Neil Innes - Raggy Dolls (full studio version)

I do not own the song, but Neil Innes posted it for free in his website years ago, so I wanted to make sure it won't get lost, for all the raggy dolls out there. :)
I always related to this show as a child as I was sort of a raggy doll myself, and I still love the song to this day. Thank you for sharing your stories in the comments!
RIP Neil Innes 1944-2019
Lyrics:
It's not much of a life when you're just a pretty face
Just to be whoever you are is no disgrace
Don't be scared if you don't fit in
Look who's in the reject bin
It's the Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Dolls like you and me
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Made imperfectly
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Happy just to be
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Dolls like you and me
So if you got a bump on your nose
Or a lump on your toes, do not despair
Be like the Raggy Dolls
And say "I just don't care"
Cause Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Are happy just to be
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Dolls like you and me
Cause it's not much of a life when you're just a pretty face
Just to be whoever you are is no disgrace
Look around and you will find
People of every kind
Like the Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Dolls like you and me
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Made imperfectly
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Happy just to be
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Dolls like you and me
So if youre not at ease with your knobbly knees
And your fingers are all thumbs
Stand on your two left feet
And join our raggy doll chums
Cause Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Are happy just to be
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Dolls like you and me
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Dolls like you and me
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Made imperfectly
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Happy just to be
Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls
Dolls like you and me

[@rich_edwards79]

An anthem for all of us who never fitted in as kids. The nerds, the awkward people, the autistics (though few of us had a name for it back then), the boy who preferred reading to football or the girl who would rather kick a ball than talk about boys or makeup. The kids who were too tall or too fat or too ginger or had our own style, or whatever other stupid reasons the 'normies' concocted to mock us or leave us out. The ones who grew up going to rough schools in small towns where everyone thought the same, and dreamed of somewhere better where we could be ourselves. You are all my people and always will be ♥️

[@mikalilypops3259]

Definitely 👍 the world would be boring if we were all the same

[@eleanorhogan8643]

​@@mikalilypops3259Do you know, I go by that philosophy every day of my life, society is bad because society seems to have a problem with other people who are different. I say to them "I do not care what your opinion of me is"

[@jenniferbailey5218]

I fucking love this. ❤

[@ergleburgle8882]

Hugs from one real-life Raggy Doll to another. I didn't fit in at school so much that I was homeschooled from the age of nine. The eighties and early nineties did not value the individual as we do today - if you didn't fit in, the solution was to stop moaning about it and try EXTRA HARD to fit in. It didn't matter if you were happy, or fulfilled, or reaching your potential - only that you buttoned it and conformed. Your value was in your ability to stand in a line with your peers, not make trouble, and look like everybody else.

[@gftyhify]

@@ergleburgle8882I can relate

[@twilliamspro]

Sad to hear Neils gone off to the Reject Bin on the other side RIP Sir

[@stevocooldude]

This song is just enough to realise that people should appreciate you if you're different. May Neil Innes Rest In Peace.

[@harrydbastard]

We need more of this positivity today. Be happy youre different, screw the groups who try to divide people

[@kazer4]

We find each other 😘

[@appvalleavandaro]

Qiiqiqkskslslo

[@ghostlylover99123]

I remember the days of when this was popular, this "positivity" that people talk of today that "existed" then, didnt

[@leechilds3725]

Love this show ❤️ never realised neil wrote & sang this song.

[@matthewgrove-jones3001]

Been stuck in my head for 35 years...

[@TankEngine97]

This is one banger of a theme song. Neil Innes is such a great singer.

[@ThatCoalSoul]

* was * :( .

[@grimTales1]

RIP Neil Innes :(

[@KRPTV]

RIP Neil, just heard the sad news, loved this tune as a child.

[@matthewgrove-jones3001]

😞

[@tomhamilton5261]

Met him a couple of years back in North Wales at a Rutles gig. A gentleman and very gifted talented musician . Rest easy, Neil. Thanks for your music especially with the Rutles and the Bonzos!

[@danielhill7390]

I think 99% of Briton brought up in the 90s will hear this and say..."I used to watch this and loved it"

[@Andi090386]

Correct. I want to say it was on Children's BBC, which later became CBBC, but it could have been a programme on Children's ITV which became CITV.

