', with Singleton examining the Yukon and Niagara, while Purves reported on the Tamar, the Tweed and the Singapore Rivers.
Spin off books were published covering the first two series.
Episodes
= ''Blue Peter Royal Safari'' (1971) =
{{Episode table |background=CED343 |overall= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|LineColor=CED343
|EpisodeNumber=1
|Title=Blue Peter Royal Safari
|WrittenBy=Biddy Baxter
|DirectedBy=Edward Barnes
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1971|04|11|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=The first solo television film for HRH Princess Anne with Valerie Singleton. Produced by Biddy Baxter & Edward Barnes.
}}
}}
Repeated Monday, 7 June 1971 at 7:20{{nbsp}}pm and Monday, 3 April 1972 at 5:00{{nbsp}}pm on BBC1.
= Series 1: European Capitals (1973) =
Valerie Singleton reports on six capital cities of Europe. Produced by Edward Barnes.
{{Episode table |background=00AE00 |overall= |series= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|LineColor=00AE00
|EpisodeNumber=1
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title=Rome
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Edward Barnes
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1973|01|7|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie meets Pope Paul VI.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=00AE00
|EpisodeNumber=2
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title=Amsterdam
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=David Brown
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1973|01|14|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie tells the story of Anne Frank.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=00AE00
|EpisodeNumber=3
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title=The City of London
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Peter Ridsdale Scott
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1973|01|21|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie meets the Lord Mayor of London.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=00AE00
|EpisodeNumber=4
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=Paris
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=David Brown
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1973|01|28|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie celebrates Bastille Day.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=00AE00
|EpisodeNumber=5
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=Edinburgh
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=David Brown
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1973|02|04|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie tells the story of Greyfriars Bobby.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=00AE00
|EpisodeNumber=6
|EpisodeNumber2=6
|Title=Vienna
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=David Turnbull
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1973|02|11|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie meets the Vienna Boys' Choir.
}}
}}
The series was repeated on BBC1 in November/December 1973 with the broadcast order changed to: Rome, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Paris, City of London, Vienna.
= Series 2: European Cities (1974) =
Valerie Singleton reports on five European cities. Produced by Edward Barnes.
{{Episode table |background=B30D0F |overall= |series= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|LineColor=B30D0F
|EpisodeNumber=7
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title=Venice
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Edward Barnes
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1974|03|31|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie tells the story of Venice.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=B30D0F
|EpisodeNumber=8
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title=Brussels
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=David Brown
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1974|04|07|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie finds out why Napoleon lost the Battle of Waterloo.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=B30D0F
|EpisodeNumber=9
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title=Dublin
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Harry Cowdy
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1974|04|14|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie tells the story of the Easter Rising.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=B30D0F
|EpisodeNumber=10
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=Madrid
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Peter Smith
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1974|04|21|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie discovers what flamenco is about.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=B30D0F
|EpisodeNumber=11
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=York
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=David Brown
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1974|04|28|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie looks at Easter Eggs and Stained Glass.
}}
}}
= Series 3: Islands (1975) =
Valerie Singleton reports on six islands. Produced by Edward Barnes.
{{Episode table |background=F86A28 |overall= |series= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F86A28
|EpisodeNumber=12
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title=Hong Kong
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Edward Barnes
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1975|03|09|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie visits the water people.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F86A28
|EpisodeNumber=13
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title=The Isle of Skye
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Daniel Wolf
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1975|03|16|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie follows the trail of Flora MacDonald & Bonnie Prince Charlie.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F86A28
|EpisodeNumber=14
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title=Malta GC
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Harry Cowdy
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1975|03|23|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie celebrates the village festival of St Nicholas of Siġġiewi.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F86A28
|EpisodeNumber=15
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=The Isle of Wight
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1975|03|30|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie tells the story of Osborne House.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F86A28
|EpisodeNumber=16
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=The Isle of Man
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=David Brown
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1975|04|06|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie tries her hand at the TT races.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F86A28
|EpisodeNumber=17
|EpisodeNumber2=6
|Title=Venice
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Edward Barnes
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1975|04|13|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=In a revised repeat, Valerie tells the story of Venice.
}}
}}
A repeat season was broadcast in October 1975 on BBC1, featuring the following episodes:
- Hong Kong (3 October 1975)
- Brussels (10 October 1975)
- York (17 October 1975)
- Madrid (24 October 1975)
- Amsterdam (31 October 1975)
= Series 4: Great Houses (1976) =
Great names of history whose houses still exist. Produced by Edward Barnes.
