Before each segment of Teletubbies, there are usually scenes that introduce the setting of where the segment (or dance) is going to be. These are called Opening Shots.
Purpose[]
Opening Shots are used to introduce the setting of a Teletubbies segment. For example, if the setting is inside or outside the Home Hill, then usually an Opening Shot of Teletubbyland moves so that you can see the Home Hill. This isn't always true, as some episodes feature Home Hill Opening shots despite the segments taking place in the field.
There are also background music for the Opening Shots. A common tune would be bells chiming the Teletubbies tune and a piano piece playing with a woodwind instrument ending the tune.
Occasionally, Opening Shots can also act as Closing Shots, where they end a segment, or Transition Shots, where it transitions from one segment to another (or simply a different location in the same segment).
Opening Shot list[]
There are a total of twenty Opening Shots in the series (not counting alternate versions of a shot), and they are divided into four different categories: Home Hill, Field, Right Path and Christmas.
Home Hill[]
In Home Hill opening shots, the camera would either be staying still while showing the Tubbytronic Superdome or zoom towards it. These shots usually indicate that the segment will take place inside the house or in its surroundings, although sometimes they make an exception and are used for segments taking place in the field too. If that happens, the shot will fade or cut to stock footage of the fields. A total of five shots fall into this category.
- Home Hill 1: The very first Opening Shot used in Teletubbies. Obviously used in the very first episode of the show, Ned's Bicycle. The camera starts down low and scrolls past two trees as the Tubbytronic Superdome and the Magic Windmill are visible in the background. Many rabbits can be seen as the camera scrolls around Teletubbyland. The camera then scrolls slightly to the right and stops as we see the Tubbytronic Superdome and the Magic Windmill up close. Most of the time, the E Major tune with the bells chiming in the beginning will play. But in some cases, like in Photo Faces, Rockpool and Tropical Fish, the tune with an extended opening with the bells chiming in a different key plays during this Opening Shot. Also in the episode Rockpool, Right Path 1 accompanies this shot, and the extended theme ends with some bells chiming. This also occurs in Bird Bath, but the second shot is shortened and the normal E major tune replaces the extended tune. In Hickory Dickory Dock, control panel noises is heard during the shot. In Hanging Out the Washing, the shot appears twice in the same episode. Not counting shots used as transition shots, there are two more shots that have done that (Field 2 and Christmas 1). Used in 100 episodes and 14 Home Media releases, it's the third-most common Opening Shots in the show and is among the most iconic ones.
- Home Hill 2: The second opening shot used in the show, first used in Ned's Bicycle after the TV Event. The camera is still, we see two rabbits on a hill and the right side of the Tubbytronic Superdome with the Magic Windmill spinning normally in the background. The same footage, slightly modified, is used for the Bird's eye view 1.0 Windmill animation, where the Windmill is surrounded with sparkles and gradually speeds up. For this reason, this shot is also known as Bird's eye view 1.0 with no sparkles. In its first use in Ned's Bicycle, we hear the ditty that was used later in the Opening Shot Field 2 in the episode The Grand Old Duke of York, and in its second use in Swimming with Stephanie, the shot closes the rabbit song (preceded by footage of rabbits all over Teletubbyland, also used in Paddling Pool). Used twice in both the main series (Ned's Bicycle and Swimming with Stephanie) and in home media releases (Favourite Things and Uh-Oh! Messes & Muddles), it's one of the rarest Opening Shots.
- Home Hill 3: This Opening Shot is similar to Home Hill 1, with differences. In this Opening Shot, the camera starts high up, then moves down, slightly zooms and scrolls past three trees, with the first being larger. The camera scrolls past the trees in a slightly different way than it does in Home Hill 1. Then the camera moves to the right until the flowers are visible on a hill. The camera stops as we see the Tubbytronic Superdome and the Magic Windmill up close, though the Tubbytronic Superdome is shot from a different angle. There are also less rabbits than in Home Hill 1. This shot was first used in the episode The Beach. The E major tune with the bells chiming in the beginning plays, using the extended theme only in Making Music. Appearing in 46 episodes and five Home Media releases, it's not as common as Home Hill 1, but it's not a rare shot.
