The Elves and the Shoemaker

Hey, hello there, Tiddlers. How are you diddling? Ha-ha!

Oh, look, it's Margaret and Joan. Hello there, my veggies.

-Hello, Mr Bloom.

-Hello.

-So, tell me, girls, what are you up to?

-Well, I'm making some signs for your market stall.

-Oh.

And I'm helping to paint them, look.

This orange one is to put beside the carrots.

And this one is for the lettuce.

Margaret has just finished painting it the same colour as my hair.

Oh, no, Margaret, I don't have blue hair.

I did think it wasn't quite the right colour.

Don't worry, Mr Bloom, your sign will be ready soon.

Well, I think these signs will be brilliant.

They'll show all the customers what I'm selling on my market stall.

In fact, did I tell you where I'm going?

To market to meet some Tiddlers and they're

going to help me sell fruit and vegetables on my market stall.

-I don't suppose you'd like to come, would you?

-How exciting!

There's loads of things to see at the market

and there's lots of people to help too.

So, here we are at the market with all my friends.

-Hello there, Tiddlers.

-Hello, Mr Bloom.

Tiddlers, are you going to be helping me today?

-Yes!

-And can you remember what we're going to be doing?

-Selling things.

-At the...

-Market!

Yeah, what type of things do you think we'll be selling?

Carrots and peas and cucumbers.

And here at the market there's all sorts of stalls

selling all sorts of different things.

Oh, look, there's Miss Baker, shall we give her a wave? Hello.

-And can you see what Miss Baker's selling, Millie?

-Bread.

And that's not all, I can see something very nice there.

Hands up if you like buns. Me, yup. Oh, hello there, mate.

Someone looks very busy this morning.

Oh, and he's not buying any bread, is he?

And he doesn't want anything from Mr Find-and-fix. All right, bye-bye.

Maybe... Maybe he's selling something as well.

-What do you reckon?

-Yeah!

-Well, let's go and find out. Come on.

Well, I'm not sure where he got to. Maybe he went inside this shop.

And, Tiddlers, do you know what type of shop this is?

That's right, Carson, it's a shoe shop, isn't it?

How do you know it's a shoe shop, Sophie? What can you see?

-A shoe.

-Where's the shoe? Yeah, up there.

And I'm wondering what other types of shoes he might be selling.

-Shall we take a look?

-Yes.

-Come on, then, let's have a peak in here.

-There, now, what can we see?

-I can see the workbench.

That's right, the workbench over there

and there's lots of tools on it, isn't there? Here he is.

-Wow, so do you think he works here?

-Yeah.

-What does...

The person here, what does he do?

That's right, he makes shoes, doesn't he?

MUSIC PLAYS QUIETLY

-Look, his shoes.

-He's keeping warm, isn't he?

JOYFUL MUSIC PLAYS

Oh, and now he's got two shoes.

He likes to do the shoe dance and now he's making some...

-Who do you think this might be?

-Mrs Shoemaker.

-Maybe she's making tea.

-Well, I like a cup of tea when I'm working.

What's that, Carson? It's bread, that's right.

So they've got one piece of bread and... Oh, dear, the box's empty.

Oh, his pockets are empty, so maybe they've got no money.

-But... What does the shoemaker make lots of?

-Shoes.

-Shoes.

If they make some more shoes, they will get some more money.

-KNOCKING

-That's right, Sham.

SOLEMN MUSIC PLAYS

Oh, it's a poor lady. What's the problem with her shoes?

-They've got holes.

-They have got lots of holes in,

you're right, Millie. And, look, she's cold, so they've

sat her by the fire.

Oh, look, Carson, they gave her a cup of tea, didn't they?

-Mr Shoemaker's putting the other shoes in the bin.

-Yeah.

And he's going to give some new shoes to the other...

To the poor lady.

UPLIFTING MUSIC PLAYS

-And look, she's trying out the new shoes. Do they look good?

-Yes.

-Yes.

They look very good and they look very warm, don't they?

-Do you think they're happy or sad?

-Happy.

-Yeah, happy, that's right.

Oh, look, what's Mrs Shoemaker doing, Sophie? Sophie, can you see?

-What's she doing?

-Yeah.

-She's giving her a shawl.

What is it? Oh, it's the bread.

Yeah, they're giving her something to eat.

