THE TV SHOW THAT I WATCHED AS A KID
What TV shows did you watch as a kid?
The Village Headmaster (later renamed The New Village Headmaster) is a Nigerian television series created by Olusegun Olushola and produced by Dejumo Lewis. It was originally a radio drama series and was Nigeria’s longest-running television soap opera shown on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) from 1968 to 1988, and starred Ted Muroko as the original headmaster. The series was developed by the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) and is undoubtedly one of the early successes of television drama in the country before the advent of the highly successful and vibrant Nollywood film industry in Nigeria. The Village Headmaster was set in the fictitious Yoruba village of Oja, with plot lines dealing with social problems and the effects of government policies in Oja. The television series was produced after Nigeria gained independence and was the first major television drama with an ensemble cast from different ethnic groups. Nigerian Pidgin (patois) was mixed with standard English and Yoruba language as the Oja residents’ language of choice, with most scenes occurring in the Oloja of Oja’s palace, the headmaster’s school, and Amebo’s palm wine bar. The cast was Ted Mukoro as Headmaster, an old-school headmaster, Justus Esiri as second headmaster, Dejumo Lewis as Kabiyesi, the king of Oja Village, Elsie Olushola as Headmaster’s wife played by Clara Fagade, Albert Egbe as Lawyer Odunuga, Ibukun Allison as Amebo, the village gossip, Jab Adu as Bassey Okon, village grocery store owner, Funsho Adeola as Senior Chief, Joe Layode as Teacher Garuda, Albert Kosemasi as Gorimapa and lastly, Charles Awurum.
The Village Headmaster is responsible for coining several terms now part of Nigerian culture. “Amebo” is used to refer to rumormongers; in 2019, actress Ibidun Allison appeared as her Village Headmaster character role, Amebo in an advertising campaign for telecommunications company Globacom. The term “Gorimapa“, after Kabiyesi’s servant, is a common nickname for clean-shaven men, and “Okoro” is used to describing the typical Igbo tribesman. Those were the days when life was simple and everyone was their brother’s keeper. Life was good. Still good and better.