- Home Hill 4: The seventh Opening Shot used in the series, first used in Painting with Hands and Feet. It was also used as the last Opening Shot in the original series finale, Bubbles (Russia). The shot starts with the camera very high up, and we can see the Tubbytronic Superdome and the Magic Windmill. Then the camera moves down towards the house and stops once it reaches the ground. We can see the Tubbytronic Superdome and the Magic Windmill up close, but it is slightly zoomed compared to the other Home Hill shots. The tune with the bells chiming in the beginning plays. In Gymnastics, the shot is shortened/extended (meaning: the part where it moves towards the house and then stops is cut out, but it adds a small extended section never seen in the shot, as suggested by a couple of rabbits being in a slightly different position than in the main shot). This shot appears in 46 episodes and eight Home Media releases.
- Home Hill 5: The sixth Opening Shot used in Teletubbies, first used in the episode Naughty Sock. The camera is still and doesn't move. We can see the house and the Magic Windmill spinning normally. The tune with the bells chiming in the beginning plays during this Opening shot. This Opening Shot can also act as Closing Shot or Transition Shot (and mostly acts like that). This Opening Shot has two alternative versions, one featuring a less cloudy sky and brighter sunlight, first appearing in Larette Tap Dancing, and mostly acts as Closing Shot (like in Washing the Elephant) or Transition Shot (like in My Mum's a Doctor and Towers), the other being almost identical but with less sunlight, and was first used in Jumping. The first alternate version is fairly common, appearing in 36 episodes and four Home Media Releases, while the main shot and the second alternate shot are rare, both appearing in only nine episodes and four Home Media releases.
Field[]
Field shots would have the camera either zoom towards the fields or simply pan in one direction until the fields are visible. These shots indicate that the segment will likely take place in the fields, with occasional exceptions. This is the Opening Shot category with the most shots, with a total of ten.
- Field 1: This is the third Opening Shot used in Teletubbies. First used in the episode Our Pig Winnie. In this shot, we see two blue flowers and the left part of the Tubbytronic Superdome, with some of the inside being visible through a window. The camera then goes over the flowers and zooms straight towards the fields of Teletubbyland. It doesn't stop zooming until we can see the fields closely. The tune with an extended, but beautiful opening before the bells chime plays, starting in E major, and changing to G major when the bells start chiming. This Opening Shot was reversed in the episode Picking and Sorting, where it also accompanies Field 6. Also, in Collecting Stones and Bird Bath, the extended music plays in a lower key (D major to F major). On very rare occasions, like the episodes Painting with Hands and Feet or Jigsaw: Elephant it just plays the abridged E Major tune with the bells chiming in the beginning. In the episode Irish Dancing, it plays the D major version of the tune with the bells chiming in the beginning. Of all shots, this is the most common one, used in 115 episodes and 12 Home Media releases, and is one of the most iconic ones too.
- Field 2: The fifth Opening Shot used in the series, first used in the episode, The Grand Old Duke of York. We see two rabbits relaxing, with one eating grass and one looking at the horizon. The camera scrolls up left until it stops. We see a field, a path, and part of the circular border encircling the Tubbytronic Superdome. The tune with the bells chiming in the beginning plays during this shot. But in its first use in The Grand Old Duke of York, a small Teletubbyland ditty plays, with bells chiming in a different key and a woodwind instrument playing for the remainder of the tune. Some episodes like Harp, Dentist and Rangoli use the extended opening instead. In Mark and Topus, the shot is mirrored. In Tabla (India) the shot is used twice in the same episode, making it one of three shots to do that, along with Home Hill 1 and Christmas 1. This is the second-most common shot in the series (106 episodes and 15 Home Media releases) and one of the most iconic shots.