[@danielhill7390]

Andi090386 definitely shown on CITV because I would turn off when Tots TV came on then switch back for How2 & Children's Ward

[@kazer4]

born 95 still have all the tapes ;) glad i grew up with this sort of stuff x

[@kirstentraynor4638]

Daniel Hill I did used to watch the raggy dolls it was one of my favourite shows growing up

[@ginevras]

I saw it as a child back in the 90s on the channel ABC Australia. I loved it.

[@SamanthaFontaine]

REST IN HEAVEN PEACEFULLY 😇 🙌🏾 Neil Innes 😢 He may be gone, but has left us all with a Raggy Doll Cool Theme tune 🎶 🎙 Lyrics to remember and live by - March 2021 CoronaVirus Lockdown has made us RE - EVALUATE OUR LIVES 🤷🏾‍♀️ Looking back to Childhood days and appreciating WHAT WAS OUR NORMAL. 👩🏾‍🎤 🇩🇲 🎙 DJ 🎙Soca Sam 🇬🇧 UK - Hackney..

[@CJT80]

RIP Neil - Will never forgot this song or the series 😔

[@hippiechik95]

I'm going to say it right out, I love the Raggy Dolls, even though I didn't grow up with them. Heck, I didn't know they existed until I was about thirteen, but I fell in love almost instantly, mostly for the characters, though in part because of this song. See, at thirteen, I developed very large, very stubborn pimples on my nose, and was bullied a lot for them. The Raggy Dolls taught me to stand up tall and walk away with an air of confidence, a lesson I keep to this day.

[@eleanorwilliams769]

Good for you! My twin brother and I had unsightly eczema. Ez (twin bro’s nickname) had it on his arms and on his abs, I had it around my neck for some reason. Once we turned sixteen, we became very attractive according to our school principal, he didn’t even recognize us.

[@1987welsh]

I've lived in the reject bin all my life, never did me no harm! :)

[@DoctorHver]

Personally I would like stay in the reject bin.

[@Revelation21-4-]

me too but at least I have Jesus and now a best friend at last

[@amycurtis4121]

Me too

[@bobstar76]

RIP Neil Innes 😢

[@_phoebe_.246]

I can’t tell you how much I loved the Raggy dolls as a kid, and what makes it even better is that we learned (watching them more than anything) at school and had to dress up as them a couple times never been so happy in my life back then. Also R.I.P Neil and thank you for making happiness and joy in others childhoods and making children know it’s okay to be different.

[@stepheng8779]

Great show, lovely memories, get the message without being preached at, they could make kids TV shows back in the day, no it's not my rose tinted specs. Rip Neil 😢

[@joolsner]

I used to love the Raggy Dolls intro as it really resonated with me. I was bullied at school, never felt I fitted in, didn't have any friends and had a bad squint, so I felt the song was giving me advice and reassuring me that it was ok not to fit in.

[@MajorT0m]

All the best people are outcasts my friend 🖤

[@emilianozapata175]

Know you're loved.

[@Andi090386]

Until now I've never heard the full version of this tune. Brings back so many memories of watching Raggy Dolls on Children's TV back in the 1990's. Children of today need to hear this song, as it teaches them about self esteem & that everyone is different. So if you look different to others, then it doesn't matter. It's what's underneath that counts. Many thanks for posting this.

[@matthewgrove-jones3001]

Were you in TISM?

[@MrRickster83]

@@matthewgrove-jones3001 do you not mean TLOG (he looks like that weird clown thing in League of Gentlemen)

[@matthewgrove-jones3001]

@@MrRickster83 I take my hat off to you Sir.

[@davejohnson3474]

@@MrRickster83 Papa Lazarou - your my wife nooow

[@RtardD2]

He can DO THINGS to you….

[@daniellenewman7547]

I love the Raggy Dolls I used to watch this show when I was little with my sister who died and I miss her so much 💕❤😊

[@ummarah2000]

So sorry for your loss. Hope listening to this brings on happy memories

[@RustyShackleford101]

I sincerely believe if children today had a positive role model for "imperfections" like The Raggy Dolls, there would be less anorexia, less bullying and less anxiety among teenagers.

