Trivia / The Storyteller

• Acclaimed Flop: The show was picked up on the critical acclaim of the pilot alone, but was never a ratings hit, leading to its short run.
• All-Star Cast: Each episode had at least one famous British actor ranging from Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders to Derek Jacobi. The Storyteller himself was John Hurt while his Greek counterpart was Michael Gambon.
• Completely Different Title: The series was called Sagor för stora barn (Fairytales for older children) in Sweden. A not-too-subtle but very accurate warning to kids and parents about the rather grim feel of many of the episodes.
• Throw It In!: The dog talking back to the Storyteller was a happy accident. Anthony Minghella just assumed that a dog in a Jim Henson production would talk, and wrote him that way, though Henson had said nothing about whether or not the dog would talk.
• What Could Have Been: Press release material mentions an episode that involves an ogress keeping a princess captive, which seems to be based on the Italian folktale, "Petrosinella" (an early "Rapunzel" variant), but it has never been released, or likely ever made.
  • A finished but unproduced script was a retelling of the Russian folktale "The Witch Baby", and would have included the Storyteller and his tarot-reading abilities as part of its events, as in "Hans My Hedgehog". The story of a prince who must confront his demonic cannibal sister (who can grow to the size of Godzilla) was adapted into the 2011 graphic novel anthology.
  • It has also been confirmed that an episode based on Vasilissa the Beautiful (a Cinderella variant where the Wicked Stepmother sends the girl to the Wicked Witch Baba Yaga) was also in development. The unused teleplay was adapted into a comic book for "The Storyteller: Witches" spin-off.
  • Henson planned to expand the show to have hour-long episodes, allowing for more complex stories and more time to show off the Creature Shop's work, but the show was cancelled before any could be made.
  • A video game adaptation has also been in Development Hell.
  • The show was originally going to have a full season, and a regular spot on the schedule. The expense of the show (particularly the many creatires) led to the network cutting back on episodes and only airing the show very occasionally (with its run as part of The Jim Henson Hour being the closest it had to a regular spot on the schedule).