Image description: A colourful, hand-drawn illustration shows a jungle clearing where all seven Wombles and all seven Care Bears stand facing each other, ready for a friendly showdown. On the left, the Wombles are lined up, each with their own distinct hat and outfit — Great Uncle Bulgaria with his tartan scarf, Orinoco looking slightly sleepy, Tobermory in his workshop gear, Madame Cholet in a chef-style outfit, and the others in bright caps and waistcoats. They appear determined but curious. On the right, the Care Bears stand in a neat row. Tenderheart Bear is at the front with his red heart symbol. The others include Funshine Bear with a sun, Good Luck Bear with a four-leaf clover, Cheer Bear with a rainbow, Grumpy Bear with a rain cloud, Share Bear with lollipops, and Harmony Bear in calming purple. They look cheerful but focused. In the background, green jungle trees and palm leaves surround the clearing under a bright blue sky. Across the top of the image, large yellow and black text reads: THE WOMBLE IN THE JUNGL
Chapter Two – The Litter Blitz
If the first round had been a polite standoff, the second was… significantly louder.
It began with a yawn.
A big one.
Orinoco ambled into the jungle clearing with a half-eaten banana in one paw and a biscuit wrapper stuck to his foot. “Right then,” he mumbled, “let’s get this over with before brunch.”
Across the ring, Funshine Bear was already cartwheeling in place, shooting sparkles from his sun-shaped belly badge and whistling something suspiciously cheerful. “Let’s gooooooo!” he shouted, striking a heroic pose. “Let’s clean this place with courage and sunshine!”
Orinoco blinked. “Is it too early for that kind of attitude?”
The parrots squawked from the treetops, signalling the start of Round Two.
Funshine Bear zipped into action, zapping glittery beams at piles of litter. Each beam transformed bits of rubbish into recycled wonders — bottle-top birdfeeders, crisp-packet wind chimes, even a swing made from an old wellington boot.
He was fast. Flashy. Full of energy.
Orinoco scratched his belly and sighed. “Show-off,” he muttered, and slowly pulled a folded picnic blanket from his backpack. He laid it on the ground, stretched out, and… started fishing crisp packets out of the undergrowth from his reclined position.
One by one, he grabbed rubbish with a bendy stick and tucked it into a recycled snack tub labelled “Womble Collection, Do Not Nibble.”
Funshine twirled. “I’ve cleared sixteen spots already!”
Orinoco raised an eyebrow. “I’ve sorted all the recyclables into colour-coded categories. While lying down.”
The jungle creatures watched, fascinated. Two very different styles.
Funshine cleared a whole tree of tangled decorations left behind by a runaway jungle party.
Orinoco found a forgotten hot water bottle and offered it to a shivering pangolin.
Funshine zipped across a vine bridge like a sparkly hurricane.
Orinoco napped for three minutes… then woke up just in time to save a family of ants from a melting ice lolly stick.
When the parrots signalled the end of the round, both were panting — Funshine from action, Orinoco from effort.
“You’re slower than a sleepy sloth in slippers,” said funshine, grinning, “but you’re clever.”
“You’re brighter than a disco in a blender,” said Orinoco, yawning, “but you’ve got heart.”
They bumped paws.
The jungle sparkled — a little cleaner, a little warmer.
And somewhere deep in the undergrowth, a baby monkey was seen cuddling a juice carton turned into a hat.
Blind Man Makes 