Original title
Torchy the Battery Boy
Released
2/23/1960
Origin country
GB
Genre
Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Production companies
Associated British Picture Corporation, AP Films
Status
Ended
Number of seasons
2
Number of episodes
52
Torchy the Battery Boy was the second television series produced by AP Films and Gerry Anderson, running from 1960 to 1961. It was another collaboration with author Roberta Leigh and was directed by Anderson, with music scored by Barry Gray, art direction from Reg Hill and special effects by Derek Meddings. The second series of 26 episodes was produced by Associated British-Pathé without the involvement of Anderson and AP Films. Both series have been released on DVD. The series followed adventures of the eponymous boy doll with a battery inside him and a lamp in his head, and his master Mr Bumbledrop, voiced by Kenneth Connor, who also voiced a number of other characters.
A mechanical boy with a magical flashlight on his head has adventures on earth and in Topsy Turvy Land, which is located on a distant star.
After his poodle and the neighborhood kids' toys are blown into outer space on kites, Mr. Bumble-Drop builds a robotic boy and a rocket ship for the lad to retrieve the lost playthings and pooch from a distant star.
Torchy arrives in Topsy Turvy Land, where he learns the toys have sprung to life, and Pom-Pom, the poodle, can speak. He helps Flopsy the ragdoll by replacing some of her lost stuffing with the puppy's fur.
Torchy meets Squish, an American space boy who's been stranded in Topsy Turvy Land. The boy decides to fly Torchy's rocket but promptly destroys it. Meanwhile, Pom-Pom bemoans the loss of her fur.
Torchy and his friends decide to hollow out the large fruit that grows in Topsy Turvy Land to make homes for themselves.
While searching for cardboard to repair his rocket, Torchy meets Ting-a-Ling the bird, who tries to offer assistance.
Torchy meets the daffy King Dithers, who offers a tube of cardboard to repair the boy's rocket but promptly gets rolled up in it.
No one wants to return to Earth with Torchy, but when his battery dies, Pom-Pom comes to the rescue and brings the boy home to Mr. Bumble-Drop.
Mr. Bumble-Drop tricks Bossy Boots into flying to Topsy Turvy Land with Torchy, and she quickly becomes irritated, realizing that in this strange world, Flopsy the ragdoll has become her equal.
Torchy and the toys treat Bossy Boots as badly as she's treated them.
After a mishap, Pilliwig the Clown insists Torchy can't ride his bicycle again until he outfits it with a bell.
Pom-Pom becomes absorbed with her own vanity, so the toys decide to teach her a lesson.
Soon after arriving back on earth, Torchy's battery runs down. He's discovered by Mrs. Meanie-Mouth, who takes him home as a gift for her rotten son, Bogey.
The hunt is on for King Dithers' crown, which is discovered in the possession of Pollikan, a strange bird with a penchant for shiny objects.
Pilliwig the Clown is depressed because everyone's grown weary of his jokes, so Torchy introduces him to Ena, a giggling hyena who resides in Topsy Turvy Land.
Torchy brings Bogey to Topsy Turvy Land to teach him to behave, but the brat brings along his toy pirate, Pongo, who steadfastly refuses to return to Earth.
When Torchy learns that the other toys are terrified of a ferocious monster in the caves, he investigates and discovers Sparky, a mild-mannered, lonesome dragon.
When Torchy learns that Bossy Boots has reverted to her former ways, he lures her back to Topsy Turvy Land with the promise of a party in her honor, but instead, he forces her to feed Clinker, the money box she's been starving.
After discovering King Dithers does not need cash, Pongo the pirate decides to steal Clinker the money box's private reserve. Clinker complains of hunger, so Torchy uses his magic light and eventually finds a fruitful money tree.
When Torchy returns home to visit Mr. Bumble-Drop, his battery dies, so terrible twins Bobby and Babs take him home and lock him in a chicken pen. To get even, Mr. Bumble-Drop lures them into Torchy's rocket with a bag of candy.
Torchy instructs King Dithers to lock Bobby and Babs in the dungeon, but when his highness proves to be unfit for the simple task, it's up to Pollikan to dole out punishment.