- Field 3: We see a window of the Tubbytronic Superdome up close, with some of the Superdome's interior being visible as well. The camera moves up the windows and zooms straight to the fields. This motion is similar to Field 1, where the camera simply zooms straight to the fields. The tune plays with the bells chiming in the beginning. It was first used in the episode Making Flowers and then reused in Haymaking, where it's reversed. This shot also appears in the VHS/DVD Here Come the Teletubbies. Along with Home Hill 2, this is one of the rarest Opening Shots, used twice in the main series (Making Flowers and Haymaking) and once in Home Media releases (Here Come the Teletubbies).
- Field 4: We can see the house with the Magic Windmill behind until the camera moves to the left. The field will be seen. The tune plays where the opening is extended and the bells chiming further in the tune with a different key, occasionally using the normal. The sky is cloudy in this shot. It first appeared in Cuddles Gets Lost. This shot has two alternate versions. One is almost identical but the right side of the house is offscreen and the camera stops as soon as some flowers are visible on the bottom left corner of the screen. The other one is similar to the first alternate version, but with the camera positioned differently and the Magic Windmill being offscreen too, just like Right Path 2. You can see the first version in Cat's Night Out, the first alternate version in Fancy Dress, and the second alternate version in Jabadao. This Opening Shot is occassionally used further in the show, from Series 7 onwards, making it less common than previous ones, and the first alternate shot isn't featured in any Home Media release, along with Field 5 (main shot), Field 8, Field 9 and Christmas 2 (alternate shot).
- Field 5: One rabbit is seen eating grass on the bottom of a hill. The camera turns in a clockwise direction and we can see a field, with many hills surrounding it. This Opening Shot first appeared in Fancy Dress and is occassionally used for outside segments and activities. An alternate version of the shot has the rabbit relax instead of eating the grass. The tune plays the bells chiming in the beginning. However, in My Pretend Friend, the tune plays a cut short version of the extended opening with the bells chiming in a different key, and starts in the G major key, and as a result, the extended opening of the tune is truncated. Like Field 4, this shot is used occasionally in the late episodes of the show from Series 7 onwards, and is not really common. The main shot joins Field 4 (alternate shot 1), Field 8, Field 9 and Christmas 2 (alternate shot) in the list of shots that never appeared in Home Media Releases.
- Field 6: One rabbit is seen on a hill, until the camera moves to the right and we see a beautiful field. In the episode Picking and Sorting, the shot fades into the reversed version of Field 1. The tune that plays during this shot is a brief synth, then the extended opening with the bells chiming further in the tune. Interestingly, a beautiful piano ditty plays at the end of the tune, though this melody only appears in Field 1. You can see this Opening Shot in the episodes Picking and Sorting, Monkey Safari, and the home media releases Favourite Things and Busy Day, making it one of the rarest Opening Shots. This Opening Shot can also be seen in the Teletubbies Say "Eh-Oh!" music video.
- Field 7: The camera is at ground level, we see a rabbit in front of one of the Tubbytronic Superdome windows, until the camera moves up and zooms towards the fields. The normal tune with the bells chiming in the beginning plays during this shot. This opening shot is first used in the episode Playing in the Rain. This is a rare shot, as it appears four times in the main series (Playing in the Rain, Dandelion Clocks, Our Calf Treacle and Ned's Geraniums) and once in Home Media releases (Here Come the Teletubbies).
- Field 8: We see a window of the house with a rabbit on the sill, and a bit of the interior of the house is visible through the window. The camera scrolls to the left, then moves up and zooms towards the fields of Teletubbyland. This opening shot is similar to Field 3 and 7. It was first used in Emily and Jester. The E major tune accompanies this shot. This Opening Shot also acted as Transition Shot in the episode Throwing at the end of the Exercises segment, with the music from the voice trumpet (which was instructing the Tubbies during the segment) still playing in the background. The shot then fades into footage of the Teletubbies running, before them being stopped by the Windmill spinning for the TV event. This shot is the second-rarest one, used only three times in the main series (Emily and Jester, Throwing and Hanukkah) and none in Home Media releases, making it one of five shots that were never released in VHS or DVD, along with Field 4 (alternate shot 1), Field 5 (main shot), Field 9 and Christmas 2 (alternate shot).
