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Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?
After more than 4000 episodes the iconic children's television programme Sesame Street is celebrating its 40th anniversary. What are your memories?
The show, founded to help educate American pre-schoolers, premiered in 1969, and is the longest running children's program on US television.
Big Bird, Elmo the Cookie Monster and their friends help teach young viewers to read and count through songs and storytelling.
Sesame Street has won over a hundred Emmys and has been broadcast in roughly 150 countries.
Did you grow up with Sesame Street? Who is your favourite character? What do you think is the secret of Sesame Street's success? How does the show compare with today's children's programmes? Were you A-OK with Sesame Street?
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Published:
Friday, 6 November, 2009, 11:41 GMT
11:41 UK
All comments as they come in
Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 14:43 GMT
14:43 UK
I thought it was childish repetitive rubbish - even when I was 6!
JR, Preston
Betcha your favorite sesame street character was grumpus.
ya Big softy
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 13:57 GMT
13:57 UK
I LOVE Sesame Street. You say it's for pre-schoolers, but I know my mum and dad liked watching it with me.
The colours, the characters and the educational bits in perfect measure. Genius.
Strawberry Thief, In London, From Belfast
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 13:56 GMT
13:56 UK
I have always been A-OK and my children as well with Sesame Street.
A R Shams, Pakistan
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 13:34 GMT
13:34 UK
Sesame Street is beautiful.We never knew it was meant for pre-schoolers.We watched it till we finished primary school.
Happy Anniversary,Sesame Street!
Long live Sesame Street!
Kolawole Ajao, Lagos, Nigeria
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 13:31 GMT
13:31 UK
Amazing show, i like how they used to have guests come on, like music groups, who would perform some kind of song aimed at the kids. The graphics were always excellent as well. Haven't seen it for years now.
Joe K, Reading
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 12:51 GMT
12:51 UK
"American programming and its language idoms are supplanted within UK culture... living in Canada and seeing this on UK TV programmes shown here it looks ridiculous - Diana Atkin, Canada"
Agreed. I have praised "Sesame St." on here, but the N. Irish version ("Sesame Tree") is cringe-worthy. Likewise, we had the recent "trick or treat" fiasco, with a native Hallowe'en custom (singing or performing, like mummers, on the doorstep) being replaced by its cheesy American form.
[dudeiancan]
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 12:41 GMT
12:41 UK
Sesame Street versus Wall Street.
Would we be better off trusting the financial system to Frank Oz's cuddly colourful creations than to a bunch of muppets?
Fact Gasm, Singapore
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 12:26 GMT
12:26 UK
How can anyone not love the Cookie Monster?
Scott W, Port Orchard, USA
I find it remarkably easy. But, in the UK, we're allowed to think about things and make up our own mind about them. It's called democracy - you should try it.
Andrew, Norwich
Oh dear, I've just found another source of British embarrassment. You do realise he was talking about a puppet in a children's TV programme - don't you?
m.marshall, UK
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 11:51 GMT
11:51 UK
Didn't they have to re-class older Sesame Street episodes PG or something?
Anyway, I love Count von Count. AKA Graf Zahl, AKA Graaf Tel.
And you can't get much funnier than Bert and Ernie (I'm counting fire engines, Bert!).
Martje Ross
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 10:18 GMT
10:18 UK
The music, undoubtedly - Joe Raposo was a genius. My favourite memory? The African Alphabet Song.
Clare Redfarn, London, UK
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 10:04 GMT
10:04 UK
"More American rubbish... Blue Peter, Playschool and ...Grange Hill are much better. Ethan L."
There is a lot of "American rubbish", but there is also a lot of British rubbish aping the American kind, such as the re-boot of Basil Brush. Blue Peter et al were (and still are) very middle-class biased. Even Grange Hill treated the working-classes in a patronizing manner. This is still a problem with the BBC, not just with children's programmes. Sesame St. showed us poor children.
[dudeiancan]
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 09:47 GMT
09:47 UK
I watched it with my kids and couldn't work it out when they started to read when I had made no attempts to teach them.
Shaida Van Helfteren, Corwen, United Kingdom
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 08:46 GMT
08:46 UK
We saw Sesame Street for the first time in 1988 - having been posted to the Far East. Our two children were 5 and nearly 2 when we arrived. I was not generally a fan of exported American culture and programmes, but I honestly thought this was marvellous. A whole hour meant you could really settle down and watch with the kids, and we often did. Many of the songs were memorable, the whole programme was inventive, or so it seemed in comparison with programmes back home - happy days.
Maggie, South London
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 08:33 GMT
08:33 UK
Oh good grief. It's a plain as a pikestaff! The very kids who used to watch and love Sesame Street on TV in the UK are now in charge of TV in the UK and they can only see Sesame Street as retro.
I'm pretty sure that young kids watching it today for the first time would lap it up, it would be new to them.
It's the same reason as it took so long for Camberwick Green characters to resurface as adverts. Generations need to get distance from childhood before they see things as they really were
Alan T, Salisbury
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Added:
Sunday, 8 November, 2009, 06:28 GMT
06:28 UK
Diana from Canada,
That's o.k. Americans don't really understand U.K. shows, except for Keeping Up Appearances so the feeling's mutual.
clamdip lobster claws, United States
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Total comments: 341
Published comments: 309
Rejected comments: 30
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