"A fire? A REAL fire?!"

"A fire? A REAL fire?!"

'Camberwick Green', 'Trumpton' and 'Chigley' run through my soul like letters through a stick of rock. The sheer detail of the universe that Gordon Murray creates, Brian Cant's gentle narration and the gorgeous music of Freddie Phillips all combine to produce a universe that is both welcoming for children and nostalgic for grown-ups.

Once upon a time, it was perhaps fashionable to look back on our childhood favourites with a rather jaundiced eye, but I am not here to snigger about how Mickey Murphy is a master baker. This is a show that stands up on its own merits and I wish I could make something so consistently excellent.

It's an idealised world, of course, but none the worse for that. Everyone is helpful to their friends and neighbours, whether there's a swarm of bees outside the bakery or the mayor's hat has lodged somewhere inaccessible again.

Now it's true that the average response to any problem is to over-react. The army and/or fire brigade are constantly called out for even minor problems. It's a amusing that PC McGarry's song says you can summon him even if your baby has lost a shoe.

We suspect that you'd be given short shrift if you dialled 101 and reported the loss of an item of junior footware. Mind you, given that this week people have been phoning the police to report that their local branch of KFC has run out of chicken, it demonstrates that you should never underestimate the stupidity of some of the general public...

Lisa was interested in the apparent clash of times zones, given away by the weid mix of fashion styles. The skirts of most of the ladies seem to owe more to the Edwardian era, but Mrs Murphy shockingly has considerably more than her ankles on display!

The soldier boys at Pippin Fort appear to have fallen through a crack in time from about 1835, but Mr Dagenham the salesman has a bang up to date helicopter. Although if I was invited on board, I'd ask that he put some safer doors on it.

The animation style is clean and simple, but still manages to communicate a surprising amount of emotion. For somebody portrayed by a puppet, Captain Snort manages to look wonderfully perplexed when he is lumbered with Mrs Honeyman's massive and oddly rigid baby.

I've mentioned the music in passing, but it really is one of the essential ingredients in the mix. Everyone gets a memorable song, even the corporation dustmen ("We're efficient, quick and thorough when we're cleaning up the borough!") and the telephone engineers with their squat, less than aerodynamic van.

Time truly flies by when you're watching these marvellous stories. So waste no time in taking a trip to Trumptonshire. But if there's some dust on the surface of your DVD, first take a smooth cloth to it rather than phoning for PC McGarry (Number 452).

(By Andrew Trowbridge)