One of my fondest childhood memories is the safety campaign “Charley Says” so I was really excited to learn that Electrical Safety First is to revive the nation’s favourite safety characters and reduce electrical accidents in the home.
Charley Says, the nation’s favourite safety film, has been brought back to life by Electrical Safety First with the help of comedian David Walliams. Through a series of new adventures and near misses Charley the cat and his hapless young owner will teach the need for electrical safety in the home by highlighting what not to do.
The original Charley Says films, which were created by the government’s Central Office for Information and broadcast in the 1970s and 80s, warned children about everyday safety issues such as not going off with strangers or playing with matches. Electrical Safety First is using the nostalgia of the original films to draw attention to electrical safety in a fun and memorable way.
Every year 350,000 people are injured by the everyday use of electricity, and so just as Kenny Everett meowed safety messages as the cat in the original films, David Walliams is on board to warn adults what Charley says about staying electrically safe in the home.
The first video, which was released in May, is set in the kitchen and sees Charley preventing the young boy from plugging in a toaster to an already overloaded plug socket. Charley burns his paw in the process and runs around the kitchen before extinguishing the flames in a vase of water. In keeping with the tone of the original films, he is awarded a fish for his savvy behaviour.
This storyline was chosen by Electrical Safety First as many people are unaware of the dangers of overloading sockets. High voltage appliances such as dishwashers and washing machines draw a lot of power and can cause sockets to overheat, which can lead to appliances not working or can even start a devastating house fire. Yet nearly half of adults admit they are not confident which combinations of appliances are safe to plug in at one time, and a further tenth have noticed scorch marks or even sparks emitting from an overloaded socket before and just like Charley, thousands of people have even received a burn from an overloaded socket before.
Emma Apter from Electrical Safety First said: “Many of us fondly remember Charley Says from our childhood and so we wanted to use these beloved safety characters to raise awareness of an issue that is often overlooked whilst still doing the videos justice. Many people will be surprised by just how dangerous overloading sockets can be, so we hope this inspires people to change their behaviour.
“We wanted to faithfully recreate the look and feel of the original episodes and so worked closely with animators to re-master footage and add in new scenes. We are thrilled to be working with David to bring Charley Says back to life and hope that anyone who remembers the films from their childhood will want to watch and share our new videos.”
David Walliams said: “I loved Charley Says when growing up and I think it’s great that Electrical Safety First is bringing the characters back to life and creating some new storylines. We’ve all had a go at mimicking Charley the cat’s ‘meow’, so I just hope my version is up to scratch and will help people stay safe in the home.”
The first Charley Says video can be viewed at www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/CharleySays, where you can also use a Socket Overload Calculator to understand which combinations of appliances are safe to use at one time.
As further research from the charity suggests that our tendency to overload sockets is partly because our houses are not designed to accommodate the number of electrical devices we use on a daily basis, Electrical Safety First’s website also includes information on how to find a registered electrician who can install additional plug sockets safely.