[@JonatanGronoset]

I agree, I think I was shaped by this show as a kid. Couldn't care less what the world thinks about me now.

[@RustyShackleford101]

But that was the beauty of The Raggy Dolls. They taught kids that they might not be perfect but that's okay because their imperfections made them unique

[@APH1991]

Very much happy being a Raggy Doll Andy.

[@daniellenewman7547]

I agree with you and I love the Raggy Dolls my favourite one is Sack Sack

[@jamsee1]

Glad i was a small kid in the eighties as this was the first tv show i remember watching as an infant in the late eighties/early nineties & loved it. Think of all those kids born today who missed brilliant Childrens TV like shows like this around at that time. Those times were priceless to many children growing up then.

[@hillarymubvinzi3110]

These shows made much more sense than what kids now have to see, Ben 10 Max Steel and all the zombies and aliens movies.

[@ThunderCrackers1985]

Whoever gave this a thumbs down had no childhood

[@robg5161]

Mike H maybe their thumbs were put on upside down.

[@haleyjones2204]

Ikr

[@Grantofglyn]

Their fingers were all thumbs so even if gave a thumbs up it was still a thumbs down

[@APH1991]

Whoever gave this a thumbs down is part of the production line of sameness.

[@chrisclarke3965]

Thank you Neil (bless his Soul) for this lesson.

[@Scripture-Man]

Very strong Beatles influence on this version. No surprise then to learn that Mr Innes was in a Beatles tribute band!

[@tonycaniggia]

The Rutles is bit more than just a tribute

[@dennisporter-avis7576]

R.I.P The great Neil Innes

[@thereseljunggren5746]

Beautiful raggy dolls thank you 🌹💋❤

[@ginevras]

Rest in Peace Neil Innes ;-(

[@WANNABENICKO]

This was an excellent kids show and was the first time I became aware of the genius that is Neil Innes! I'm happy to say I'm seeing him live in Birmingham next month! BTW it's about time The Raggy Dolls was released on DVD!!!!!

[@JamesScouseGames]

Basically about being different is not a bad thing coz each individual is unique any one agree ?

[@grill-chan6383]

james blakemore a agreed

[@eleanorwilliams769]

lifes little mysteries wholeheartedly my dear.

[@twilliamspro]

Such a good idea for kids just because you are different doesnt make you any less of a person

[@kawaiigirl6284]

One night me and my mum sat down stairs and she put on KZbin and showed me all the cartoons she used to watch, and this was my favourite one that she showed me because of the theme song x

[@ThereseLjunggren-nc5pw]

Beautiful Raggy dolls Thank you 💋❤️

[@frankbrown4780]

Best message from any cartoon ever!...........................although there was the one that said "don't eat paint." That was also good advice.

[@thereseljunggren2878]

I love raggy dolls my favorite❤👄💋

[@WardyLion]

This song speaks to me on several levels. One - it was a very popular theme song from my childhood. Two - I was always the odd one out. I was / am eccentric, out-there, different (the horror!), nerdy, geeky and not "normal". Back then it was supposed to be something I was ashamed of, now I wear that badge with pride! I am a fucking Raggy-Doll and proud!

[@joolsner]

Same here mate. I used to love the Raggy Dolls intro as it really resonated with me. I was bullied at school, never felt I fitted in, didn't have any friends and had a bad squint, so I felt the song was giving me advice and reassuring me that it was ok not to fit in.

[@WardyLion]

joolsner I hope things are going better for you now.

[@joolsner]

Thanks Lion Man, it's going great. I am a therapist now, one of the things I do is help people to feel comfortable in their own skin.

[@WardyLion]

joolsner Excellent!

[@joolsner]

Thanks dude.

[@seangannon1919]

This was the British children's show which was introduced to American audiences in 1988. A year later, it came out on VHS by Golden Book Video, despite the British accent still remaining. It is hard a believe, but all nine complete seasons might be available on US DVD today.

[@GregTheLion]

I had this on VHS and it was so pink and pretty XD

[@EllaEgerton2010]

It’s the Raggy dolls!! 😁

[@andreworourke]

For me this song and this show reminds me of a good simple time 😊. It reminds me of my dad and the good times as a child. That's all that's important to me.