- Field 9: This opening shot is similar to the two previous shots. The camera is at ground level pointing upwards directly at one of the house windows. Then the camera slowly moves up the window arch and stops when the fields are visible. The tune with the bells chiming in the beginning plays in the background. Out of all shots, this is the rarest one, appearing only twice in the main series (Twirlers and Clay) and never being released on VHS/DVD, like Field 4 (alternate shot 1), Field 5 (main shot), Field 8 and Christmas 2 (alternate shot).
- Field 10: We see the front door of the house with some rabbits, the camera moves to the top of the door arch and turns around until we can see the fields, in a way similar to Field 9. The tune with the bells chiming plays during this shot. Appears in Numbers: 3 (both versions), Indian Dancing and the DVD Again-Again!, joining the list of rare opening shots.
Right Path[]
These shots either have the camera move upwards or sideways to show the Tubbytronic Superdome and the green pathway that, in real life, acts as an entrance to the Teletubbyland filming set, which is why we never see its other side in the series, which features the backstage sheds of the set. Unlike Home Hill and Field shots, which introduce segments taking place each in their respective locations (with exceptions), Right Path shots introduce segments taking place in either or both of them. This is the category that has the least shots, with only two.
- Right Path 1: The fourth Opening Shot used in the series, first appearing in Our Pig Winnie after the TV event. We see some rabbits in the grass and the green pathway. The camera moves forward until both the Tubbytronic Superdome and the fields are visible. The tune plays where the bells chime in the beginning, but some episodes like Rolling, Digging in the Sand for Worms and Tropical Fish use the extended opening instead. In Dirty Dog, the tune with the bells chiming at the beginning plays in a lower key. In Rockpool, the shot follows another Opening Shot (Home Hill 1) and in Paddling Pool the shot ends the clip compilation for the rabbit song (same version from Swimming with Stephanie). A second version of this shot, first used in Naughty Sock, features the twin flowers facing the camera and the big rabbit going behind the yellow flowers instead of eating the grass and the farthest rabbit is closer to the red flowers. The main shot is the fourth-most common shot in the series (97 episodes and 14 Home Media releases) and one of the most iconic ones, while the alternate version is rarer, appearing in 13 episodes and two Home Media releases.
- Right Path 2: We see some rabbits in the field when the camera moves to the point where we can see the green pathway and the side of the house. The Magic Windmill is also visible on the right side of the screen. It was first used in Making Salad. There are two alternate versions of this shot, one being almost identical to the first one but it's slightly less zoomed in and the rabbits move differently. This version was first used in Café Eggs, and appears as closing shot in a shortened/extended version (similar to Home Hill 4) in the exclusive release Ready Steady Go!. The second one, first appearing in Amy's Pasta (even earlier the main shot and the first alternate version), features more rabbits at the beginning and the Magic Windmill is offscreen. The main shot and the first alternate shot both appear in Making Salad. The tune plays where the bells chime in the beginning, occasionally using the extended theme, like in Milking Cows. In Peacocks, we hear a slightly slower version of the extended opening, and only part of it (this ditty is reused in Puppies and later, two different, softer and calmer versions are used in Dog Kennel and Dragonflies). There are no bells chiming. In Stick Insect, we hear the beginning of The Bumping Dance. The most common version is the second alternate shot (53 episodes and ten Home Media releases), while the main shot and the first alternate version appear respectively in 22 and 21 episodes, and once and three times in Home Media releases.
Christmas[]
These are special Opening Shots that are occasionally used in Christmas-themed episodes, and are mostly based off the previous shots. There are three in total.
- Christmas 1: We see a beautiful Christmas tree with very bright lights and ornaments, with the Tubbytronic Superdome and the Magic Windmill spinning normally in the background. When the key changes, the camera zooms straight to the Tubbytronic Superdome. This opening shot was first introduced in Making Christmas Cards and appears in Christmas-themed episodes from 1997 where one Teletubby gets a present (Making Christmas Cards, Christmas Crackers, Christmas Carols and Snowy Story) and was featured in Happy Christmas from the Teletubbies. The tune with the extended opening and the bells chiming in a different key is used in this shot, and is accompanied with Christmas bells chiming in the background. This Opening Shot is based off all Home Hill shots combined and is the last of three shots (along with Home Hill 1 and Field 2) to be used more than once in the same episode. A similar version, with the camera in the same position but staying still, appears as a Closing Shot in the episode Making Christmas Cards.