Now they have no bread.

-What's he found?

-Old cloth?

-I think you're right.

It might even be a piece of leather, Sham.

And leather can be used for making shoes.

Goodbye! Oh, there we go.

-Tiddlers, do you think he's going to go and have his tea now?

-Yeah.

-Yeah, I think we should go and have our tea as well.

-Yeah.

-Can we come back tomorrow, Mr Bloom?

-Would you like to, Tiddlers?

Yeah!

Well, how about we pretend that we've got bouncing shoes

-and they could help us bounce home?

-Yeah.

-Put your boots on.

HE CLICKS HIS TONGUE

-Are you ready to bounce?

-Yeah.

-Let's go.

Boing, boing!

JAUNTY MUSIC PLAYS

MUSIC MIMICS LAUGHTER

JAUNTY MUSIC PLAYS

THEY HAMMER

MUSIC BEATS A STEADY RHYTHM

TRIUMPHANT MUSIC PLAYS

Now, Tiddlers, I've been wondering all night -

what type of shoes do you think Mr Shoemaker's made?

-Shiny rocket trainers.

-Soft slippers.

-White and black shoes that are posh.

-Some running shoes.

Some running shoes.

Oh, well, I tell you what, I can't wait to see what he's made.

Maybe he's made some wellies. Oh, and look at your fancy wellies.

Oh, he's opening up the shop, isn't he? Shall we wave to Mr Shoemaker?

Morning. He's off to work, isn't he?

He's got a nice workshop, hasn't he?

Oh, is he going to have a nice cup of tea?

Yeah, that'll help you get off to work, won't it?

DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS

I think he's a bit surprised, isn't he? Because... Oh, look.

-What's there on his worktop?

-(Shoes.)

-Who do you think might have made those shoes?

-Mrs Shoemaker.

Mrs Shoemaker, maybe.

Oh, look, here's Mrs Shoemaker.

KNOCKING

-There's someone there.

-Oh, yes, someone at the window.

Who do you think it might be?

-Oh, is he a customer?

-Yeah.

-Maybe he wants to buy some shoes.

-Oh, do you think they're going to fit?

-Yeah.

-All right, let's see.

Fingers crossed. They're going to fit!

-Oh, it's a perfect fit. Do you reckon, Lizzie?

-Yeah.

SHOES CLACK

-They're magic shoes.

-Magic dancing shoes?

Look at him dance.

-And what colour are those shoes?

-Purple.

-Purple.

-And are they making a funny noise when he dances?

-Yeah.

Yeah, I think they might be clogs. Whoo!

Whoa!

-Has he paid for those shoes?

-No.

-I don't think he has, has he?

-COINS JINGLE

-Oh, not to worry, look.

-And there he goes, a very happy customer.

-Goodbye.

Oh, are they happy? Why are they happy, Becky?

-Because they got some money.

-Yeah, they sold the shoes... Oh!

Look, Mr Shoemaker has put his coat on and his hat, where's he going?

-To the shops.

-To the shops?

And it looks like Mr Shoemaker's off to market.

Tiddlers, why do you think he might be going to market?

-To buy some food.

-Speaking of which, we need to go to market, don't we?

-Yeah.

-We've got to get the stall ready.

-So are you going to come?

-Yeah.

-Tiddlers, which way's the market?

-That way.

-That way, OK. We'll see you there. Come on.

JOYFUL MUSIC PLAYS

So, here we are, Tiddlers, at the market.

We just need to find our stall.

-Does this look like our stall?

-No.

-No? Why not?

There's rope and cloth.

Rope and cloth, yeah, I don't think we need that.

Carson, what can you see?

Watering can?

That's right because this stall belongs to Mr Find-and-fix.

-Oh, here he is.

-Good morning, Mr Find-and-fix.

Yes, well, that's his stall. Erm, there's another one over here.

Shall we go and take a look? Come on.

OK. Now, Tiddlers, this looks like a very exciting stall, doesn't it?

-Let's have a big sniff.

-THEY SNIFF

Does that smell good? Yeah, it smells very good.

-Becky, what can you see on this stall?

-Hot cross buns.

-Hot cross buns.

-Bagels.

-Bagels? Where are the bagels?

-There.

Oh, there they are, look. There's a big hole in the middle, isn't there?

