What is "clangers"

n. (plural of clanger English)

Clangers is a British stop-motion animated children's television series of short stories about a family of murine creatures who live on, and inside, a small moon-like planet. They speak only in whistles, and eat green soup supplied by the Soup Dragon and blue string pudding. The programmes were originally broadcast by BBC1 between 1969 and 1972, followed by the first of three special episodes that was broadcast in 1974.

The series was made by Smallfilms, the company set up by Oliver Postgate (writer, animator and narrator) and Peter Firmin (modelmaker and illustrator). Firmin designed the characters, and his wife knitted and "dressed" the Clangers. The music, often part of the story, was by Vernon Elliott.

A new series, narrated by Monty Python actor Michael Palin, started on 15 June 2015 on the UK CBeebies TV channel with successful viewing figures. Two short specials were broadcast before then. The new cartoons are still animated in stop-motion animation instead of computer-generated imagery, which replaced the original stop-motion animation in other children's programmes such as Fireman Sam, Thomas & Friends, The Wombles and Bob the Builder

Clangers won a BAFTA in the Best Pre-School Animation category in 2015.

The Clangers and other Smallfilms characters were featured in an exhibition at the V&A Museum of Childhood (19 March – 9 October 2016) entitled Clangers, Bagpuss & Co.