Worzel Gummidge

Double-length musical holiday special: it's Christmas Eve, a most important day for scarecrows as they must stand in position to guide Santa Claus back to the North Pole. Worzel Gummidge, however, deserts his post to enjoy the delights of the season, jeopardizing his chances for attending the Scarecrow Ball.

It’s Christmas Eve and Worzel’s feeling the cold. However any hopes he has of a Christmas holiday are dashed when the Crowman, canny to Worzel’s ways, ties him to his post in Ten-Acre field and points him North as he does with all Scarecrows. This is because Santa Claus uses the Scarecrows as landmarks to guide him back home after he has delivered all the gifts. As an extra security measure he also threatens to ban Worzel from the Scarecrow ball the following evening if he leaves his post. However all this is in vain as five minutes later John and Sue turn up and untie Worzel who immediately heads for Farmer Braithwaite’s barn to dig out his party-going head. He finds it and heads up to the hall to find Aunt Sally who he intends to take to the Scarecrow ball. Unfortunately Worzel soon discovers that it is months since she left the hall and so all he succeeds in doing is getting shot at by Col. Bloodstock Unabashed by this Worzel continues his search and meets up with the Saucy Nancy who is living on a Pantomime Showboat on wheels! The reunion however is short lived when he is set upon by the boat’s owner and PC Parsons. Of course Worzel escapes and then, as luck would have it, he runs into Aunt Sally who has fallen on hard times and is selling bundles of kindling wood from a hand cart at 50 pence a bundle. As usual Worzel takes over her duties from her but, will they reach the Scarecrow ball and, more importantly, will the Crowman let them in?

As John, Sue and Mr. Peters are all driving to their new home, a Romany Caravan at Scatterbrook Farm, John sees a Scarecrow (Worzel) in a field and claims to see it move. Later ,John persuades his sister to go back to the field, Ten-Acre field, to have a closer look at the Scarecrow, but once there it starts raining. With no other option other than to get soaked, John asks the Scarecrow if they can lend his umbrella, to which the Scarecrow replies with a deep, "OO - AARR!" sending the terrified children running for home. Later that evening Worzel turns up at Scatterbrook to claim back his umbrella and anything else he can find.

During a torrential downpour Worzel leaves his post and heads for the cosy warmth of John and Sue’s Romany Caravan at Scatterbrook. Unfortunately, John won’t let him in, even though Worzel promises to teach them Worzelese, the Scarecrow language. Instead, Worzel shelters in the old barn where he keeps his heads. After a few minutes John and Sue join him and as he has no furniture, promise him an old chair that Mrs. Braithwaite is throwing out. The next day the village wakes up to a crime wave - Worzel has been up since cock’s crow stealing furniture and has set up home in one of the back fields.

There is a village fete on and one attraction that Worzel can’t miss - an Aunt Sally. However, before he can go he must solve a problem: who will take his place in Ten-Acre field whilst he goes to the fete? As luck would have it Mrs. Bloomsbury - Barton, the local ‘Lady of the Manor’ happens to be passing and Worzel decides to ask her if she’ll swap with him for the afternoon. However, she thinks Worzel is about to attack her and so runs off screaming, leaving her hat behind. In the end Worzel turns up at the fete wearing not only Mrs. Bloomsbury - Barton’s hat, but also Mr. Peters’ brown suit, which he had stolen earlier. Unfortunately, Worzel is spotted by Mrs. Bloomsbury - Barton and is chased around the fete until John and Sue gesture him to hide in a tent to evade his pursuers. Once inside the tent Worzel discovers he has company, Aunt Sally.

Worzel stows away on the village coach outing to the seaside, where he meets the Saucy Nancy. She tells him that she saw Aunt Sally floating in the sea, but unknown to them she has been rescued by a fairground operator...

Worzel receives an unexpected visit from his cockney nephew, Pickles Bramble. The youngster gets a job on the Braithwaite's farm and blackmails him into doing all the work. He has to come up with a scheme to rid himself of the troublesome relative...

While trying his hand at "wangling" in Mrs Bloomsbury-Barton's fishpond, Worzel is mistaken for an odd job man ...

The Braithwaites and the Peters have been on holiday in Tenerife and return home to a very unpleasant and unwelcome surprise. While they’ve been away Worzel and Aunt Sally have moved into their farmhouse, eaten all their food and completely wrecked the place! Mr Braithwaite finds what he believes to be just his old scarecrow and an old doll, Aunt Sally, and so puts the damage down to vandals. As they clear up the mess a newcomer, Mrs Cousins, comes along and takes away Aunt Sally for her daughter, Emma, and of course Worzel follows. When the coast is clear Worzel drags Aunt Sally away but their reunion is short-lived. The fair is passing through the village and Aunt Sally jumps on their wagon and joins them. Worzel, not to be beaten, grabs the Crowman’s trike and follows her as the disapproving Crowman follows on foot.

Worzel and Aunt Sally are both employed at the fair but Worzel, as usual, has a problem. She is walking out with ‘The Great Orlando’, the strongman. After being let down by her yet again he goes for a walk and meets up with ‘Dolly Clothes - Peg’, an ex shop window dummy who is currently employed as a makeshift scarecrow. She explains to him how the Crowman had brought her to life and they both decide to go for a cup of tea and a slice of cake at the local tea room. Unfortunately, Aunt Sally is already there and, to make matters worse, so is ‘The Great Orlando’.

Worzel is skulking around the farmyard with a purpose in mind. Firstly he steals Mr. Braithwaite’s flat cap, then Mrs Braithwaite’s scarf and finally Harry’s welding goggles. It turns out that he’s putting together a driving outfit, but this drive is no ordinary drive. Worzel has decided that he’s going with the Braithwaites on their weekly shopping trip to Little Minster, but he isn’t travelling with them in the car - he’s travelling ON the car! Along the way he causes havoc, people fall into ditches or off their bicycles, but it’s in Little Minster itself that he draws the most attention. Luckily however the Crowman is there to get him out of trouble.

After being driven out of the village baby contest Worzel decides he wants his mum. The only person who can help him is the Crowman who deduces that a scarecrow called 'Sarah Pigswill’ was made from a row of turnips which, twelve months later, seeded Worzel. Technically making her Worzel’s mother. The wheels are set in motion and Worzel prepares for the arrival of his mother on his ‘bestest birthday'. Unfortunately, he soon realises that her idea of a birthday tea and his own are very different.

A letter is delivered to Scatterbrook but no one, save for John and Sue, recognise the name of the person it is addressed to - Worzel Gummidge. When they find him they discover the Crowman is fixing him up and therefore reads the letter for him. It is from ‘Dolly Clothes-Peg’ writing that she is coming to see Worzel on the ‘eleventy-twelve’ bus and that she is bringing a big cake for him. Unfortunately she spends all her money, including her bus fare, on the cake and so she has to walk to Scatterbrook. When she doesn’t arrive on the bus Worzel thinks she is not coming and becomes upset, but worse is yet to come...

It’s the day of the village jumble sale and Worzel has decided that he’s going along to get himself a new outfit so that he can impress Aunt Sally into marrying him. Meanwhile Mr. Shepherd has decided to make a contribution of his own to the sale - Aunt Sally. When Worzel arrives he finds Aunt Sally in a box outside and decides to rescue her. Unfortunately, as he’s trying to free her he pulls off one of her legs and before he can put things right, is chased away by PC Parsons. Worzel is distraught by the event and decides to end it all. He goes to see the crowman to ask him to dig him into the compost heap.