- Christmas 2: Snowflakes are falling and a rabbit is sitting on the snow. As the camera moves to the right, we see another rabbit in the snow and the Tubbytronic Superdome. The tune with a quiet, mellow piano and bell Christmas tune is heard. This shot is based off Right Path 2, as the camera moves in a similar way from a similar location. An alternate version has the camera move to the left instead of moving to the right. This shot is used in most winter-themed episodes from 1998 (Christmas in Finland, Christmas in Spain, main shot; Christmas in the UK, Nativity Play, alternate shot). The main shot also appears in Happy Weather Stories, while the alternate shot was never released on Home Media, like Field 4 (alternate shot 1), 5 (Main shot), 8 and 9.
- Christmas 3: The camera is still, snowflakes are falling, and the Tubbytronic Superdome with the Magic Windmill spinning normally in the background is seen. The snow then stops falling. The tune with a quiet, mellow, piano and bell Christmas tune is heard. This shot is based off Home Hill 5 and, like Christmas 2, it appears in most winter-themed episodes from 1998 (Christmas in Finland, Christmas in Spain, Christmas in the UK and Nativity Play) and Teletubbies and the Snow.
Trivia[]
- In Home Hill 4, on the right in the background, when the camera is at a high view, the Tots TV cottage can be seen, even though there are many trees and bushes surrounding it.
- This shot was also used for the funding bumpers when it aired on PBS Kids.
- Field 6 appears in the Teletubbies Say "Eh-Oh!" music video.
Goofs[]
- In some uses of Home Hill 5 (Main shot), the house doors can be seen opening and sometimes a person can be spotted inside the house. This occurs in episodes such as Larette Tap Dancing and Haymaking.
- In Field 3, when the camera reaches the top of the window arch, what seems to be the shadow of some mechanical arm holding the camera disappears.
Appearances[]
Episodes[]
| Christmas | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Christmas 1 | Christmas 2 | Christmas 3 | |
| Main shot | Alternate shot | ||
| Making Christmas Cards | Christmas in Finland | Christmas in the UK | Christmas in Finland |
| Christmas Crackers | Christmas in the UK | ||
| Christmas Carols | Christmas in Spain | Nativity Play | Christmas in Spain |
| Snowy Story | Nativity Play | ||
Home media releases[]
| Home Hill | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home Hill 1 | Home Hill 2 | Home Hill 3 | Home Hill 4 | Home Hill 5 | ||
| Main shot | Alternate shot 1 | Alternate shot 2 | ||||
| Here Come the Teletubbies | Favourite Things | Nursery Rhymes | Here Come the Teletubbies | Bedtime | Ready Steady Go! | Here Come the Teletubbies |
| Dance with the Teletubbies | Nursery Rhymes | |||||
| Nursery Rhymes | Musical Playtime | |||||
| Favourite Things | Big Hug! | Hands, Feet and Dirty Knees | Hands, Feet and Dirty Knees | Dance with the Teletubbies | ||
| Uh-Oh! Messes & Muddles | Bedtime | |||||
| Big Hug! | ||||||
| Musical Playtime | Bedtime | Busy Day | Go! | Busy Day | Go! | |
| Ready Steady Go! | Uh-Oh! Messes & Muddles | |||||
| Bedtime | Happy Weather Stories | |||||
| Magical Surprises | Hide and Seek | |||||
| Let's Dance! | What's That? | Naughty Noo-Noo! | Again-Again! | Happy Weather Stories | ||
| Busy Day | ||||||
| What's That? | Oooh! | Oooh! | ||||
