The Koala Brothers: A Letter For George And Other Stories

I started watching this series of little films about two brothers - tubby, jaunty, round koala bears, who fly a cute aeroplane - with some trepidation.

"We're here to help," say Frank and Buster. And this is exactly what they do.

What made it bearable to sit through six episodes? I was with a toddler and the catchy tune - always a must for a successful series - got her dancing and laughing as each new story started. And then there are the colours, so clear and dazzling.

The setting is the Australian desert and the stories are narrated by a Rolf Harris sound-a-like (Jonathan 'Jono' Coleman). Each episode solves a problem. Josi, the young kangaroo, has very large feet and is depressed and embarrassed that she can't use a skipping rope. What fun her friends have skipping! Guess who solves her problem with a bit of common sense? Frank and Buster, of course.

Lolly is the flamingo ice-cream lady - err, bird. Her van has broken down and the ice-cream is melting. Alice, the duck messenger, sets off to help, but by the time the gallant brothers arrive, George, the postman, has fixed it. But worse still is when the penguin runs out of water on his desert trek. Frank and Buster make a bumpy emergency landing and their plane gets bogged down in the sand. Oh no! Things look different from the sky. They're lost. But one good deed deserves another. Once the penguin has quenched his thirst, he leads them home with casual confidence.

The stories are set around the shack, where Mitsy lives, a happy little girl with a pony tail and black-rimmed spectacles. She knows everyone - Archie the crocodile, Stannie the hedgehog, George the post-turtle, Ned the wombat.

After 20 minutes of immersion, I found the series a delight and by the end, my little companion wanted to watch it all over again.