Puddocky
The following traditional fairy tale has an important role to play in our Little Birds workshops, which guide children's process of creative play into generating great stories that others will enjoy and understand. For more information on Little Birds, click here.
Note for teachers: click here for some lesson ideas to go with this story.
Click here for a printable format of this story
Telling Tips:
- Look out for the refrain in this story, which we have marked in blue. Try making sure that you always use the same words, but your actions get bigger and bigger each time.
- The words you use for the rest of the story don't need to be exactly what is written here. Chip usually tells the story with much more dialogue - and with saucepans on his head!
- Why not ask your audience, "What do you think Puddocky said?" after every time the prince says, "I don't know what to do." That way you should give them a surprise for the third time round!
- Ask your audience if they like broccoli, then remark how all the most beautiful people in the room have just put their hand up! That will explain why the girl in this story is so gorgeous...
- Have fun with character voices! You've got some very traditional characters in here - wicked witch, boasting princes, young prince, wise king, beautiful girl... Any early Disney film, or pantomime, should give you inspiration.
Once upon a time there was a very unusual little girl. This girl, I'm sure you'll agree, was very strange, because her favourite food was broccoli! But it must have done her lots of good, because she was also extremely beautiful. She had long, black hair and large, dark eyes, china-white pale skin and rose-red lips.
Now this little girl lived with her mother, and they didn’t have very much money. The more the girl grew, the more broccoli she wanted to eat. Her mother, though she wanted to give the girl everything, couldn't always afford it. One night, the girl's mother was looking out of her window at the neighbour's garden when she noticed lots of broccoli growing there. You can guess what she did, can't you? That's right – she crept in to steal a bit.
This was not as easy as she hoped. Just as the mother reached out for the broccoli, a hand grabbed her arm. Her next-door neighbour had caught her in the act!
To the mother's surprise, though, the old woman wasn't cross. She only suggested that the girl might be allowed to live with her, and then she could have all the broccoli she liked. Relieved to have got off so lightly, the mother agreed.
So the beautiful girl went to live with the old lady, and grew into a beautiful young woman. One day, three princes came riding by the old lady's house. They caught sight of the beautiful woman brushing her long, shiny black hair and all three of them fell in love straight away. Each one declared he would marry the beautiful woman - it was clear they were going to have to fight for her! So they started a big sword fight, right there outside the window.
When the old lady heard all the commotion, she blamed it on her young guest. Taking hold of the girl by her hair, she snarled, "I can tell you're going to be nothing but trouble for as long as you look this beautiful! I wish you to have an ugly face that no-one will ever want to see, and I wish you to be sitting by a far-off road in a dark and dreary place so no-one has to see it!"
At once, the girl vanished, and the old witch shooed the princes away and hobbled back about her business.
The three princes, since they couldn't see the beautiful woman any more, stopped fighting and went back home together. Their father the king called them into his throne room and said, "My sons, I am getting too old to be king, and I'd like to give one of you my crown. But I love you all equally, and I can't decide which one to give it to. I want the best and cleverest of you to rule the country, so I am going to set you three tasks. The son that can complete all three will be the next king."
The princes were satisfied with that, and waited to hear what the first task would be. "Bring me", ordered the king, "a hundred yards of cloth so fine that it will all pass through the middle of my gold ring".
So the princes set off to see what they could do. At first they travelled together, but it wasn't much fun because the two older ones were boasting to each other about what they would do when they were king. Eventually, they came to a crossroads and saw three possible ways to go. The first two were broad and sunny, but the last one looked dark and lonely. At once, the two older brothers were squabbling over the two broad, sunny roads, so the youngest prince, knowing he was no match for them, turned away sadly and walked down the dark, lonely road.
The two older princes went straight to towns and cities and loaded up their carriages with the finest cloth money could buy. But the youngest prince wandered for days without meeting so much as a bird on his road. At last, worn out and very depressed, he sat down by the side of the road and cried. Suddenly, he noticed that a small green toad had crawled out of the long grass and was sitting beside him. The toad asked him, "Why are you crying, young prince?"
The youngest prince replied, "Oh Puddocky, Puddocky, I need to find a hundred yards of cloth fine enough to pass through my father's ring, or I'll never be king! But my two brothers took the roads to the cities, and I don't know what to do."
"I’ll help you," said Puddocky, and hopped into the grass. After a few seconds the toad returned with a little bit of cloth no longer than the youngest prince's thumb. "Give that to the king, and he will be pleased," it said.
