# "Rainbow" -Wildly suggestive children's show or spoof? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 26, 2004, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rainbow-wildly-suggestive-childrens-show-or-spoof/231367 "2004-02-26T22:47:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![seriousart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@seriousart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seriousart)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2004, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rainbow-wildly-suggestive-childrens-show-or-spoof/231367/1 "2004-02-26T22:47:20Z")
Hey guys, was emailed a link to [this site](http://www.ste-riley.co.uk/rainbow.shtml) which plays a clip about 3 minutes long, seemingly from a children’s program from the early 70’s, which contains inuendos which would make Benny Hill blush. Checked it out on IMDB and Rainbow was an actual children’s TV show, though I think this may have just been an off-air gag reel type of thing. At least I would hope so… Reminds me of the expletive filled New Zoo Review clip floating around the internet where the owl and frog get it on. Anybody know any more about this show or clip? ---
**Author:** ![the\_Lady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bb73d2/32.png) [@the\_Lady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_Lady)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2004, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rainbow-wildly-suggestive-childrens-show-or-spoof/231367/2 "2004-02-26T23:42:56Z")
I know I liked it as a child - though I don’t remember much else. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2004, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rainbow-wildly-suggestive-childrens-show-or-spoof/231367/3 "2004-02-26T23:54:28Z")
I liked the show as a kid too. I remember seeing a clip with innuendos. I think that was a spoof. A one-off. ---
**Author:** ![hanza](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/eb8c5e/32.png) [@hanza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hanza)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2004, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rainbow-wildly-suggestive-childrens-show-or-spoof/231367/4 "2004-02-27T00:11:38Z")
I watched Rainbow as a child, and found myself thinking about it recently. I then had one of thoese Eureka! moments when the penny finally dropped and I realised that the whole thing was a great big gay love-in for kids. I’m serious. It’s called RAINBOW for heavens sake! The 3 principle characters are all male- a slim waisted blond chap (Geoffrey), and big BEAR(George) and some puppet thingy who’s PINK and has a rather fetishistic zip for a mouth(Zippy)which the other characters zip shut when he’s being annoying-oh,and I just remembered another character, a furry hippo(Bungle), who is also PINK, if memory serves me correctly . Plus I seem to remember that every episode ended with all four of them getting into bed- TOGETHER! I also recall very camp voices and mannerisms, particularly on the part of the bear. I don’t remember all the sexual innuendo, but it seems highly likely from my recollections of what the show was like. Seriously, I do think that it was like, totally, gay. Nothing wrong with that, but I do find it interesting how something that can seem totally innoncent can reveal deeper levels of meaning in later life. (The Magic Roundabout is another very good example of this, with it’s not- so- hard- to- spot drugs subtext. It’s a real cult classic in England- dunno if it ever reached America. It’s beloved mainly by students now, who like to snicker along to the loaded dialogue whilst stoned out of their trees. My only question is why the gay community haven’t yet outed Geoffrey, George, Bungle and Zippy and embraced them as some of their own. Oh yes, I remember- Rainbow was really a bit crap) ---
**Author:** ![hanza](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/eb8c5e/32.png) [@hanza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hanza)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2004, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rainbow-wildly-suggestive-childrens-show-or-spoof/231367/5 "2004-02-27T00:32:48Z")
O.k, Ive just watching that clip, and I’m sure nothing like THAT was ever allowed out on kids TV! Plus I got the names mixed up- Bungle’s the bear, and George is the hippo, and Zippy isn’t pink at all! The mind can play funny tricks sometimes… ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2004, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rainbow-wildly-suggestive-childrens-show-or-spoof/231367/6 "2004-02-27T00:44:02Z")
Over on Snopes (which is, at the moment, down) I remember seeing a recent thread on that reel. It was apparently put together as a gag for some British television awards show or blooper contest or something like that. In other words, the show “Rainbow” is a real kid’s show, but that clip is NOT a regular production episode! ---
**Author:** ![Kal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de053/32.png) [@Kal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kal)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2004, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rainbow-wildly-suggestive-childrens-show-or-spoof/231367/7 "2004-02-27T01:21:17Z")
From [here:](http://www.btinternet.com/~acbarrett/faq.htm) > [@](#): > > We’re often asked about the so called rude Rainbow, clips of which have been shown on the Channel Four programmes, TV Unzipped and TV Offal. Although often introduced as the unaired pilot, this episode was actually specially made by the team at Thames Television. Geoffrey Hayes told us, “The VT department of each ITV company, every Christmas had a competition to enter all the outtakes from their particular companies programme out put, and see which ones were the funniest. But ours wasn?t an outtake, we specially did it. It was specially scripted and we did it and I never saw it! We did it and Thames won it, but what they actually won, I don?t know. But I never saw the video. I can?t remember much about it except for Zippy with a banana.” The script was written by the voice of Zippy and George; Roy Skelton. Sadly, we don’t have a copy, so don’t ask!!