Beetle Mania

Title card.

**Beetle Mania** is the fifth episode of the second season and is narrated by Tom Conti,

## Plot

One beautiful Spring morning, Andy Pandy decides to plant some flowers to make his garden even prettier than it already is. Teddy and Tiffo are playing a game that involves chasing each other and they can't think of a name for it, but when they see Andy, they stop playing. Teddy asks Andy what he is doing and Andy tells him that he is planting flowers. Teddy wants to help and Andy says he can and goes into his house to fetch a trowel for Teddy. Teddy smells Andy's flowers when he sees something that he doesn't like at all. When Andy hears Teddy panicking, he comes out of his house very quickly indeed and asks him what the matter is.

Teddy points down to the flowerbed, Andy looks and sees what has frightened Teddy, it is a beetle. The beetle is small and doesn't look frightening but it *has* frightened Teddy with its creepy little legs, wriggly little feelers and its big eyes. Missy Hissy arrives and thinks Teddy is being very silly for being frightened of a tiny beetle, then laughs as she carries on her way. As well as holding the trowel, Andy is holding a bone which he has brought for Tiffo and gives to him, then he asks Teddy if he would still like to do some gardening. But Teddy says that the beetle has put him off gardening so Andy says they will do something else instead.

Andy and Teddy go into Andy's house and Andy says they are going to do something else with beetles. Before Teddy can run away, Andy explains they are going to make beetle masks. In his special cupboard, Andy finds some card, some poster paints, some paintbrushes, a pair of scissors and some red ribbon. Next, Andy folds one of the pieces of card in half and paints a big blob, some swooshes and swirls. Then as Teddy watches with great interest, Andy folds the card in half again. When he opens the card out, Teddy is amazed as Andy's painting looks like a colourful beetle's head.

Teddy watches as Andy cuts out the mask and makes holes so he can see through the mask and two more holes for the ribbon, then he threads the ribbon through them. Teddy isn't scared of *this* beetle and now wants to make his own beetle mask and he does with Andy's help. Soon Teddy has his own beetle mask and he and Andy, wearing their beetle masks, creep, crawl, scuttle and scamper. Then Teddy has an idea, he is still a bit cross with Missy Hissy for laughing at him earlier so he decides to play a trick on her.

Teddy, wearing his beetle mask, knocks on Missy Hissy's pipes and when Missy Hissy comes out, she gets such a shock when she sees the giant beetle that she goes back into her pipes. Teddy takes off his mask and calls to Missy Hissy who asks Teddy if he has seen the giant beetle. Teddy tells Missy Hissy not to be frightened and explains it is just a beetle mask that Andy has helped him to make. Teddy doesn't notice Andy creeping up on him, but he does feel him tapping his shoulder and gets a surprise when he sees him wearing his beetle mask. Then Andy and Teddy play beetles until it is time for tea.

## Characters

* Andy Pandy
* Teddy
* Missy Hissy
* Tiffo

## Compilations

### YouTube

* Oscar Barnett's Favourite Memory Characters: Volume 9 - Halloween Edition
* Here Comes Andy Pandy
* The Complete Series 2
* Quick on the Straw