| Naughty Noo-Noo! | ||||||
| Field | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Field 1 | Field 2 | Field 3 | Field 4 | Field 5 | Field 6 | Field 7 | Field 8 | Field 9 | Field 10 | |||
| Main shot | Alternate shot 1 | Alternate shot 2 | Main shot | Alternate shot | ||||||||
| Here Come the Teletubbies | Dance with the Teletubbies | Here Come the Teletubbies | Look! | - | Animals Big and Small | - | Go! | Favourite Things | Here Come the Teletubbies | - | - | Again-Again! |
| Dance with the Teletubbies | Nursery Rhymes | |||||||||||
| Nursery Rhymes | Uh-Oh! Messes & Muddles | |||||||||||
| Favourite Things | Happy Christmas from the Teletubbies | Magical Surprises | ||||||||||
| Uh-Oh! Messes & Muddles | Big Hug! | |||||||||||
| Big Hug! | Musical Playtime | |||||||||||
| Musical Playtime | Ready Steady Go! | Busy Day | Oooh! | Busy Day | ||||||||
| Animals Big and Small | Bedtime | |||||||||||
| Magical Surprises | Hands, Feet and Dirty Knees | |||||||||||
| Animals Big and Small | Happy Weather Stories | |||||||||||
| Go! | Let's Dance! | |||||||||||
| Let's Dance! | Happy Weather Stories | |||||||||||
| Happy Weather Stories | Hide and Seek | Hide and Seek | ||||||||||
| Look! | Again-Again! | |||||||||||
| Naughty Noo-Noo! | ||||||||||||
| Right Path | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Right Path 1 | Right Path 2 | |||
| Main shot | Alternate shot | Main shot | Alternate shot 1 | Alternate shot 2 |
| Here Come the Teletubbies | Hide and Seek | Magical Surprises | Ready Steady Go! | Big Hug! |
| Dance with the Teletubbies | Musical Playtime | |||
| Nursery Rhymes | Teletubbies and the Snow | |||
| Favourite Things | Ready Steady Go! | |||
| Uh-Oh! Messes & Muddles | Bedtime | Animals Big and Small | ||
| Big Hug! | Busy Day | |||
| Musical Playtime | What's That? | |||
| Ready Steady Go! | Again-Again! | |||
| Bedtime | Oooh! | |||
| Hands, Feet and Dirty Knees | Naughty Noo-Noo! | |||
| Busy Day | Again-Again! | |||
| Hide and Seek | ||||
| Look! | Naughty Noo-Noo! | |||
| Again-Again! | ||||
| Christmas | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Christmas 1 | Christmas 2 | Christmas 3 | |
| Main shot | Alternate shot | ||
| Happy Christmas from the Teletubbies | Happy Weather Stories | - | Teletubbies and the Snow |
Gallery[]
Home Hill[]
Home Hill 1 Opening Shot
Home Hill 2 Opening Shot
Home Hill 3 Opening Shot
Home Hill 4 Opening Shot
Home Hill 5 Opening Shot
.png "Home Hill 5 (Alternative shot).png (2.51 MB)")
Home hill 5 (Alternate version 1)
Home Hill 5 (Alternate version 2)
Field[]
Field 1 Opening Shot
Field 2 Opening Shot
Field 3 Opening Shot
Field 4 Opening Shot
Field 4 (Alternate version 1)
_HD.png "Field 4 (Alternative Version) HD.png (2.2 MB)")
Field 4 (Alternate version 2)
Field 5 Opening Shot
Field 5 (Alternate version)
Field 6 Opening Shot
Field 7 Opening Shot
Field 8 Opening Shot
Field 9 Opening Shot
Field 10 Opening Shot
Right Path[]
Right Path 1 Opening Shot
.png "Right Path 1 (Alternative shot).png (2.34 MB)")
Right Path 1 (Alternate version)
Right Path 2 Opening Shot
Right Path 2 (Alternate version 1)
_HD.png "Right Path 2 (Alternative Version) HD.png (2.62 MB)")
Right Path 2 (Alternate version 2)
Christmas[]
Christmas 1 Opening Shot
Christmas 2 Opening Shot
Christmas 2 (Alternate version)
Christmas 3 Opening Shot