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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Stuart Heritage

Farewell pooping elephants! Goodbye Shep on the spoons! It’s the sad end of an era for Blue Peter

The quintessential moment … Blue Peter live with Peter Purves, left, Valerie Singleton, John Noakes – and a herd of elephants.
The quintessential moment … Blue Peter live with Peter Purves, left, Valerie Singleton, John Noakes – and a herd of elephants about to unleash havoc. Photograph: BBC

Life has changed beyond all recognition over the last 67 years. The way we live, the way we communicate, the things we eat; if you were to grab someone from 1958 and bring them forward in time to 2025, the sheer scale of change would blow their minds. Except, perhaps, for one thing. Everything else might be unrecognisable, but Blue Peter has always been broadcast live. Until now.

It has been reported that the last live episode of Blue Peter has aired, ending a tradition that has endured for nearly seven decades. It isn’t the end of Blue Peter, which will continue, albeit in a prerecorded format, but it is the end of an era. The show may be an institution, but even the longest-running children’s programme in the world isn’t immune to change.

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