The Hoobs!

 Preface

 

This note was composed in response to Mr James Harrison's enquiry as to what the "Fraggle-like creatures" in my profile picture were. As such, it addresses him directly, but please feel free to read on. If you don't know about The Hoobs, you're missing out!

 

James, this post was originally going to go your wall, but there were too many words so the box I was typing in popped and the whole universe exploded... It was in the transferring of the message from your wall to this note, that a delay was introduced as I resolved to give a fuller description.

 

It has taken me quite some time to complete this note. During the intervening months since its inception, the note simply read "coming soon" - hence your understandably disappointed reply below.

 

It has actually taken me a full year and a day to finish and update this, so I hope that in the meantime your curiosity has not died a slow and lingering death. If there is any trace of inquisitive interest about The Hoobs that remains, let it be revived immediately, for the satisfaction it sought can surely now be found here!

 

Introduction

 

From your inquiry about the "fraggle-like creatures" I see you have not yet been initiated into the wonderful Hooby-gallooby world of THE HOOBS! Well, let me enlighten you!

 

Preamble

 

You may wish to brace yourself at this stage, as I must warn you I am not given to writing anything concisely when I can just as well convey my point in several paragraphs of rambling prose interspersed with irrelevant, incidental or only very vaguely related details of things that come to mind along the way.

 

Of course, if you have managed not to notice this by now, there is a very good chance that you are not actually paying an awful lot of attention, or even reading this at all, and thus perhaps you stand a good chance of remaining ignorant of my annoyingly idiotic writing style.

 

The Actual Explanation

 

In the academic year of 2001-2002, I had the pleasure of studying at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU); a fine academic institution to be sure. Though I have just proclaimed the eminence of my beloved university, I must confess that it was not without its failings.

 

During my tenure as student at MMU, I often found getting up at 8am for a 9am lecture to be an unachievable challenge. Perhaps it was the knowledge that a couple of my lecturers knew less than I did about the subjects they were supposed to be teaching me.

 

My motivation to wrestle into submission my overwhelming desire to stay in bed and go to lectures was lacking, when the best I could hope for from one of them was to be taught (not without mistakes) how to build tables in HTML 2! Who uses HTML 2? I had never heard of, seen, or event witnessed documentary footage about people using HTML 2.

Staying up till 6am, however, was no problem when it was to watch Channel 4's endearing, entertaining and educational "The Hoobs". The regular broadcast of these delightful brightly coloured creatures rapidly became a staple of weekday student life for several members of our flat in Cambridge Halls South.

 

A creation of The Jim Henson Company, Hoobs are fluffy aliens which, in addition to being groovy and hoobacious, have a curious fascination with the planet Earth and its people. Each endeavour to learn about and understand the subjects of their investigations is documented in one short episode. Their learning takes place with the assistance of "tiddly-peeps".

 

Tiddly-peeps are, as the name suggests, a group of people whose demographic can be described as diminutiveness consistent with the proportions of humans who are still in the earlier stages of maturation prior to adulthood. Yes, they're children. Roma (one of the Hoobs) travels around on a motorbike and meets different “tiddly-peeps” who help her and the rest of the Hoobs learn new things.

 

Writing, maths, plants, animals, the planet, artistic expression, communication and relationships are all things about which children (and university students) can learn with the help of the Hoobs. A group of 5 fuzzy friends, each has its own distinctive colour, character and coiffeur.

 

In the picture that sparked the question that in turn prompted the authoring of this elucidatory text, two Hoobs can be seen upon my shoulders. Between them, I think they express a great deal of my own characteristics quite well.

Iver, the purple Hoob, is very enthusiastic and often rushes around in state of frenetic activity. Groove, on the other hand, appears rather more laid back, as he does things at a much less hurried pace. Despite appearing more relaxed, Groove is actually a rather pedantic and obsessive Hoob, who likes to do things thoroughly and to perfection.

It has only just occurred to me whilst writing this note, that the real reason I liked The Hoobs simply may have been because I identified so closely with Iver and Groove. What a sobering thought. Quick – I’d better get a drinkl!

Groove, Marcus and Iver