[@noblesiner]

I didn't see this show as a child, but i heard this song played in a cartoon midley and decided to come here and listen to the original, and I must say I like it.

[@ismayb754]

This isn't actually the original, this is very different to the version used on the actual show.

[@miriam-aurora]

Awesome series in every way. We watched it in Norway too. I love the theme song, and I also want to give a shoutout to Steve Smallman who drew the pictures.

[@Irene-lf4fr]

Woke up this morning with this song in my head i had to come listen to it🤣

[@thecarolinianrailfan8339]

This is really my type of jazz.

[@SteamLance]

If you didn't know, Neil Innes was also part of the Beatles parody band, "The Rutles".

[@stevenhibbert5565]

This sounds like the beatles

[@UKGareth316]

that warm fuzzy feeling when you realize this is your childhood and you loved it and all the differences there was.

[@thereseljunggren9360]

Wow music is so cute💗

[@David315842]

A very rare find indeed. Thanks for uploading this. :)

[@davecarty9055]

Ha ha oh wow never thought I’d hear this again…..I was born 84! This has not made my day it’s made my life 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

[@markhartshorn3476]

I remember watching this when i was younger and i can relate been the odd one out

[@benthejrporter]

I feel embarrassed and I don't usually watch kid's programmes, but this is such a good song.

[@seanh8888]

The message of this song is well ahead of its time, loved it back then and love it even more now

[@aptheplotagonandpuppetpals6424]

I forgot about this show from about mid 2018 till now.

[@pumpkinorange]

I loved this show as a child so much :')

[@adamofgrayskull7735]

Been listening to this for years on your ch ....sorry I never said..THANK YOU

[@JamesScouseGames]

The songs about everyone being the same no matter how you look what colour or race you are

[@JamesScouseGames]

Even disability too

[@cryptosguns]

Such a beautiful period of animations back then - The underlying messages were always so pure

[@goingnowherefast1834]

yes, i have aspergers and although i dont really like it, it doesnt make me less of a person

[@scottsevven8136]

Ive just discovered this today. I was brought here by a man who made a video "28 cartoon themes in 7 minutes" and it was impressive. He sang this theme in swedish i believe. So i thought " ive never heard it but its catchy." I had no idea that this would be something thats very deep and meaningful to my life. Im the raggy doll of my school pretty much. So are some of my friends :)

[@pumpkinorange]

Loved this as a little girl :) I'm 18 now x

[@TheCindyh89]

My all time fave kids show, it's such a shame it's no longer shown! Thankyou for posting. A lovely trip down memory lane

[@emperorpalpatine783]

Brings back memories i grew up watching them

[@tojoluna]

I love this show but the song is better! Thanks

[@ummarah2000]

Ah memories of my childhood. Good days man

[@lratcliffe9151]

a great theme, jolly but with very serious overtones, i think its a great way to say to people, it doesn't matter what you look like, you are as important as the next person!, this is true and i admire that

[@pinkdiamond1847]

I've never seen or heard of this show before but I really relate to this song

[@Sportymale]

Sadsack and Back to Front were the best and most remembered. The 80's were awesome to grow up in.

[@Nikik1986]

loved the raggy dolls when i was a kid

[@devinpaul9026]

This song deserved a much more exciting show, not gonna lie.

[@BggProductions]

Oh wow, I loved this as a child. Never knew it was Neil Innes!

[@MrLinus20]

RIP Neil Innes

[@gwc289]

Strange, I never was much of a fan of the programme, didn’t really watch it (granted I had nothing against it either) but I’ve always remembered the theme song crystal clear- and it’s ace!

[@roisinbryson5845]

Love it x

[@kavp16]

RIP Neil

[@Fairyqueen2857]

R.I.P Neil Innes. 😢

[@swanseasasda]

R.I.P. Neil Innes :(

[@Showsni]

So, each of the dolls has something wrong with them, or a disability, meaning they were put into the reject bin. Princess is dressed in rags. Back-to-Front has his head on backwards. Hi-fi is a talking doll with a st-st-stutter. Lucy falls apart. Dotty is covered in splotches of permanent paint. Sad Sack has too much stuffing, making him lumpy. And Claude... is French.

