Balamory's Miss Hoolie is unrecognisable as she returns to TV

16 January 2023, 16:50

By Alice Dear

@According2Al

Julie Wilson Nimmo played Miss Hoolie in CBeebies' hit kids show Balamory.

Julie Wilson Nimmo, who played school teacher Miss Hoolie on Balamory, looks unrecognisable as she makes her long-awaited return to television 20 years later.

The actress, 51, will be returning to kids' TV alongside her partner, Greg Hemphill, in a new BBC series titled Olga da Polga.

Julie and Greg will play Mr and Mrs Sawdust in the new series, which is based on Michael Bond's children's books, The Tales of Olga Da Polga.

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In pictures from the new series, Julie looks worlds away from her previous role of Miss Hoolie, who sported an iconic short bob.

Balamory first aired back in 2002 and ran for 253 episodes before ending in 2005.

The show became an instant hit with kids and families, and still remains an iconic classic to this day.

Last year, Julie appeared on This Morning alongside her former co-star Andrew Angew, who played PC Plum on the hit series.

While on This Morning, Julie said about Balamory: "We were one of the first shows on Cbeebies channel, which wasn't even a thing at the time.

"We just loved the script and we were just so excited. It sounds really cheesy but we all just fell in love with each other and all just got on like a house on fire."

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Talking about why the show worked so well, Andrew said on This Morning: "We as characters always got there slightly after the kids, the idea was that the kids would work out what was happening before we did."

They also spoke about the diversity and inclusivity of the show, with Julie explaining: "Brian Jameson, who created the show, it was never really discussed, that was what was happening, and it was like this is an inclusive show for everybody."

She added: "What was brilliant is that the kids just went along with it, they never questioned any of it."

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