Tragic truth behind the iconic Come Outside dog Pippin

BBC's Come Outside was a big part of our childhood and reruns would be watched for hours on end at the weekend.

The educational TV series for kids - which aired from 23 September 1993 to 18 March 1997 - featured Lynda Baron as Auntie Mabel alongside her dog 'Pippin'.

Watch below if you want a nostalgic blast from the past:

The premise for each episode is that the children would learn about familiar items, such as wood, paper, boots, spiders, buses, soap and lampposts.

Auntie Mabel and Pippin would would teach the various topics and travel on an unusual mode of transport - a small aeroplane with multi-coloured polka dots.

It sounds crazy now, but somehow made perfect sense when we were younger.

BBC

Aside from the invaluable education that our little minds were given (like how blackcurrant juice is made), we became fixated on the four-legged star of the show.

Pippin was Auntie Mabel's canine companion on the show. She was a mixed-breed - half Tibetan Terrier and half Bearded Collie - and came from a rather talented family indeed.

But what people have never realised is that Pippin the pooch changed after the first series aired in 1993.

This is because she was a pretty old dog so she would perform the slower and complex moves while her biological grandson, Mr Higgins, would take all of the physically demanding work.

Sounds like a dream, right?

BBC

At the end of the first series, Mr Higgins took over Pippin's role entirely instead of keep changing the dogs and he continued to play his part for the following two seasons.

Tragically the original Pippin, who was owned and trained by award-winning animal trainer Ann Head, passed away in the late '90s.

After she died, grandson Mr Higgins went on to star as the Bakers dog for Bakers Complete pet food adverts and, according to the Liverpool Echo, he's still pictured to this day. He sadly passed in 2008.

Safe to say, despite episode repeats stopping nearly a decade ago, people still remember Pippin and talk about her on social media.

Taking to X, one person wrote: "Pippin was the best dog ever! Except for my dog pippin because she was super dog. Come Outsidewas the the GOAT of children's TV."

Another added: "I've never gotten over wanting a dog like pippin from Come Outside."

Someone else, who realised just what the BBC were doing switching the dogs, commented: "Pippin didn't even play Pippin in Come Outside, my life is a lie #whoisMrHiggins".