Roland Rat - Rat On The Road Roland Rat’s Rat on the Road is an 80’s Children’s TV show, whose puppet characters were created, made and operated by David Claridge. Rat On The Road was written by David Claridge. The Executive producers were David Claridge & Anne Wood (who has produced many children’s shows). Roland Rat was first introduced to the world on the ITV breakfast time show ‘TV-AM’ (UK), which at the time was experiencing low ratings. Once introduced, he started attracting a large amount of viewers, young and old, who enjoyed the style and humour of the show. Roland went on to star in many shows, and still makes appearance on TV and Radio. Story After saving TV-AM, Roland Rat decided that it was time to explore the UK, soaking up its history, meeting his Rat Fans, and giving out Rat Bags (goody bags) on the way. So after giving Kevin the instructions to get a car, Kevin the gerbil came back with a pink 1954 Ford Anglia car costing £85 (The Rat Mobile), which kept breaking down. As you can guess, Roland wasn't happy with the supplied transport, as he was expecting a Rolls- Royce just like any self respecting superstar. He even had to drive it as Kevin doesn't drive! Roland and Kevin began their tour of the UK in Cardiff and took in the history of the place, including its castle. This is when Roland found out that he wouldn't be staying at a posh Hotel, but would instead be camping in a tent. Kevin told Roland that they couldn't afford a hotel. But when they reached London, Roland had to wash in Trafalgar Square's fountains to keep clean (after camping there overnight). At this point Roland had a temper tantrum and stormed off, booking himself into the expensive Hilton Hotel. Poor Kevin had kittens when he was presented with the bill afterwards. In Edinburgh, Roland decided to dress up in traditional Scottish clothes (such as a kilt) to endear himself with the locals. The trouble was this had the opposite effect and the local children laughed at the way he looked. He even tried to impress them by playing the bagpipes, but made a terrible racket. Luckily Kevin rescued the situation by playing them really well, much to the annoyance of Roland. At Oxford they camped out in the University grounds, but found themselves in trouble when Kevin chopped down a tree to use as firewood, to cook Roland's breakfast. Life calmed down when they arrived at Newcastle, where they enjoyed a relaxing Steam Train ride at Beamish. When Roland and Kevin reached York, they dressed as Vikings and explored the city. Unluckily for Roland, they bumped into a local policeman who found out that Roland didn't have a driving license, so impounded his car! Luckily Errol the hamster was able to get the car back. Roland Rat - Rat On The Road Characters    Roland Rat Superstar The son of Iris Rat, he's a self confessed superstar and a living legend. You can't fail to spot Roland, as he's the one wearing the bright Hawaiian shirt and ray-ban sunglasses. When talking he has a habit of saying 'Yeah'. Roland thinks that he's perfect in everyway, and that the world revolves around him. So when he meets anyone, he expects to be given the star treatment. He is quite sarcastic to most people, but doesn't take kindly to criticism. If you work with Roland, don't expect any praise, but instead brace yourself for some cutting comments (he's always shouting at Kevin and Errol). But if you talk to him about his fans, then its like talking to a different person, as the compliments flow. That doesn't mean his fans are immune to his bad behaviour. One time he sold his parking tickets to a foreigner for £20. He claimed they were tickets for the film 'Return Of the Jedi', the cheeky devil! It became apparent while travelling the UK that Roland was interested in history. The trouble is that he's not very good at remembering it. He's tried to embrace culture, but wasn't impressed when he read Shakespeare. He found it difficult to read, and said it was all back to front. Considering he sees himself as a superstar, he doesn't always dress like it. Don't be surprised if you see him wearing a knotted hanky and a string vest when its hot.     Kevin The Gerbil He is the Personal Assistant of Roland Rat, arranging the guest stars, writing Roland's scripts, carrying Roland's bags and after all that, he's the one that receives most of the abuse from Roland. Kevin does get his own back on Roland, such as the time he convinced him that he should wear a paper bag on his head so he wasn't recognised by his fans. He did look a funny sight, plus it didn't work as someone recognised his voice. He is also in charge of the budget, which is non-existent. He has a tough time reigning in Roland's spending and forcing him to live on the cheap. He even bought a cheap car and a tent for them to stay in for their journey. But Kevin doesn't always get his own way concerning the budget, such as the time Roland booked himself into the Hilton Hotel. Poor Kevin fainted at the sight of the bill. He's is quite naive and doesn't really understand how things work in the wide world. He even thought that Winston Churchill was a king. He seems to be more interested in ice cream than learning history. Once he Was spotted by the American Film Producer Sam Spiegelbeagle, who thought he was a singing flea and wanted to make him famous. The trouble was that he was a rubbish producer who comes up with rubbish ideas. In the past he tried to get Roland to star in a movie, but even he turned him down.   Errol the Hamster He is the Welsh hamster that works in the VT department for Roland. He always wears an anorak and is given a hard time by Roland who calls him boring (we have to admit, he is).   Roland Rat T-Shirts - NONE Roland Rat - Rat On The Road DVDs Region 2 (Europe) - Roland Rat - Rat On The     Road DVDs Region 1 (USA) - NONE Roland Rat - Rat On The Road Video Roland Rat - Rat On The Road Episodes Series 1 (1983)  1. Cardiff  2. London  3. Edinburgh  4. Oxford  5. Newcastle  6. York      Series 2 (1984)  1. ??  2. ??  3. ??  4. ??  5. ??  6. ?? Roland Rat - Rat On The Road Images (click to enlarge) © JedisParadise.com Toys & Gifts T-Shirts Bargain DVDs