Pinchcliffe Grand Prix

Thanks to a Norwegian friend visiting London, I got to see the remastered 2005 edition of the "Pinchcliffe Grand Prix" by Ivo Caprino. This film by Ivo Caprino was origionally going to be a series but was abandoned for a few years before they decided to remake it into a film. The film has been enhanced twice since it's 1970s release and the quality of the DVD version shows the models and sets in their origional glory.



The story involves bicycle mender Theodore Rimspoke and his pals Sonny Duckworth and Lambert the Hedgehog. They decide to enter a motor race against Theodore's rival and ex-apprentice and along with the help of an Arab Sheik they create and race the Il Tempo Gigante.



The film's style and characters remind me of Michael Bentine's Potty Time, particularly the Lambert character. The film is imaginatively animated and the characters, sets and inventions are full of wonderful details.

I've not seen the film available in the UK but you can purchases it from the World of Caprino website along with radio controlled models of the Il Tempo Gigante and talking toy Sonny and Lambert (in Norwegian).