Rik Mayall made a radical departure from the knockabout comedy of 'The Young Ones' in 1989 when he signed up to narrate this short lived but fantastic children's television show from ITV featuring the popular fairy-tale stories created by the Brothers Grimm, which were adapted by Anne Caulfield and Anthony Horowitz. It gave the rubber faced Mayall the chance to broaden his horizons and entertain a younger audience. A difficult task for an alternative comedian, but thanks to his zany personality and talent for visual comedy, Mayall managed to his great credit to pull it off. Each episode opened with Rik ( dressed in pyjamas and a dressing gown ) flying along the sky, sitting on an armchair ( constructed by David Barrington Holt ) with huge ostrich legs attached to it, whilst playing over these titles would be a bouncy orchestra arrangement provided by Ged Haney and Clive Bell.
With Rik's unique narration interspersed with sinister animations, 'Grim Tales' was a wonderfully handsome piece, not just aimed at the kids. The 22 editions, made over two seasons featured many of the brothers best and most well known tales such as 'The Three Feathers', 'The Spirit In The Bottle', 'Rapunzel', 'The Fisherman & His Wife', 'Rumplestiltskin' and, the best of them all, 'The Valiant Little Tailor'.
'Grim Tales' was popular at the time, especially with the audience it was aimed at. I suppose the kids liked it due to Rik's outstanding gift for visual comedy. However, only two series were ever made. Both series were released on VHS but it has yet to officially appear on DVD. I think, instead of tainting children's minds with mindless drivel such as 'Peppa Pig', TV stations should show the little tots something genuinely funny and worthwhile.
With Rik's unique narration interspersed with sinister animations, 'Grim Tales' was a wonderfully handsome piece, not just aimed at the kids. The 22 editions, made over two seasons featured many of the brothers best and most well known tales such as 'The Three Feathers', 'The Spirit In The Bottle', 'Rapunzel', 'The Fisherman & His Wife', 'Rumplestiltskin' and, the best of them all, 'The Valiant Little Tailor'.
'Grim Tales' was popular at the time, especially with the audience it was aimed at. I suppose the kids liked it due to Rik's outstanding gift for visual comedy. However, only two series were ever made. Both series were released on VHS but it has yet to officially appear on DVD. I think, instead of tainting children's minds with mindless drivel such as 'Peppa Pig', TV stations should show the little tots something genuinely funny and worthwhile.