Children’s television
Mopatop's Shop
The story
Mopatop's Shop is a children's television series that premiered on CITV in the UK on 4 January 1999. 260 ten-minute episodes were made and aired daily. It was a co-production between Jim Henson Television and Carlton Television. After it finished its run on 7 February 2003, it was repeated for several years afterwards until 2010.
Production
The show was produced and written by Jocelyn Stevenson, who started working with the Muppets as a lead writer on Fraggle Rock. Stevenson explained, "The aim of Mopatop's Shop is to teach young children to embrace language and communication skills in a form where they can expand the boundaries of their imagination. It promotes goodness and wellbeing."
Plot
The show features Mopatop and his assistant, Puppyduck. They run Mopatop's Shop, a shop where one can buy anything they could ever think or dream of. They interact with characters including the Mouse family, local deliveryman Lamont the sloth, neighbour Claudia Bird and a rabbit named Odd-Job Gerald.
Main characters
Mopatop (performed by Mak Wilson in series 1 and 2, William Todd-Jones in series 3 and 4) – The main character of the series. He is a large and fuzzy green dragon-like creature of indeterminate species who runs Mopatop's Shop as its shopkeeper.
Puppyduck (performed by Victoria Willing) – Mopatop's assistant. She is a cross between a duck and a dog. Puppyduck also has a fondness for strawberry jam.
Mouse Family – A family of mice that live in the attic of Mopatop's shop.
Moosey Mouse (performed by Nigel Plaskitt) – A member of the Mouse Family. Since Mopatop and Puppyduck don't notice him, he tends to do whatever he wants. He is a recycled version of the mouse puppet used in The Muppet Christmas Carol which was later used for Stanley the Mouse in Jim Henson's Animal Show.
Mother Mouse (performed by Victoria Willing)
Father Mouse (performed by Brian Herring)
Great Uncle Mousiemillian – Moosey Mouse's great uncle.
Recurring characters
Claudia Bird (performed by Susan Beattie) – A friendly neighbor of Mopatop. She is a recycled version of Winny from The Muppet Show.
Lamont (performed by Nigel Plaskitt) – A sloth who is a deliveryman. He is a recycled version of the Lamont the Sloth puppet from Jim Henson's Animal Show.
Odd-Job Gerald (performed by Brian Herring) – A rabbit who does odd jobs for Mopatop.
Grace The Delphinium (performed by Alison McGowan) – A cheerful flower that resides in Mopatop's Shop. She is a recycled version of one of the flowers from The Muppet Show.
Professor Fingle Fangle Fargle (performed by Nigel Plaskitt) – An inventor who has contributed some of his inventions to Mopatop's Shop.
United Kingdom
The series premiered on CITV on 4 January 1999.
North America
From 3 September 2001 to 6 September 2002, the series was aired on Treehouse in Canada.
On 9 May 2013, it was shown on YouTube during the first series and partial clips of series 2-4. in North America after a 5-year wait.