Skateboarding duck

Herbie the skateboarding duck (c.1976-83) was the subject of an item first broadcast on the BBC news magazine programme "Nationwide" on 24 May 1978, which has become one of the most famous feature items in the history of British television.Fact|date=February 2007

Herbie, an Aylesbury duck, was bought by Jacky and Paddy Randall of Croydon for their children Michaela and Colin. The film, presented by reporter Alan Towers, includes footage of Herbie waddling along the street, joining the family at breakfast and attacking the Randalls' terrier. The most famous part of the filmFact|date=February 2007 is a four-second shot of Herbie apparently skateboarding by himself on Colin's board. This image seemingly captured the public imagination, and the BBC received many requests for it to be shown again, which it frequently was.Fact|date=February 2007

The clip also appeared on other TV stations around the world, many of which also produced their own variations on the theme.Fact|date=February 2007 There was also renewed interest in the clip in 1983 after the death of Herbie was announced,Fact|date=February 2007 and it has been repeated many times since on other TV programmes.Fact|date=February 2007

As a result of the item's popularity, the term "skateboarding duck" has come to signify a particular sort of quirky and essentially frivolous news story, often used to fill time at the end of a broadcast. [ [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/more_sport/article3033257.ece "Top 50 Greatest Sporting Animals", timesonline.co.uk, Dec 11, 2007.] accessed Jan 7, 2008]

References

* [http://open.bbc.co.uk/catalogue/infax/programme/LCA3821A_C BBC INFAX record for "Nationwide", 24 May 1978]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/newswatch/history/html/default.stm BBC Newswatch] (the full item can be viewed in the 1969 section, this being the year "Nationwide" launched).