Follow the Swallow CBeebies Bedtime Stories

CBeebies Bedtime Story.

Oh, hello!

I'm Kacey.

I was just trying to spot a bird.

But not just any bird. A swallow!

Have you ever seen a swallow?

They have...blue backs,

a red neck,

and a beautiful tail.

I know a story about a swallow, and his friend Chack.

It's called Follow the Swallow.

Chack the Blackbird was learning to fly.

So was Apollo the Swallow.

That was how they met.

"Hello, I'm Apollo the Swallow."

"What do you swallow?" asked Chack.

"Flies, mostly," said Apollo.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Chack. I'm a blackbird."

"You look brown to me!" said Apollo.

"I may be brown now, but one day, I'll be black," said Chack.

"I don't believe you!" said Apollo. Apollo showed Chack his nest.

It was inside the garden shed. "I won't always live here," he said.

"One day, I'll fly away to Africa."

"I don't believe you," said Chack.

Chack showed Apollo his nest.

It was covered in a white blossom.

"One day the tree will be covered in tasty orange berries," said Chack.

"I don't believe you!" said Apollo.

The days grew longer and warmer.

The white blossom fell off Chack's tree,

and some little green berries appeared.

"They'll be orange one day," he told Apollo.

"I don't believe you!" said Apollo.

Slowly, the berries on the tree grew bigger, and changed colour

from green...to yellow... and at last, to orange.

"Now Apollo will believe me!" said Chack.

He flew to the shed to tell his friend about the orange berries.

"Come to the tree!"

But Apollo had gone!

He and the other swallows had just set off for Africa.

Chack flew after the swallows. He flew until he reached the sea.

There he met a jumpy dolphin.

"Can you take a message to Apollo the Swallow,

"from Chack the Blackbird? He's on his way to Africa."

"Oooh! What's the message?" asked the dolphin.

"Come to the tree!" said Chack.

And he flew back to eat some of the tasty orange berries.

The jumpy dolphin swam and leapt and dived.

It took him a long time to reach Africa.

There, the dolphin met a grumpy camel.

"Can you take a message to Apollo the Swallow, from Chack the Blackbird?"

"What's the message?"

"Uh...

"Jump in the sea!" said the dolphin.

The grumpy camel trudged slowly across the desert

until he reached a wide river.

There, he met a greedy crocodile.

"Can you take a message to Apollo the Swallow, from Chack the Blackbird?"

"What's the message?" asked the crocodile.

"Uh...

"Grumpy, like me."

The greedy crocodile took his time

swimming and snapping his way down the river

until he came to a forest. There he met a playful monkey.

"Can you take a message to Apollo the Swallow, from Chack the Blackbird?"

"What's the message?"

"Uh...a monkey, for tea!" said the crocodile.

The playful monkey swung from branch to branch

until he came to a fig tree.

On the ground lay a lot of rotten figs.

Feeding on the figs were a lot of fruit flies,

and snapping at the fruit flies were a lot of swallows!

"I've got a message for Apollo the Swallow!" said the monkey.

"That's me!" said one of the swallows.

"It's from Chack the Blackbird, and the message is...uh...

"Uh...

"One, two, three, wheeeeee!"

"One, two, three, wheeee? That's a funny message!"

"Well, I've been in Africa for half a year now,

"it's time for me to fly back to the garden,

"I can find out what Chack means."

Apollo and the other swallows flew back until they reached the garden.

Apollo flew to Chack's tree.

It was covered in white blossom.

A big blackbird flew down from the tree.

"I'm looking for my friend Chack," said Apollo.

"That's me!" said the blackbird.

"I don't believe you," said Apollo, "you're black and Chack was brown!"

"I'm Chack, sure as eggs are eggs!" said Chack.

"Talking of eggs, I've got something to show you!"

"So the message wasn't, 'One, two, three, wheee!'

"It was, 'One, two, three eggs!'" he said.

"But the message wasn't about the eggs,

"it was about the berries!" said Chack.

"I ate lots of them. The rest fell off the tree in winter,

"but in the spring there were some new buds.

"Now the white blossom is back,

"and in the autumn there'll be some more orange berries!

"You must believe me, Apollo!"

Apollo thought hard.

"All right then, I believe you!" he said.

And that was the story called Follow The Swallow.

Wow! Imagine flying all the way to Africa,

and then back again!

I wonder if they had to stop to sleep.

Maybe I can spot some swallows sleeping in the garden!

While I look, it's time for you to head to bed,

and go to sleep.

I'll see you very soon for another story.

Night-night!

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd