at the end of this month were ended yesterday after a generous offer by a retired lawyer.

Sir James Pearman has pledged to provide the funds necessary to keep the educational television programme on the air for another year.

"I did it for the children,'' he said.

Sir James said he made the decision after he read an article which appeared in The Royal Gazette yesterday.

He said he felt it was important the show remain on the air because of the learning experience it offers pre-schoolers.

The show appeared on public television for 21 years at an annual cost of $111,701.20 to Government, a spokesperson said.

This figure was reduced by $44,000 last year after the Bermuda Broadcasting Company (BBC) agreed to subsidise the programme for two days of the week.

However budgetary constraints in the Department of Community and Cultural Affairs and a feeling there was not enough interest to justify spending $67,000, led to a withdrawal of funding.

"It's on cable three times a day and 65 percent of all homes have cable,'' Minister of Community & Cultural Affairs the Hon. Leonard Gibbons is quoted as saying. "I don't think the majority of people are concerned about it. I've only had one phone call, one letter and a lady spoke to me on the street about it.'' In the newspaper article, a group of mothers said they were planning to circulate a petition to try and keep the show on the air.

"I'm very pleased and happy about it,'' one mother said, "I intend to write a letter and thank Sir James. However it still does not solve the problem.

What's going to happen for the next year and the year after that?'' The mother said she would be writing a letter to Finance Minister the Hon.

David Saul to see what he could do about putting funds for the show in the 1993/94 Budget.

BBC general manager Mr. Malcolm Fletcher said he was pleased that the show would still be available to those children without pay TV.

"(Sir James) called and said he was doing it out of the interest of the children,'' he said, "the continued education of pre-school children.'' Mr. Fletcher said Sir James has offered to fund the show for five days a week beginning April 27.