While waiting for their new home to be renovated, Nellie and her younger brother George are sent to a farm in the countryside, much to George's delight and Nellie's disgust. However, the farmhouse and the surrounding area are teeming with fey creatures. The first the two children encounter is a somewhat crotchety and unfriendly hobgoblin named Broom, who is (more or less) secretly looking after the farm.
Acting
Tony Robinson's grumpy hobgoblin steals every scene.
Production
Charming hand-drawn animation from a forgotten golden age.
Writing
Surprisingly sharp sibling banter elevates the simple plot.
Director
Gary Hurst
Tony Robinson
Broom (voice)
Dougray Scott
The Fairy Prince (voice)
Kate Winslet
Brigid (voice)
John Sessions
Chudley (voice)
Jeremy Irons
The Shapeshifter (voice)
Elizabeth Heery
Princess Brigid (voice)
Charlotte Coleman
Merrivale (voice)
June Whitfield
Mrs Coombs (voice)
Jane Horrocks
Huccaby
Jane Horrocks
Huccaby (voice)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was one of Kate Winslet's earliest voice roles, recorded during her Heavenly Creatures era.
The film adapts Alison Uttley's 1954 novel 'A Traveller in Time,' reflecting a specifically English pastoral nostalgia that was already vanishing in the '90s.
US
GB