Well, the youngest prince could see that the cloth was nothing like a hundred yards long, but the kindly toad was the only person or animal he'd met on his journey, and he didn't want to hurts its feelings. He took the little bit of cloth, thanked Puddocky, and set off home feeling very disappointed that he wouldn't be king.
But here's a strange thing. As he walked back towards the palace, that little bit of cloth grew and grew, and by the time he went in through the gate, it was exactly a hundred yards long. The two older princes brought examples of the finest cloth they could find, but all of them got stuck in the king's gold ring. When the youngest prince stepped forward with his one piece of cloth, they laughed at him. But it pulled all the way through the middle of the gold ring and measured one hundred yards. The king was pleased.
"Well done, my youngest son!" he said. "Now, all of you, for the second task, I want you to bring me a tiny dog so small that it could fit inside a walnut shell."
So the princes set off to see what they could do. When they got to the crossroads, the two oldest brothers agreed to swap this time, and each went the way the other had taken previously. This left the youngest prince with the dark, lonely path again, but his brothers wouldn't listen to his arguments, so he turned away sadly and walked down the dark, lonely road.
The two older princes went straight to towns and cities and loaded up their carriages with the smallest dogs money could buy. But the youngest prince once again met no-one on the road, and eventually he sat down and started to cry. It wasn't long before he heard a 'plop!' and Puddocky appeared beside him. The toad asked him, "Why are you crying, young prince?"
The youngest prince replied, "Oh Puddocky, Puddocky, I need to find a dog small enough to fit inside a walnut shell, or I'll never be king! But my two brothers took the roads to the cities, and I don't know what to do."
"I’ll help you," said Puddocky, and hopped into the grass. After a few seconds the toad returned with a hazelnut. "Give that to the king," it said, "and tell him to open it very carefully."
Well, the youngest prince could see that the nut was just a hazelnut, but the kindly toad was the only person or animal he'd met on his journey, and he didn't want to hurts its feelings. He took the hazelnut, thanked Puddocky and set off home feeling very disappointed that he wouldn't be king.
But here's a strange thing. As he walked back towards the palace, the hazelnut in his pocket sometimes felt as if it was wriggling, and by the time he was ready to hand it to the king, it nearly jumped off his hands. The two older princes had brought back dogs of many tiny breeds, but the smallest of them wasn't anything like small enough to fit inside a teacup, let alone a walnut. When the youngest prince handed over his nut and told the king to open it carefully, they laughed at him. But as the nut opened, a teeny tiny dog crawled out and started walking up the king's arm. The king was pleased.
"Well done, my youngest son!" he said. "Now, all of you, for the third task, I want you to bring back a wife. The prince with the most beautiful wife will be the next king!"
So the princes set off to see what they could do. The two oldest princes were feeling very happy about this task, as they had already met several beautiful women on their travels, and they wouldn't hear of the youngest prince coming with them to the cities. So the youngest prince turned away sadly and walked down the dark, lonely road.
He was certain that even Puddocky couldn't help him this time. He didn't even bother going very far down the road - he knew he wasn't going to meet anyone, and he had certainly not seen any beautiful women there before. He sat down and cried. Before long there was a ‘plop!’ and Puddocky arrived to sit by his side. The toad asked him, "Why are you crying, young prince?"
The youngest prince replied, "Oh Puddocky, Puddocky, I need to find a beautiful wife, or I'll never be king! But my two brothers took the roads to the cities, and I don't know what to do."
"I'll be your wife," said Puddocky.
"I beg your pardon?" replied the youngest prince.
"I said, I'll be your wife," croaked the toad. "You owe it to me after all I've done to help you. Just give me a moment to fetch my carriage."
The youngest prince sat by the roadside baffled, and after a little while a tiny carriage appeared, pulled by six rats with a frog driving them. Puddocky leaned out of the window and blew the prince a kiss with one webbed foot. "See you at the palace!" she called.
The prince didn't see anything else he could do other than set off home to be laughed at, very disappointed that he wouldn't be king.
But here's a strange thing. As he walked back towards the palace, the carriage in the distance ahead of him grew and grew, and when he reached the gates of the palace he found it waiting for him, all gleaming with gold and silver, and the frog who had been driving was now a man wearing a top hat and a tailcoat. The youngest prince opened the door, and sitting inside the carriage he saw...
Well, who do you think he saw?
He saw Puddocky – who now looked just like the beautiful girl with long, shiny black hair who his brothers had fought over.
The two older brothers came home with their new wives, but neither was as beautiful as Puddocky. The youngest prince married her straight away, and before long he and Puddocky were the new king and queen. The two older princes settled down with their new wives, and as far as I know they’re all still living happily ever after.