Goodbye Noddy
You know Make Way for Noddy, right? It was a show airing on PBS and Sprout about a boy with a hat with a jingly bell that rings whenever he nods who solves problems in a town known as Toyland. Lemme tell you the story of an episode I'll never, ever forget.
It was 2013 and I was watching The Sprout Sharing Show on Sprout in my parents' room one day when suddenly, Patty Pig announced "...and now the final episode of Make Way for Noddy!" in a sad-sounding voice. Final episode? I curious to see what the episode was about.
The episode started with the normal theme song. After that, a title card read "Goodbye Noddy." I was confused. Was Noddy moving out of Toyland? After the title card, we saw Noddy and Big Ears sitting at a table together in their house. "Too bad you're going to die, Noddy. I'm going to miss you." Big Ears said, all sniffly. Wait, Noddy was dying? Did he know he was going to die ala The World of David the Gnome?
"Yeah, we've had great times together. Too bad it's all ending." Noddy sighed. "I'm going to miss you too, Big Ears. Well, I guess I better say goodbye to my other friends." Noddy then got up and left his house. "Goodbye, Big Ears."
"Goodbye, you funny little Noddy." Big Ears said, and then cried.
Noddy got in his car, on his way to say goodbye to all his Toyland friends. First, he said goodbye to Tessie Bear. "Bye, Tessie."
"Bye?" Tessie asked. "Why bye?"
"I don't know how to say this, Tessie, but I'm dying today."
"What? If that's true, Noddy, I'll miss you. Goodbye!" Tessie said as she broke down in tears.
Noddy then went off to see Martha Monkey. "Is is true that you're really passing away, Noddy?" Martha asked.
"I hate to say it, Martha, but yes." Noddy said sadly.
"Oh, I'm gonna miss you, Noddy." Martha said as she hugged Noddy.
"Goodbye, Martha." Noddy told Martha as he got into his car. Martha waved at him. "Farewell, Noddy! It's nice that we got to see each other one last time!"
As I continued watching, I have noticed that the Sprout screenbug had turned to grey. Noddy then went to deliver the sad news to Sly and Gobbo. "Sly, Gobbo, bad news, I'm passing away today."
"What?!" Sly and Gobbo reacted.
"I'm never gonna forget you - all the tricks and pranks you played on me over the years. This might surprise you, but I loved all of them. I'll miss you two." Noddy told the goblin villains.
"We're gonna miss you too, Noddy." Gobbo said with tears in his eyes.
"Don't forget to write!" Sly told Noddy.
"Wait, he can't! He said he's dying!" Gobbo told Sly.
"Oh, okay."
Noddy got back in his car. "Goodbye, Sly. Goodbye, Gobbo."
"Goodbye, Noddy." Sly and Gobbo waved with tears in their eyes.
Then, Noddy went to Dinah Doll. "Hey, Dinah, I'm leaving." Noddy sighed.
"What? Don't joke me! Where are you going?" asked Dinah.
"I'm going away forever." Noddy told Dinah. "And no, you can never come with me."
"I'm gonna miss you, Noddy." Dinah hugged Noddy with tears in her eyes. "Farewell!'
"Goodbye, Dinah. I'll always remember you." Noddy got in his car and he and Dinah waved goodbye to each other.
Finally, Noddy made it to a park, parked his car one last time, and found a spot where he could die in peace. He then turned to the viewers. "Even though I'll be dead, I'll never forget any of you or our adventures together. Thanks for coming with me, you're the best!"
Nearly all the characters - Big Ears, Mr. Plod, Master Tubby Bear, Tessie, Martha, Dinah, even Sly and Gobbo, and more. "What - what are you guys doing here?" asked Noddy.
"We're here to see you ... one last time." Big Ears told Noddy. "We couldn't bear to part with you."
"It's nice that you're all here with me." Noddy gave a sad smile. "Will you all remember me?" Everyone responded with "Yeahs" and nods.
"Don't forget, Noddy, we love you." said Tessie.
"I love you all too." Noddy said. He then lay down on the floor, closed his eyes, and stopped breathing. With this, everyone around him cried. However, they weren't crying cartoon tears, but it sounded like the actors were actually crying. How would they show this on a show aimed at preschoolers?
Suddenly, the news came on. "Good evening, and welcome to TNN (Toyland News Network)." a female news reporter greeted the viewers, "We are saddened to report the passing of Noddy, a boy with a hat which would jingle every time he would nod. He was a beloved hero to not only Toyland but everywhere else. He will be missed." The news reporter sounded like your typical one from CNN, The Today Show, etc.
A funeral was held somewhere outdoors in Toyland. There, everyone was still crying. Big Ears already had tears in his eyes and got up for a speech. "Noddy was a kind friend and a helper to all. I'm so glad I got to live with him and to know him." Mr. Plod was so moved by Big Ears' speech that he started crying so hard.
"Farewell, Noddy." said Martha Monkey sadly. "I hope to see you again someday."
The episode ended with Noddy sleeping on a cloud up in the sky with a particularly sad instrumental version of his theme song playing.
Once the episode ended, it cut to split-screen credits with Patty, who said "I'm sure going to miss Noddy. He was so much fun to play with!"
"Poor Noddy!" said Ricky Rabbit. "I'm going to miss him too!" Ricky then burst down to tears.
"Coming up next it's more Sprout fun coming your way with Olive the Ostrich, but first here's a commercial break." Patty sniffled and then began to cry.
It then cut to a Sproutorama bumper. "Patty, Ricky, and Curtis E. Owl will be right back with more to share here on Sprout." said a little girl sadly. Instead of a joyful instrumental of the Sprout Sharing Show theme song, sad piano music played.
After that, a montage of Sprout characters crying played. A female announcer that sounded like Nina from The Good Night Show said "And now, a moment of silence for our friend Noddy." I thought this would go on all day, all night even, so I asked my Mom to turn off the TV.
Nine years later, I still remember the episode and even have dreams about it. I was five, almost six years old back then. Now I'm fourteen. I will never forget that day. In 2020, I asked a Chorion spokesperson about the episode, and he didn't know what I was talking about.
Event to this day and even at this age, I'm a big Sprout fan and I occasionally acknowledge Make Way for Noddy, but always with the "series finale" in mind. Thanks for reading.
Credited to Maddiellabie
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