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Uncle Bobby was a
Canadian children's television show that aired from
1964 to
1979 on
Toronto's
CFTO and, for two years, beginning in
1968, as a weekly show on the
CTV television network (although it continued to be aired on local CTV stations across Canada thereafter). In its later run the show was known as
Uncle Bobby and Friends and, in
1979, the show was renamed
Kid's Corner and lasted for a few more years as a syndicated Saturday morning offering (and into the early
1990s in repeats on
YTV).
The half-hour show starred
Bobby Ash (
1924–
2007), a former comedian and
circus clown who had moved to Canada from the
United Kingdom. The show aired weekdays over noonhour and featured staples such as "Bimbo: The Birthday Clown", a stationary cardboard cut-out who would come out of his closet to the tune of
Jim Reeves's
Bimbo and a booming laugh as Uncle Bobby announced that day's birthday greetings. Accompanying Bimbo were three puppets on a string,
Wilson, Keppel and Betty, named after British
music hall performers, who would "dance" to Bimbo's theme. The show featured regulars such as guitarist and singer
Alex Laurier, Meredith Cutting (the singing police officer),
ventriloquist Cy Leonard and his partner Happy,
magician Ron Leonard,
accordionist Nancy McCaig, wildlife artist Barry Kent MacKay, clay artist Ruth Winkler as well as safety tips for children from Traffic Officer John. Uncle Bobby's catch phrase was...
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