[@coolcattigger]

Showsni technically, claude isn’t a reject - he fell out of the packing boxes that were being shipped to France

[@hiyo1234]

bit cheesy but I always come back to listen to this when I'm feeling down - it's about time I said thanks for the upload! it's much appreciated.

[@MayaMishi]

Any time! The real credit goes to Neil though. I come back to it a lot too, it always makes me feel better.

[@callum110597]

Wasn't really familiar with the show, but what a fascinating theme song.

[@azzaassaf131]

My sister likes that tv show

[@DoctorHver]

Basiclly: Say no to fashion and fashion trends and group pressure and be who you are :)

[@richardmadden8742]

Never heard of the Raggy Dolls until The Academic Agent did a vid and started off with this soundtrack. Grew up in the 90s so maybe this is an 80s programme.

[@danielsellers8707]

Yes it is from the 80s.

[@rosierennie5867]

My Mum knitted me the teddies of the raggy dolls and my Dad made the reject bin for me for one of my Christmases. I tried to sleep in it like it was a crib, I broke it so many times as well Gosh do I miss the nineties

[@doctorwho3445]

Could get aired again was a fantastic cartoon

[@charlieajanga5311]

NOSTALGIC

[@zepareace]

Is this Neil Innes as in of bonzo dog doo dah band fame? As if! I never knew!

[@GavinWoods]

The one and only!

[@MsBananasmel]

RIP :(

[@clareclark6535]

I loved this. I'm definitely in the reject bin x

[@Angelika226]

loved it :)

[@Revelation21-4-]

I was a raggy doll back at school in the 80s

[@WardyLion]

As a misfit who never fit in, this song is very special to me.

[@Schwillz]

A simpler time. No internet, no mobile phones, no xbox games consoles. I almost feel bad for modern children.

[@thephysicwerewolf2338]

Yea a simpler time, a time when everyone (including children through blood transfusions) where contracting aids and everyone was running around like skittish mice out of fear that the Russians and the US would engage in nuclear war. A simpler time when we were oblivious to things such as genocide and dictatorship going on in other parts of the world. All generations suck, and the cartoons you grew up with doesn't make your generation any better than the others.

[@fabulousmuffin9186]

+SCWillz Eh don't be, they're just fine, and have a lot more opportunities to educate themselves. There going to be more opened-minded then us, and that's great.

[@RWBn00b]

+SCWillz "Oh no, we have more options to have fun" Said noone intelligent ever. Everything you could do then you can still do, but now you have more alternatives. I feel more sorry for the people who grew up then. :P

[@gentarofourze]

Bösil And its because you have so much you diont appreciate the little things, you get kids wanting a ipad as they want the best, they wont read a book as it can be done on a tablet and you get kids being less and less involved with the world. Its like saying I only had 4 tv channels till I was around 14 (and living room had about 10 cable channels on top) did I think "oh no I need hundreds of channels" nope in fact once Digital came out I was bored because instead of 5-20 good channels everything was spread out and if you did see something you liked often 2 things conflicted with each other.

[@beingsshepherd]

'Everything you could do then you can still do, ..' Except concentrate.

[@MrDeadlander]

I know a real raggy doll.she is one of a kind

[@MegaTaylor12345]

oh my god this is going too be in my head for the rest of the day now lol

[@TommyLellan]

If this had been around 20 years earlier and The Beatles owned it, it would have been a huge hit. Crap, what's happened to music, seriously? I'd rather listen to this than Anaconda...

[@savedbyjesusblood]

Yes. It really does sound Beatlesque doesn't it?

[@grimTales1]

Sounds like Strawberry Fields at the beginning, imo.

[@Pur9leRain]

The writer of the song used to parody The Beatle so that might explain it

[@miaschu8175]

It's Neil Innes, what would you expect? 😃

[@mrsunshine6936]

Tommy Lellan Sounds a bit that Maxwell’s Silver Hammer, which certainly isn’t one of the Beatles’s better songs. Of course Neil Innes was in The Rutles, a Beatles’s parody group.

[@kigr91]

this is now on dvd

[@astroblemeRC]

Warm memories ☺️

[@haleyjones2204]

Oml, i miss these cartoons

[@bletheringfool]

This is a Children's ITV classic. Never heard this version of the song though. Nice one.

[@1983noddy]

Ahhhh the memories!!