Thursday 16 April 2015

"Raingods" Children's TV Programme (1970s)

Rainbow was a popular daytime children's television programme in the 1970s. Yet very few people realise that it was originally pitched as an altogether different show called Raingods. Below are the only extant frames from the pilot.


Raingods introduced children to a pink, one-eyed, Aztec god of rain, Tlaloc, whose name translates as 'enraged niece of Bruce Forsyth'. Other characters included minor deities such as Tezcatlipocabungle, the bear executioner deity; Zippyloc, god of arrogance and poor dentistry; and Geoffrey the Devil.

Ultimately, a full series was not commissioned because it became apparent in the pilot that Tlaloc's fearful cohorts not only had to appease their vengeful god with sweet songs, but they also had to sacrifice live human children in his name.


In the first twenty minutes alone, two thousand children perished and the programme's producers received upwards of fourteen complaints from disgruntled parents and sweatshop owners.

The programme was soon thereafter redeveloped as the less malevolent Rainbow, Tlaloc was renamed George and the number of child sacrifices was reduced to an acceptable level.

8 comments:

  1. Thank you for finally shedding light on this Tlaloc/George character! After 30+ years we finally have a pretty good idea as to why my little brother Cecil would always try to sacrifice our baby sister Amelia every Tuesday lunchtime. Maybe now we can release him from the oubliette.
    Mummy will be pleased when I tell her, assuming my mummy is who she says she is.

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  2. My children didn't die in vain.

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  3. During this time of austerity perhaps the original programme can be re-introduced ? Regular viewings on poor people's television might reduce the burden to the state of such gutter snipes ?

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  4. what ? ho no "téléchat" (cat-tv) was a great incredibly weird tv show for kids. I would say it was a good way to learn absurd humor :)
    Well yes, it was a little too much surreal. haha.

    Roland Topor wanted to parody and criticise TV with it.

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  5. What did they do with all the still-beating hearts they cut out? Was there a cookery segment we still haven't found?

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  6. Surely that should be Zippy Totec?

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  7. I survived, however, others perished. What you don't realise is Bungle is the henchman and manager of a sex dungeon club, owned by Chuckles the monkey. He likes to burn people with lit fags.

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    Replies
    1. By "fags" do you mean the kind for smoking...or the other kind?

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