Gorilla in the Midst

"Gorilla in the Midst" is the twelfth episode of the first series of the British children's television programme Julia Jekyll and Harriet Hyde. The episode was directed by series producer Jeremy Swan and written by series creator Jim Eldridge. It was first broadcast in the UK on BBC One on 15 December 1995.

In the episode, a gorilla named Guido escapes from the local zoo and begins terrorising the Rocket Academy. But Guido chose the wrong pupil to mess with as he comes face to face with the Rocket Academy's own great hairy monster Harriet Hyde (John Asquith).

Plot
At a zoo, the bars for a cage belonging to a gorilla named Guido have been bent open. A zookeeper arrives ready to feed Guido his breakfast, only to find that he has escaped and is on the loose.

At the Rocket Academy, Julia greets Mrs Rocket as she arrives, only to transform into Harriet Hyde out of sight. Mrs Rocket turns around and is horrified by Harriet. Quickly changing back into Julia, she comforts Mrs Rocket and leaves, as Mrs Rocket fears that Harriet is starting to prey on her mind. In the courtyard, Guido the gorilla climbs a wall to enter the premises.

In his office, Memphis Rocket gets off the phone after a conversation with the Department of Education. He tells his mother that they are planning to test headteachers to ensure that they are still capable of teaching classes. Memphis is terrified, having only become a headteacher to get out of teaching. Mrs Rocket encourages him to take a class for the day to boost his confidence, suggesting he take Lester Blister's science class on wild animals. Scared that the Blister Sisters are in that class, Mrs Rocket reassures him that Julia is also a member of the class and drags him to the science lab. All the while, Guido wanders about outside.

Lester begins his class on wild animals, explaining that they are called 'wild' because they live in the wild. When Roger asks why they are still wild when they live in a zoo, Lester is unable to answer. Julia stands and recites a line from the Percy B. Shelley poem 'Ode to the West Wind'. Lester is uninterested as Memphis and his mother arrive, with Memphis commandeering the lesson. The class cheers upon hearing the news as Lester reluctantly sits down with Mrs Rocket. As Memphis asks what is meant by the term 'wild animals', Sarah Slocombe recounts a story of her hamster being 'wild' when it bit her grandmother, and had to be put down. Losing control of the class, Memphis breaks down, requiring his mother to regain order in the classroom. Memphis wants the pupils to get into the spirit of wild animals and gets the class to pretend to be wild animals, leading to more mayhem. The bell rings and the pupils leave, with Julia thanking Memphis for a 'most unusual' lesson - before startling him with a roar reminiscent of a big cat. Lester berates Memphis' 'teaching' and says that a gorilla could have done a better job, just as Guido peers into the lab through the shutters. Mrs Rocket goes to clear her head in the playground, only to encounter Guido and run back inside screaming - scaring Guido.

Speaking to himself in the mirror in his office, Memphis convinces himself to be more assertive, just as his mother runs in shouting about a gorilla in the playground. Memphis assumes the gorilla to be Harriet Hyde and advises his mother to have a lie down in the sanatorium, reassuring her that there is no gorilla. He promptly throws her out of his office and slams the door.

In the playground, the Blister Sisters physically threaten Julia as a result of her reciting Shelley during their class. Julia nervously points out a gorilla behind them, but the Blister Sisters think she is bluffing, only for Guido to appear and steal Julia's rucksack. Mrs Rocket walks into the playground trying to convince herself that there is no gorilla, only to see Guido again and run screaming inside, following closely by the terrified pupils. In Memphis' office, Lester tells Memphis that he wasn't criticising his teaching - only saying what he thought. Mrs Rocket bursts in, again shouting about the gorilla. Still not believing her, the pupils run in also screaming about a gorilla. Memphis decides that if Julia says there is a gorilla, it must be true - his mother calling this discrimination. Memphis demands to be taken to the gorilla, led on by the pupils and followed by Lester and his mother.

Outside, Guido appears again and steals Memphis' wig, before picking up Julia and carrying her offscreen. Memphis tells his mother to call 999 and Julia's parents, only to have his wig thrown back in his face. Guido climbs up the walls of the Rocket Academy with Julia clinging onto his back. Julia's parents Jerry and Moira arrive, believing they misheard when they were told Julia had been grabbed by a gorilla. Asking where Julia is, everyone points to the roof where Julia and Guido wait. Moira screams and faints.