{{Episode table |background=ffff00 |overall= |series= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|LineColor=ffff00
|EpisodeNumber=18
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title=The Prince Regent at Brighton
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1976|05|23|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie Singleton provides a link with the past.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=ffff00
|EpisodeNumber=19
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title=Disraeli at Hughenden
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Daniel Wolf
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1976|05|30|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie Singleton visits an English great house with Alan Badel as the voice of Disraeli.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=ffff00
|EpisodeNumber=20
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title=Pavlova at Ivy House
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Edward Barnes
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1976|06|06|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Lesley Judd visits the home of the legendary ballerina.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=ffff00
|EpisodeNumber=21
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=Darwin at Down House
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Daniel Wolf
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1976|06|13|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie Singleton with Michael Hordern as the voice of Charles Darwin.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=ffff00
|EpisodeNumber=22
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=Keats at Wentworth Place
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Harry Cowdy
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1976|06|20|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie Singleton with Ronald Pickup as the voice of John Keats.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=ffff00
|EpisodeNumber=23
|EpisodeNumber2=6
|Title=Raleigh at Sherborne Castle
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1976|06|27|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie Singleton with Richard Pasco as the voice of Sir Walter Raleigh and the voices of John Nettleton and Jonathan Scott.
}}
}}
= Series 5: Twin Towns (1977) =
Peter Purves and Lesley Judd visit five different sets of twin towns. Produced by Edward Barnes.
{{Episode table |background=8B4513 |overall= |series= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|LineColor=8B4513
|EpisodeNumber=24
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title=Richmond & Fontainebleau
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Daniel Wolf
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1977|06|19|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Lesley Judd in Fontainebleau and Peter Purves in Richmond, Surrey.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=8B4513
|EpisodeNumber=25
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title=Coventry & Warsaw
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1977|06|26|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Lesley Judd in Coventry and Peter Purves in Warsaw.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=8B4513
|EpisodeNumber=26
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title=Cambridge & Heidelberg
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Edward Barnes
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1977|07|03|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Lesley Judd in Cambridge and Peter Purves in Heidelberg.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=8B4513
|EpisodeNumber=27
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=Bristol & Bordeaux
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1977|07|10|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Lesley Judd in Bordeaux and Peter Purves in Bristol.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=8B4513
|EpisodeNumber=28
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=Portsmouth & Haifa
|WrittenBy=Edward Barnes
|DirectedBy=Daniel Wolf
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1977|07|17|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Lesley Judd in Haifa and Peter Purves in Portsmouth.
}}
}}
= Series 6: Biographies (1979) =
Peter Purves investigates dramatic settings for the lives of six great personalities from Italy, France and England. Produced by Edward Barnes.
{{Episode table |background=F781D8 |overall= |series= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F781D8
|EpisodeNumber=29
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title=Marie Antoinette at Versailles
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Hugh David
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1979|01|07|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves with the voices of Mary Wimbush, Geoffrey Matthews and John Gabriel.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F781D8
|EpisodeNumber=30
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title=Rudyard Kipling at Bateman's
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1979|01|14|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves with the voices of Nicolette McKenzie and John Nettleton.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F781D8
|EpisodeNumber=31
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title=Saint Therese of Lisieux
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1979|01|21|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves looks at the life of ‘The Little Flower’.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F781D8
|EpisodeNumber=32
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=The Duke of Wellington at Stratford Saye
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Hugh David
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1979|01|28|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves looks at the Duke of Wellington’s home life.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F781D8
|EpisodeNumber=33
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=The Brontes at Haworth
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Dorothea Brooking
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1979|02|04|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves follows the footsteps of the Bronte family.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=F781D8
|EpisodeNumber=34
|EpisodeNumber2=6
|Title=Antonio Vivaldi in Venice
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1979|02|11|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves meets the girls of the Venice Conservatorio Orchestra with the voices Sean Barrett, John Nettleton, John Rowe and Geoffrey Matthews as Vivaldi.
}}
}}
= Series 7: Rivers (1981) =
A series of five programmes produced by Edward Barnes.
{{Episode table |background=20b2aa |overall= |series= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|LineColor=20b2aa
|EpisodeNumber=35
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title=The Niagara River
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=David Turnbull
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1981|05|10|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie Singleton discovers the comic and the tragic stories of one of the world's greatest natural wonders - the Niagara Falls.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=20b2aa
|EpisodeNumber=36
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title=The River Tweed
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1981|05|17|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves travels the length of the Tweed on the border of Scotland and England.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=20b2aa
|EpisodeNumber=37
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title=The Yukon River
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=David Hargreaves
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1981|05|24|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Valerie Singleton travels 500 miles down the Yukon.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=20b2aa
|EpisodeNumber=38
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=The Singapore River
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Sarah Hellings
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1981|05|31|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves explores the Singapore River.
}}
{{Episode list
|LineColor=20b2aa
|EpisodeNumber=39
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=The River Tamar
|WrittenBy=Dorothy Smith
|DirectedBy=Alex Leger
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1981|06|07|df=yes}}
|ShortSummary=Peter Purves visits a river that has a special place in the lives of people in Devon and Cornwall. Executive Producer: David Hargreaves.
}}
}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|id=1817823|title=Blue Peter Special Assignment}}
Category:1973 British television series debuts
Category:1981 British television series endings
Category:1970s British children's television series
Category:1980s British children's television series
Category:BBC children's television shows
Category:British television spinoffs