In this excerpt from Skippy: Australia's First Superstar (Stephen Oliver, Australia-UK, 2009), Lee Robinson, producer and creator of Skippy, discusses the key ingredients of the show in an interview from 1999.

He was firm on several points: Skippy is not a pet; the police are always our friends; mateship is more important than authority; and Sonny has total freedom in the bush.

The sincerity and authority with which Robinson communicates these rules suggests a key reason for Skippy's success – its consistency and simplicity of concept.

The use of clips from the show to illustrate how these rules were put into practice supports Robinson's firm opinion as to their importance.

Notes by Stephen Groenewegen and Adam Blackshaw