Téléchat

Téléchat
Created by
Country of origin
  • France
  • Belgium
Original languageFrench
No. of episodes234
Production
ProducerÉric Van Beuren[1][2][3]
Running time5 minutes
Original release
NetworkRTBF1
Antenne 2
Release1983 (1983) –
1986 (1986)

Téléchat is a Franco-Belgian French-language children's television series created by Roland Topor and Henri Xhonneux. The series aired on France 2 as a segment of Récré A2,[4] and ran for 234 episodes between 1983 and 1986. A satire of news broadcasting, the series centers around a TV news program presented by two anthropomorphic puppets—Groucha, a cat, and Lola, an ostrich. Many objects in their studio are also anthropomorphic and have the ability to talk.[5][6][7] The series was later rebroadcast on France 5 in the 1990s, and on Arte in the 2010s.[6] In Belgium, the series premiered first on RTBF1's Lollipop strand, on 19 September 1983.[8] It also received an English dub under the name of Telecat which aired on TCC in the United Kingdom. Téléchat has received many awards.[9]

References

  1. ^ "Eric Van Beuren, de Téléchat à l'écriture, une mémoire vivante du cinéma belge". cinergie.be (in French). Retrieved 26 January 2026.
  2. ^ "Eric Van Beuren". afds.tv (in French). 14 June 2005. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. En 1981, Eric Van Beuren obtient un accord de production [..] pour créer les 3 saisons de la série Téléchat
  3. ^ "Téléchat, le livre d'Éric Van Beuren, réalisé avec la collaboration de Laure Boyer et avec une introduction de Philippe Vandel". cinergie.be (in French). 15 November 2017. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
  4. ^ Chabert, Chrystel (30 December 2019). "Roland Topor, dessinateur génial et créateur de Téléchat au Musée de l'illustration jeunesse de Moulins". France Info (in French). Retrieved 3 November 2023.
  5. ^ 國際偶戲學術研討會論文集 [International Puppet Theatre Conference Proceedings]. 雲林縣立文化中心. 1999. p. 277. ISBN 957-02-4287-6.
  6. ^ a b Gonzalez, Romain (30 April 2014). "Téléchat est – toujours – l'émission la plus étrange de l'histoire de la télévision" [Téléchat is – still – the strangest show in the history of television]. Vice. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
  7. ^ Bindé, Joséphine (3 April 2017). "De "Hara-Kiri" à "Téléchat", le dessinateur Roland Topor est un génie de l'humour noir". Télérama (in French). Retrieved 3 November 2023.
  8. ^ Raymond Marcillac, Chronique de la Télévision, Éditions Chronique, ISBN 2-905969-76-8 p. 219
  9. ^ "Roland Topor". lambiek.net. Retrieved January 15, 2025.