A cartoon character in a UK cartoon called, unsurprisingly, Bananaman. Not as pornographic as the name would suggest I assure you.

The cartoon tells the story of a boy called Eric - a runty little sod who lives at 25 Acacia Road. When he eats a banana he becomes......... Bananaman. He then becomes about 7ft tall and rather well built. He can fly and stuff too. The theme tune is particularly amusing.

The programme also features the voice of Bill Oddie as the crow - Bananaman's sidekick.

That theme in full: "This is 29 Acacia Road. And this is Eric, a schoolboy who leads an amazing double life. For when Eric eats a banana, an amazing transformation occurs! Eric is Bananaman! Ever-alert for the call to action." (cue morse code...)

The joke with Bananaman was that he was dense. Very, very stupid, and somewhat cowardly, but, happily, immortal. He won through by just being incredibly thick-skinned, and by having a pet crow of markedly greater intelligence. Compare and contrast with other animated superhero piss-takes, such as Inspector Gadget, Batfink and, of course, Cosgrove Hall animated-housemate Dangermouse.

The vocal talents used on the show also included Graeme Garden and Tim Brook-Taylor, which marks this series as the only work that the trio have done together since the demise of The Goodies.

Bananaman orginally appeared in a strip in the UK comic The Nutty before the comic merged with The Dandy in 1985, where the character can still be found saving the world from General Blight, Appleman and Doctor Doom.

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