Kids in the 1960s and '70s grew up with television shows that were far less high-tech than today's fare. One of the most popular TV characters of all time is the witty and mischievous red fox, Basil Brush – he’s still going strong today, 58 years after his creation.

A simple glove puppet, Basil likes to disassociate himself from the animal kingdom, preferring to embrace his human traits. It's a long-running joke that he dislikes puppets, referring to himself as a "fella".

He fancies himself as something of a raconteur and is best known for his famous catchphrase, "Boom boom!" - uttered when he finds something funny. He's a likeable character, who relishes speaking in a "posh" accent. His most prized possession is his brush - the traditional name for a fox's tail.

Since his first appearance in 1962, on BBC TV show The Three Scampies, Basil has had his own television series, appeared in countless pantomimes, made guest appearances in various comedy shows and even appeared in the Fantasy Football League! He has become a cult figure who has appealed to generations of children.

Basil's origins

Back in 1962, The Three Scampies was a children's programme about an out-of-work circus act, made up of human performer Howard Williams, Basil the fox and Spike McPike the hedgehog. Puppet-maker Peter Firmin and voice actor Ivan Owen joined forces to create the characters Basil and Spike.

Harwich-born Firmin, who had attended the Central School of Art and Design in London between 1949 and 1952, made Basil and Spike. He took great pride in creating the fox's magnificent brush, which led to his name.

Plymouth-born Owen dropped out of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art after the Second World War, choosing to work in repertory theatre instead, where he developed an amazing range of character voices. He developed Basil Brush's upper-class voice based on that of English actor Terry Thomas.

Despite Basil becoming an instant hit, Owen always chose to remain behind the scenes, preferring to promote the fox as the real star, while retaining his own anonymity.

Own show

Following his success in The Three Scampies, Basil was invited to become a supporting act for magician David Nixon in the mid-1960s. The puppet managed to upstage Nixon on the star's BBC1 show, Nixon at Nine-Five, in 1967. He was also the support act on The Nixon Line from 1967 to 1968.

After this, the fox was given his own show, The Basil Brush Show, which ran on the BBC between 1968 and 1980. He was voiced by Owen, who remained the fox's voice and persona until his death in 2000 at the age of 73.

Owen only ever gave one radio interview as himself, when listeners realised how truly talented he was, as his voice was nothing like Basil's! Various stars of the day appeared on The Basil Brush Show, including actors Rodney Bewes and Derek Fowlds and the original Three Scampies' star, Howard.

Show's format

The humans were merely stooges for the fox. They were the straight men of the partnership, while Basil grabbed all the laughs. This was a unique act at the time, as other children's puppet shows, such as Sooty and Sweep, featured the puppeteer in person, while Owen was never seen on screen.

Beginning with an opening comedy routine by Basil and his human companion, the show then went into a sketch featuring jokes about the current affairs of the day, followed by a musical number by a guest band or singer.

Guest artists included the biggest stars of the era including Demis Roussos, Cilla Black and Petula Clark. The stars wanted to appear on the show, as it had a huge audience. Sometimes, they would sing a serious solo song and then perform a comedy duet with Basil.

Spin-offs

After The Basil Brush Show ended in 1980, it certainly wasn't the end of the road for the puppet star. Owen had fallen out with the BBC, as they wouldn't agree to the show having a mid-evening timeslot. In 1982, a new children's programme, Let's Read With Basil Brush, was broadcast by the rival channel, ITV.

Over the years, Basil and his human companion Owen appeared on many programmes, including returning to the BBC to co-host Crackerjack at 4.55pm every Friday in 1983 and 1984. In 1994, he released a VHS video called Basil's Cartoon Story Book, which was a collection of 24 children's animated stories that he narrated.

He appeared in two episodes of The Goodies (A Kick in the Arts and The Goodies Rule), made a guest appearance on the BBC game show, The Generation Game, and did a stint as a Blue Peter presenter for a few Friday episodes.

Get this, he even made a cameo appearance in the video of the Comic Relief single, I Would Roll 500 Miles, with Andy Pipkin! In 2007, Basil starred in the Christmas pantomime, Cinderella, in St Albans, when he urged children in the audience to shout, "Boom Boom Basil!" every time he uttered his famous catchphrase.

More recently, he has appeared in the panto, Dick Whittington, at the Theatre Royal in Windsor, which finished its festive run on 6th January 2019. Michael Winsor has been the voice of Basil Brush since Owen's death. Like his predecessor, he likes to stay in the background.

Real-life foxes

Part of Basil Brush's charm is his association with one of Britain's most well-known native creatures, the red fox. There are around 258,000 adult foxes in Britain. The majority live in rural areas, with only 33,000 living in urban locations.

They are most prevalent in central and eastern Scotland. Although they are predominantly found in rural regions, they were first reported as venturing into our towns and cities in the 1930s. In some cases, towns sprung up around the foxes' natural habitat and they simply didn’t move.

The Cornwall Wildlife Trust looks after Fox Corner - a small urban nature reserve on the south west edge of Truro. Here, foxes live in a semi-natural habitat including grassland, scrub and a pond. With walking trails, paths and open spaces, there is also a public footpath around the reserve that is suitable for wheelchairs and pushchairs. Dogs are permitted, as long as they are under control.

For a great day out, and the chance to see some real-life "Basil Brushes", put on your walking shoes and head for beautiful Cornwall!