Atop the roof, Guido beats his chest as Julia heads into a bell tower, changing into Harriet Hyde out of sight and dragging Guido inside. The onlookers wonder why the gorilla is now wearing clothes, with Mrs Rocket recognising Harriet. An officer from the zoo and two assistants arrive, with the officer planning to climb up to the roof on a ladder and throw Guido off into a blanket carried by his two assistants so he can be taken back to the zoo. Mr Rocket points out that it may be one of the pupils, with the zoo officer saying Memphis is hardly a looker himself.

The zoo officer ascends his ladder and calls out to Harriet, mistaking her for Guido. When Harriet speaks back to him, he is stunned and Harriet knocks him off the ladder and back to the ground. The assistants catch the zoo officer in the blanket as he claims the gorilla spoke to him - Lester pins this down to a concussion. Jerry begins climbing the ladder to rescue Julia, with Harriet terrified of him seeing her in her altered state. Heading inside the bell tower, Guido disappears through a hatch in the floor, spooked by Harriet. Hearing Jerry calling out to her, Harriet hits the bell in frustration causing it to ring. Harriet changes back into Julia and reappears on the balcony, helping her dad after his fear of heights takes hold. Inside the Rocket Academy, Mrs Smith mistakes the fleeing Guido for Memphis as he steals her banana - the realisation only setting in after Guido has left.

In the playground, everyone cheers Julia's bravery. The zoo officer receives a phone call from the zookeeper, informing him that Guido has returned to his cage seemingly terrified by something. As the zoo officer and his assistants leave, Lester doubts if there even was a gorilla, with Memphis thinking it to be Harriet Hyde. Julia assures them it was a gorilla, with Moira confirming her daughter would know the difference between a gorilla and Harriet. Julia says 'you can say that again', with everyone repeating Moira as the credits roll.

Cast

 * Julia Jekyll - Olivia Hallinan
 * Moira Jekyll (credited as 'Mum') - Victoria Williams
 * Jerry Jekyll (credited as 'Dad') - Bill Fellows
 * Memphis Rocket - Simon Green
 * Mrs Rocket - Ann Emery
 * Lester Blister - Robert Portal
 * Zoo Officer - Tim Stern
 * Zookeeper - Harry Gostelow
 * Guido the Gorilla - Matt Raynor
 * Nicola Blister - Tiffany Griffiths
 * Sharon Blister - Karen Salt
 * Roger - Anthony Tobias
 * Sarah Slocombe - Emma Barnett
 * Mrs Smith - Christine Lohr
 * Mr Slime - Philip Philmar
 * Harriet Hyde - John Asquith

Crew
Executives:


 * Director - Jim Eldridge
 * Writer - Jeremy Swan
 * Producer - Jeremy Swan
 * Executive Producer - Anna Home
 * Musical Director - Jonathan Cohen
 * Casting Directors:
 * Jane Deitch
 * Angela Grosvenor
 * Makeup Designer - Elaine Smith
 * Costume Designer - Rosemary Cheshire
 * Production Designer - George Kyriakides

General production staff:


 * Production Assistant - Lesley Taylor
 * Assistant Floor Manager - Michael Towner
 * Production Manager - Claire Gerschwiler
 * Studio Resource Manager - David Massen

General post-production staff:


 * Videotape Editor - Andy Quested
 * Vision Mixer - Carol Abbott

Script department:


 * Script Editor - Marilyn Fox

Camera and lighting department:


 * Camera Supervisor - Nigel Saunders
 * Lighting Director - Alan Jeffery

Art department:


 * Production Buyer - Sue Templar
 * Graphic Designer - Pete Wane
 * Art Director - Nick Harding

Special and visual effects:


 * Visual Effects Designer - Roger Turner
 * Video Effects - Dave Chapman

Sound:


 * Sound Effects - Keith Eldridge
 * Sound Supervisor - Richard Partridge

Trivia

 * This episode is the first in the series to use stock footage, showing sea lions in a zoo at the very start of the episode.
 * This is the first episode where Mrs Smith has a speaking role.