Yeah.

Yes! Some bread. So, much as I would like this to be our stall,

it doesn't belong to us, it belongs to Miss Baker.

-Yup, well, here she comes with some more bread.

-Hi, Miss Baker.

-Yeah, so, where's our stall?

-There.

You're right, Tiddlers, there's our stall. So, come on.

So, let's get set up.

That's right, you pop all the fruits and veg in there. Well done.

What have you got there, Carson?

And look, we've got the signs that Margaret and Joan made.

-Who's got the apples?

-Me.

-OK. And...

-I've got the raspberries.

Oh, the raspberries. Who likes raspberries? Hands up.

-Do you think we'll get many customers?

-Yeah.

-I hope so.

-Who's this?

-The man who got the magic shoes from the shoemaker.

That's right. Hey, and, Carson, what's he wearing on his feet?

Magic shoes, yeah! I'd like to get me a pair of them.

Oh, and look. Yeah, Sophie, do you think these people...

-Are they going to be doing any shopping today?

-Yeah.

-Why do you think that?

-Because they want some food.

They've got a basket and a shopping list, haven't they?

-So maybe they'll come and see us.

-Yeah, they will.

-Mr Shoemaker!

-Oh, it's Mr Shoemaker.

Oh, hello there, what can we do you for? Oh, you'd like some spuds.

Yes, all right.

Oh, do you think they want some carrots?

Go on, then, Carson's got a bunch of carrots there for you.

Make sure you call again. Oh, cheerio, ta-ra.

-Mr Shoemaker, what's he bought, Zoe?

-Bread.

-Some bread.

Because they've got lots of money now.

The man who got the magic shoes gave it to them.

That's right, he sold the magic shoes and he got some money.

-Hey, what's Miss Baker doing there?

-She's closing the shop.

I think someone's just in time to get some bread.

-What happened?

-He's dropped his bread.

He's dropped it on the floor, so can he eat that now?

-So is Mr Shoemaker being helpful?

-Yeah. He's gave the bread to him.

The man with the magic shoes.

And the customers who came to our shop.

-Do you think they like his shoes as well?

-Yeah.

Yeah, he's showing them where he got his shoes from.

They've gone to see Mr Shoemaker, so I hope he's made some new shoes.

Can we go and see Mr Shoemaker again?

That sounds like a good idea. Do you want to go, tiddlers?

-Yeah!

-Yeah!

RUMBLING

-Oh. Can you hear that noise?

-Yeah.

-I think that's my tummy rumbling,

so we'd better go and get some food

and we'll go and see Mr Shoemaker tomorrow.

So, tiddlers, I've been up most of the night wondering

what type of shoes Mr Shoemaker is going to make today.

The curtains are still drawn, so I think Mr Shoemaker is still in bed.

-So be quiet!

-He's there!

Oh, he's woken up!

Oh-ho! Morning, Mr Shoemaker!

-Good morning!

-I hope you've had a nice sleep.

Yeah, and we're in time to see what type of shoes he's going to make.

-Oh, what's going on?

-He's surprised.

-He is surprised.

-Why is he surprised?

-Because...

Because there's some shoes.

-That's right, and not just one pair. How many pairs can you see?

-Two!

So if Mr Shoemaker didn't make those shoes,

-do you think Mrs Shoemaker made them?

-No.

I think Mrs Shoemaker is very surprised as well.

Because if Mr Shoemaker didn't make the shoes

and Mrs Shoemaker didn't make the shoes...

someone else is making them.

Imagine, they've woken up in the morning

and someone's helped them, haven't they?

Where's he going to put the shoes?

-There.

-On the shelf, because he wants to sell them, doesn't he?

KNOCK AT THE DOOR

Is that the door?

-Oh, it's a customer, isn't it?

-It might be another customer.

Hey, and she looks very excited about those new shoes.

So what are they doing now, Millie?

-Putting the shoes on.

-Putting the new shoes on.

I think they're going for a walk.

In every shoe shop you're supposed to walk up and down

-in your new shoes.

-To try them out.

Are they trying the shoes out?

-Yeah.

-By dancing away!

They're dancing because they're happy.

Yeah, you think they like their shoes?

Maybe they're dancing because they're dancing shoes!

Do you think they might be magic dancing shoes?