Torchy gets stranded on Earth, so King Dithers agrees to retrieve him, but he takes a wrong turn and faces the man on the moon, who's decided to go on strike.
King Dithers and Polliken bid farewell to the Man on the Moon by fitting him with sunglasses so he can sleep through the day. Meanwhile, Mr. Bumbledrop and Torchy plan to reward Bossy Boots for her exemplary behavior by bringing the girl along to Topsy Turvy Land. Unfortunately, they learn that she's been in bed for a week, playing sick to keep from going to school.
Torchy decides to stop on the moon for cheese when he takes Mr. Bumbledrop home.
Torchy visits Mrs. Meaniemouth to get medicine for Mr. Bumbledrop. Her son, Bogey, takes Torchy captive and forces him to watch as he destroys the park statues.
When darkness envelops Topsy Turvy Land, Torchy and Flopsy discover the man on the moon has overslept.
Torchy feels left out as all of the toys secretively make plans for his birthday.
A mechanical boy with a magical flashlight on his head has adventures on earth and in Topsy Turvy Land, which is located on a distant star.
Flopsy insists on picnicking alone, so Torchy and Squish decide to pull a prank on her.
Flopsy is lonely but doesn't want to return to earth with Bossy Boots, so Torchy brings Pom-Pom back to play with her. Also, the king gives Torchy a bicycle.
Torchy retrieves Daffy the donkey from the caves to help move a banana, which they hope to use as a bridge over the river.
Daffy the donkey feels useless, so Torchy brings him to the king to pull his coach.
A mysterious illness sweeps through Topsy Turvy Land.
Bogey fills Flopsy with nuts and bolts, so the king punishes him by making the brat wear a suit of armor. Meanwhile, Pongo the pirate tries to steal Whirly's treasure chest.
Pongo tries to get his hands on the royal jewels by kidnapping Polliken.
Torchy creates a tin whistle to summon Pom-Pom, but he accidentally swallows it and loses the ability to speak.
When Whirly gets a stiff neck, he turns to Sparky the dragon for help. Meanwhile, Pom-Pom gets chocolate paw prints all over Torchy's house and is in a snit when she has to clean up.
Bogey thinks he's above Torchy's reproach on earth, but the battery boy spies on him from Topsy Turvy Land, and decides to drag him away to teach him a lesson.
Pilliwig the clown is unintentionally rude at Torchy's house, so he attempts to pay for his sins by sweeping the king's chimney.
Pongo wants someone to cook for him, so he decides to kidnap one of the toys, and guesses that Flopsy will put up the least resistance.
Pongo steals all of Clinker's money, and then he returns to empty to gold mine.
King Dithers throws a birthday party for himself and invites all of the toys to attend.
A freak orange juice rainstorm saturates all of the laundries that the toys hung out to dry.
Whirly and Sparky discover a fairy in the woods, as well as sticky gluebell flowers.
After his pistol runs out of water, Squish rides the bucket down a wishing well to refill it, but he gets stuck.
The Ting-a-Ling bird pulls out all of Flopsy's stuffing, mistaking it for a worm.
A hurricane blows through Topsy Turvy Land. As the toys head to the cave for safety, the winds grab Torchy and blow him back to earth.
On his birthday, Daffy grows weary of working for the king, so he runs away to the beach, where he's kidnapped and put to work by Pongo the pirate.
Flopsy accidentally bakes Clinker into the king's Christmas pudding.
Gillygolly comes to Frutown in search of a hair straightener. Pom-Pom is jealous of his natural curls, so she steals his hair as he naps.
During Mr. Bumble-Drop's first visit to Topsy Turvy Land, King Dithers becomes power-mad, so the toys revolt and name Bumble-Drop the new king.
Pilliwig is in a tizzy when Torchy slops paint on his suit, and Ena washes it with too much starch.
When Pongo's boat springs a leak, he swipes Daffy's umbrella to use as a sloop.
When Pom-Pom gets the hiccups, Torchy tries to find a remedy. Meanwhile, Bossy Boots tries to cheer up Mr. Bumble-Drop by behaving like a dog.
This website uses TMDB and the TMDB APIs but is not endorsed, certified, or otherwise approved by TMDB.
