John Halas

The embodiment of ultimate evil, a glowing orb terrorizes a young girl with bizarre stories of dark fantasy, eroticism and horror.

Animals on a farm lead a revolution against the farmers to put their destiny in their own hands. However this revolution eats their own children and they cannot avoid corruption.

An animated film about the history and use of hot water.

BBC Four’s new documentary takes us on a journey through more than a century of animation. It examines the creative and technical inventiveness of some of the great animation pioneers who have worked in Britain – trailblazing talents such as Len Lye, John Halas and Joy Batchelor, Joanna Quinn, and Bristol’s world-conquering Aardman Animations.

The story of three children who find themselves with a friendly monster that grows at an alarming rate.

Seville's most successful Matador has a secret, which his rival will use against him when he finds out.

The embodiment of ultimate evil, a glowing orb terrorizes a young girl with bizarre stories of dark fantasy, eroticism and horror.

Animals on a farm lead a revolution against the farmers to put their destiny in their own hands. However this revolution eats their own children and they cannot avoid corruption.

Animals on a farm lead a revolution against the farmers to put their destiny in their own hands. However this revolution eats their own children and they cannot avoid corruption.

Animals on a farm lead a revolution against the farmers to put their destiny in their own hands. However this revolution eats their own children and they cannot avoid corruption.

An animated film about the history and use of hot water.

The story of three children who find themselves with a friendly monster that grows at an alarming rate.

Seville's most successful Matador has a secret, which his rival will use against him when he finds out.

D'Artagnan and his musketeer comrades must thwart the plans of Cardinal Richelieu to usurp King Louis XIII's power.

This cartoon propaganda short by Halas & Batchelor sweetens the pill of post-war coal prices by promising jam tomorrow.

This cartoon propaganda short by Halas & Batchelor sweetens the pill of post-war coal prices by promising jam tomorrow.

This cartoon propaganda short by Halas & Batchelor sweetens the pill of post-war coal prices by promising jam tomorrow.

A light hearted look at the various instruments of the orchestra, based on the original cartoons of the late Gerard Hoffnung, satirising musical pomposity.

Meet Charley, your jovial cartoon guide to Britain’s changing towns and cities.

Meet Charley, your jovial cartoon guide to Britain’s changing towns and cities.

An animated cartoon on smoking and health. The villain, Old Nick O'Teen, disguises himself as an 18-year-old motorcyclist, the better to lure children into the cigarette habit. Fourteen-year-old Sam falls into the trap, but after awesome visions of his future, expert advice from a doctor, and straight talk from a friendly lorry-driver renounces the habit.

A short animated War Office commissioned health education film, showing the fate of each of the 6 jungle soldiers.

A short animated War Office commissioned health education film, showing the fate of each of the 6 jungle soldiers.

An animated, dark satire of America's automobile-obsessed, consumerist culture. An anonymous, brilliant scientist toils tirelessly in his ivory tower satisfying the public's ever-increasing demands for novelty and status consciousness, with predictable environmental consequences.

An animated, dark satire of America's automobile-obsessed, consumerist culture. An anonymous, brilliant scientist toils tirelessly in his ivory tower satisfying the public's ever-increasing demands for novelty and status consciousness, with predictable environmental consequences.

Hamilton the elephant loves playing music with his trunk. When he is fired from the circus he does odd jobs till he gets his big break.

A musically talented ape is captured in the jungle and taken back to civilisation. However, civilisation proves too uncouth for the cultured ape so he departs, philosophically pondering that "when the arts are out of date, the artist must withdraw and wait". A colourised version was released in 1980.

Charley, a mechanic, inherits a half-share in a farm run by his cousin and he soon has his dream of an idyllic country life rudely shattered by hard realities.

The Baronet of Ruddigore, Sir Despard Murgatroyd, has inherited a family curse which forces him to commit a crime every day — or die in agony. He hates the curse, doing his heinous misdeeds as early as possible and good works for the rest of the day to compensate!

T'was the night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

T'was the night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

A particularly vicious Father Time with a hit-list in his Book of Doom seeks to wipe out characters brought to life from fabric patterns. This neat concept for a cartoon washing powder commercial can be credited to Alexander Mackendrick, who worked at the J Walter Thompson advertising agency before making films at Ealing and then Hollywood.

Married to your television? This cartoon gives you an opportunity to re-evaluate your relationship with the gogglebox.

A soon-to-be born baby learns about the kinds of schools he will attending in the years following his birth.

A soon-to-be born baby learns about the kinds of schools he will attending in the years following his birth.

Ever seen a snake with a moustache? The Middle East was as much an ideological as a physical battleground in the Second World War. In the midst of the conflict Halas & Batchelor were commissioned by the British Government to make four cartoons featuring a young boy Abu and his mule. They were intended to demonstrate in simple visual terms that Britain was a stout friend and the Axis powers a pernicious evil.

Joy Batchelor directed, produced, wrote and designed this short film for Brook Bond Tea: two girls compete for the affections of a Teddy Bear.

Joy Batchelor directed, produced, wrote and designed this short film for Brook Bond Tea: two girls compete for the affections of a Teddy Bear.

A trip into a surreal winter garden, a voyage on a stormy sea, a grisly homecoming – there is something for everyone in this “experiment in words, music and paintings”. Four films were made in this series for the BFI’s Telekinema at the Festival of Britain, combining some of the best contemporary illustrators and artists with a diverse range of verse. The readers are also of some pedigree, with Michael Redgrave, Stanley Holloway and Eric Portman adding their names to the bill.

A naïve father makes an embarrassing attempt to explain the facts of life to his son, but he becomes increasingly embarrassed to the point where his explanations are so vague as to be incomprehensible.

A naïve father makes an embarrassing attempt to explain the facts of life to his son, but he becomes increasingly embarrassed to the point where his explanations are so vague as to be incomprehensible.

A young girl rescues a wild bird. She takes it back to the forest, then finds crystals in the mountain...

Set to Gilbert and Sullivan tunes, a musical cartoon attempts to describe the character of the British nation, with occasional interruptions by Prince Charles.

A humorously semi-factual account of the history of cinema.

A humorously semi-factual account of the history of cinema.

In this film Charley demystifies the new state-funded National Health Service, detailing the benefits a free-at-point-of-delivery health service will offer to everyone in England.