Maybe they're surprised,

maybe they're surprised from the magic shoes.

-What is he giving them?

-Money!

He's giving him some money for the shoes

-and not just one bag of money but...

-Two bags of money.

So, Millie, what do you think Mr and Mrs Shoemaker could use

-the money for?

-To go shopping.

-Yeah!

They've probably gone to the market

but we can't go to the market until we have some more vegetables

for our stall, so where do we need to go, Sham?

-To the vegetable patch.

-That's right, to the vegetable patch.

-So, are you ready?

-Yeah.

-Are you steady?

-Yeah!

Then let's go. Come on!

Hey! Hello there. Now, we're down at the vegetable patch

and there's loads of things to do. Sham, what's going on down here?

I'm using the water to make the carrots grow.

It's really important to help these plants

because if you help them, they'll grow up big and strong.

-What kind of helping do the trees do?

-They help the birds

and pesky crowds to live in a home.

Well, sometimes, there's helping which you can't even see, like...

Here, squirrels. So, Millie, what do squirrels like to eat?

Nuts and acorns.

You're right, they love acorns, and look, I've got some acorns here.

Let's have a look at these acorns.

Now, squirrels love to eat acorns

and do you know what they do, Millie?

They bury them in the ground when it's winter

and sometimes they forget.

And what do acorns grow into?

-Um, trees.

-A little acorn like this, it'll grow into a great big tree

and who lives in the trees?

-Birds.

-Birds.

-The birds and squirrels.

Sometimes you just don't see who's helping you.

In fact, it's a bit like Mr Shoemaker, isn't it?

-Who do you think might be helping Mr Shoemaker?

-I know.

-Who do you think, Sophie?

-Miss Shoemaker.

-Miss Shoemaker?

Well, whoever is helping Mr Shoemaker,

-they're very good at hiding, aren't they?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

Because we never see them.

-We just see them at night.

-Yeah.

RUSTLING

What's that, Sophie?

-Look, it's moving.

-What is it?

-Are the leaves moving?

-Yeah.

-Maybe they're alive.

-Is it elves?

-Did you just see something?

-Yeah.

Wow, what can you see, Sophie?

An elf.

-Are they elves?

-Yeah.

Wow! I've never seen elves before.

They're different.

-Wahey! They were hiding in the leaves, weren't they?

-Yeah.

Oh, and look, they're playing in the leaves.

They don't have a jumper on.

-Now, have any of you tiddlers seen elves before?

-No.

-No!

-Look at that one!

-That's right, he's going for it.

I've never seen the elves do that before.

She's pretending to fly.

-So do you think it might be the elves helping Mr Shoemaker?

-Yes!

Do you? But how are they doing it?

Are they doing it during the daytime or the night-time?

-I think it's the daytime.

-Night-time.

You think it's the night-time?

Oh! Where have they gone now?

To bed, maybe.

How about tonight we go to Mr and Mrs Shoemaker

and we'll see if we can find the elves making the shoes.

-Shall we do that?

-Yes!

-But how do we get smaller?

We don't need to get smaller, we'll just go to the window.

-If we're quiet, we might see them.

-Let's tiptoe.

-We could tiptoe.

-Shall we tiptoe now?

-Yeah.

-Come on, tiptoe this way.

Don't wake them up. Come on, that way.

Right then, Margaret, Mr Bloom and the tiddlers have asked us

to do an important job. We've got to look after the market stall.

Now, do you know what you're doing?

Oh, yes, Joan.

-I asked the customers what they want to buy.

-Good.

-I pop it in a bag...

-Good.

And then I can paint!

Oh, no, no, dear.

The customer has to pay.

We wouldn't be much help to Mr Bloom and the tiddlers

if we didn't take in any money. Now, let's look out for customers.

Oh! Here's Mr and Mrs Shoemaker. I wonder where they're going to go.

Oh...

THEY CHUCKLE

He's going to Mr Find-and-fix's store. Where's Mrs Shoemaker going?

She's coming to us!

How exciting!

What would you like to buy today?

Crunchy carrots...?

Or ripe strawberries?

Margaret, could you take the money, please?

Hee-hee!

Oh, Mr Shoemaker has found some material.

And Mrs Shoemaker seems to love the blue, shiny material.

So, tiddlers, who do we think is making these magical dancing shoes?

-ALL: The elves!

-The elves? That's right, the elves.

And how do you think we could make sure?

-Because it might be someone else.

-We can have a sleepover here.

Have a sleepover, Sham? That sounds like a good idea.

Stay up all night maybe.

We could stay up all night, Millie - that way we can catch the elves.

But you know what, we've got to be very quiet.

I wonder if we will solve the mystery tonight, eh?

THEY WHISPER

The elves are coming!

JAUNTY PANPIPES

-What did you see, Carson?

-The elves.

-Wow.

-They're both doing a dance!

-Do you think they know we're here?

-Yeah... No.

-We'll be quiet!

-They're making a shoe!

-And how do you think they make so many shoes?

-With magic!

-With magic.

-They might have magic hands.

It's raining shoes.

Oh, eh! Look at these. Hey, Carson, do you think they're special shoes?

-Yeah!

-Yeah.

What are they doing with those shoes, Becky?

-Putting them on the shelves.

-They are putting them on the shelves...

Oh - sh!

-Shall we go in, tiddlers?

-Yeah!

-Come on.

In we come, tiddlers. Let's have a look at those shoes, eh?

Oh! They're sparkly!

Carson, what have you found there?

-I just saw these...

-Wow! Some blue shoes.

-I found some red shoes.

Some red ones? And some gold ones.

I think someone's coming, tiddlers, put the shoes back!

JAUNTY MUSIC PLAYS

MR BLOOM GASPS

-Wow!

-The Princess and the Prince!

Yeah! Wow.

Who do you think it is, Carson?

Do you think it's... Is it a prince? And a princess?

-A prince and a princess.

-Yeah!

She has... The Princess has a beautiful dress.

She does have a very pretty dress.

She's dancing.

She might have turned into a ballerina when she put them on.

I think those really were magic dancing shoes.

GENTLE ORCHESTRAL MUSIC

Her dress is beautiful and her tiara...

Ooh!

-Do you reckon you could dance like a prince and princess?

-Yeah.

I reckon you could.

Oh, they're saying thank you.

GIRL GASPS

They're dancing!

Off they go. Shall we give them a wave? Bye-bye.

ALL: Bye!

-BOY:

-Bye-bye.

-Aw!

Now, tiddlers, those elves were very helpful making

-those magic shoes, weren't they?

-Yeah.

I'm wondering, as they've been so helpful,

do you think there might be a way that we can help them?

We can make them...

some clothes and a small hat for them.

And who could help us?

-Mr Shoemaker.

-Mr Shoemaker!

-Hey!

Well, tiddlers, the clothes are all finished.

Thanks for your help, Mr and Mrs Shoemaker.

When is the elves coming?

I don't think they'll come if we are hanging around.

Where are we going to hide, Mr and Mrs Shoemaker?

Oh, I think they've got a hiding place. So be quiet, let's go. Sh!

Is there anyone there?

-Who is it?

-The elves.

Oh, and look, they're warming themselves by the fire.

Mr and Mrs Shoemaker, it's the elves.

-Do you think they like their clothes?

-Yes!

Oh, I hope they fit.

Hey!

Aw!

Oh...

Oh! There's someone coming. Quick, tiddlers, over to the bench!

It's the Prince and Princess!

Carson, come over here! And look, it's all the other tiddlers.

You all right, you lot? Eh?

Look at that great big bag of money!

-He'll be able to make loads of shoes with that, won't he?

-It's gold!

Now you're all here, how about we have a great big dance, eh?

To the middle! Hold hands.

JAUNTY MUSIC PLAYS

Sham, what have they got there?

They've got elf magic dust.

Yeah, the elf magic that made the magic dancing shoes.

Well, it's time to say goodbye to the elves, tiddlers.

-Let's wave goodbye.

-ALL: Bye!

-Well, what a busy day we've had, eh?

-Hello, Mr Bloom!

-Hello.

We've been very busy too.

We've had lots of customers at the market stall.

Aw! Well, thanks, you two, for being so helpful.

Do you think Mr Shoemaker could make me some magic dancing shoes?

Oh, me too!

Ha! Well, I'm sure he could.

-Although not now, as it's time for us to go.

-Oh!

-But do you think that I could jump as high as the elves?

-Er...

With a one, a two, three!

-Ha-ha!

-Ta-ra!