It must be Christmas because they're back! Those two beautiful little English sprites (?) Jack & Holly are back on Amazon TV. This home spun series was never intended to rival the big budget studios of Disney or Warner Brothers but boy does it deliver for my three year old twins! OK, so the animation is a little old school and the story line could have been written on the back of a postcard BUT if you're a toddler venturing into the world of television, fairy tales and cartoons this delightfully bright, educational and fantastical Christmas journey will hold you spell-bound. The theme tune gets under your skin and the characters and songs (sung mainly by Holly) will tug at your heart strings. The animation style is anything but power-rangers and is hard to define and it's definitely not CGI or stop-motion although there's a nod to both. It's different folks but it works.
If I have one criticism - it's too long - at around an hour most pre-schoolers will have wandered off - but as a parent you are encouraged to 'ration' how much they watch and there are chapters you can stop off at - but that just caused an almighty hoo-ha in our house.
I shouldn't have been watching it's not made for a 40 year old Mom like me but I couldn't give up on this charming tale of Christmas nonsense. I love the fact that Santa stops off for a Christmas drink at an old English pub after he's finished delivering presents – actually, maybe this film does have a message for moms and dads after all :) Jack and Holly's Christmas Countdown - A UK independent eccentric production is out on Amazon TV now.
