The Wind in the Willows - The Complete Collection [DVD]

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Disc Three: Autumn and Winter – The Harvest, Monster of the Wild Wood, Remember, Remember, The Yuletide Entertainment, Winter Sports, The Rescue. After Badger interrupts the Chief Weasel's attempts to rob Billy Rabbit in the Wild Wood, the angry Chief plots his revenge. When his henchman stumbles upon an old hunter's trap, he sees what seems to be the perfect opportunity. However, despite the Chief setting everything up, things go horribly wrong. Badger unexpectedly takes another route to help judge ownership of a fence between the hedgehogs and the rabbits, and when the Chief Weasel's henchman relocates the trap, the Chief accidentally walks right into it. Upon being caught, the Chief yells so loudly that Rat and Mole hear him from Rat's house, and minutes later the henchman arrives pleading for their help. When they are unable to remove the trap, Rat and Mole enlist Badger for help, much to the chagrin of the Chief. A field mouse reports that he saw the henchman plant the trap, and the game is up for the weasels; but Badger nevertheless frees the Chief, who is begrudgingly thankful. Badger then takes the trap home so as to prevent its further use. Toad does not appear in this episode. Alfred (Allan Bardsley) – Alfred is Toad's sarcastic and stubborn but well-meaning horse who always refuses to do what Toad wants to do. He briefly appeared in the film with a singing role and then made on and off appearances in the series. His catchphrases are "Nope" and "Ar". Henchman Weasel ( Brian Trueman) – the Chief's somewhat dim-witted second-in-command; known for his catchphrase, "Very nice, very nice!". In "The Rescue", his name is revealed to be Bert.

Summer (DVD) / Summer Escapades (VHS – 5 October 1987 & 1 September 1997) – Toad: Photographer, The Great Golfing Gamble, Grand Annual Show The Wind in the Willows is a British stop motion animated television series that was originally broadcast between 1984 and 1988, based on characters from Kenneth Grahame's 1908 novel The Wind in the Willows and following the 1983 feature-length pilot film. [2] Mrs. Carrington-Moss ( Beryl Reid) – The magistrate in the film; she appears in the episodes, "The Grand Annual Show", "Buried Treasure", and "Burglary at Toad Hall". Wind In The Willows – The Complete Collection – released on 13 October 2008 (features all 65 episodes including those from Oh Mr. Toad! plus both films) Ernest, a young shrew, is missing in the snow. Rat and Mole discover him with the Chief Weasel and his Assistant, who Ernest calls "Uncle Bill" and "Uncle Bert". They have taken him in after finding him lost and taught him to make a bunny from a handkerchief. Rat and Mole are surprised by the weasels' kind streak, but the weasels are rather affronted to be accused of kindness, and try to pretend they have been mistreating the shrew. Accompanying Ernest home, they encounter Toad. Toad was also searching for the shrew, but became lost along the way. The weasels stole his possessions, and he is displeased to discover that Ernest was treated to his lunch. Badger does not appear in this episode.

Toad Hall is in need of some renovation work. Badger tells Toad about his ancestor, Inigo, a great architect. Inspired, Toad decides to take up architecture himself, and re-design Toad Hall. As usual, his efforts are somewhat misguided – he thinks the west wing has been put on the wrong side of the hall – and the weasels see yet another opportunity to take advantage of him.

While resting, Mole hears sounds which he cannot account for. It leads him to fear that there might be a ghost in his house. Mole seeks reassurance from Badger that the sounds could be the noises of growing tree roots, etc., but Toad exacerbates the issue by singing to Mole about the thousands of ghosts skulking in Toad Hall. Eventually, though, he discovers that the sounds are produced by a hedgehog which has fallen into a crevice immediately above his burrow. With the help of Rat, he saves the animal. Winter (DVD) / Winter Tales (VHS – 3 November 1986 & 17 October 1994) – The Yuletide Entertainment (Cut version on the DVD), Winter Sports, The Rescue (Cut version on the VHS). Badger and Rat are busy organising the harvest festival, and Mole is unaccountably absent. A concerned Rat calls round to find him seriously ill in bed. Badger suspects mushroom poisoning and organises a search for ingredients to make up an antidote, enlisting the help of riverbankers and weasels alike. One elusive but vital ingredient ( a rare fungus) is causing them the most worry, and with time running out for Mole, they need to look in just the right place.The film (1983) – There have been VHS releases of Summer, Autumn, Winter and Spring, among others. Fremantle Media also released the complete series in Australia and New Zealand. DVDs were made as part of a one-off Daily Mail event around the end of 2008, each containing six episodes. Two of them are similar to The Four Seasons collection. Thomas ( Jimmy Hibbert) – Auberon's chauffeur and personal assistant, who is also a toad. He appears in the episodes "Mole's Cousin" and "Happy New Year".

Auberon Mole (Howard Lloyd Lewis) – Mole's cousin; in the series, is a well-known playwright, and the focus of the episodes "Mole's Cousin", "Auberon's Return" and "Happy New Year". Toad comes down with a minor cold, but begins to think it something much more serious after he realizes that all his ancestors died young. He searches what he thinks are his father's medical books and realizes that he has come down with a fatal combination of diseases (specifically, armillaria mellea, botrytis, and ranunculus repens). While Rat and Mole diligently wait on the seemingly-dying Toad, Badger searches the books and discovers that Toad's diseases are actually plant ailments. When informed of this, Toad leaps out of bed in happiness, only to fall down the stairs and break his leg. After overthrowing the Weasels in the battle of Toad Hall, Toad hosts a celebration dinner for his friends. He reminisces about his time in prison, escape from jail and his exploits with the barge woman. His friends are less than impressed with how he handled some of the situations, but Toad gets offended when they tell him so. Toad decides to enter the "Home-Made Boat Competition" in the River Bank Regatta. However, he can't be bothered to build a boat, and therefore decides to buy one and attempt to pass it off as his own. This plan fails, and he decides to build a boat just to spite the cynical Badger. His first attempt at building a boat fails, but the Weasels offer to help him build another one, and disaster strikes when it sinks with Toad aboard.The New Year brings little cheer for the riverbankers, as the approaching railway threatens to destroy everyone's homes, and even Badger seems to have given up hope. Despite this, Toad insists on holding a New Year's celebration at the Hall, and on providing the entertainment himself (by playing the bagpipes very badly and reading with an exaggerated accent from the poetry of Rabbie Burns). Mole's cousin Auberon is in attendance. During the evening two messengers bring news to the group: the first concerning the weasels and a stolen traction engine; the second concerning new developments on the railway.