Skopje, 31 August 2025 (MIA) — A mural was unveiled Sunday at 106 Orce Nikolov St. in Debar Maalo in honor of the iconic children's TV show "Bushava azbuka" ("The Unruly Alphabet") that first aired 40 years ago.

Debuting in 1985, the children's show continued over the years as reruns. "It is more than a series. It is a kind of cultural heritage," the show's director Slobodan Unkovski said.

At Sunday's unveiling of the mural, organizers also screened the premiere episode of a new animated series called "Bukvozhder" ("The Letter Gobbler"), conceived as an animated sequel.

While welcoming the animated series, Unkovski said the real sequel of "The Unruly Alphabet" was "The Unruly ABC book" written by Goran Stefanovski and Marijan Alchevski.

"I expect one day we will raise public awareness that this is necessary to preserve and promote our language," Unkovski said.

At the outdoor celebration of the show's 40th anniversary, organizers highlighted the importance of safeguarding the Macedonian language while also creating high quality educational entertainment for new generations.

The mural was painted with the aim to evoke nostalgia in adults, inspire creativity and imagination in children and bring fresh energy into the urban landscape, organizers said.

"I, too, belong to the generation that grew up learning 'The Unruly' letters," Centar Mayor Goran Gerasimovski said at the event.

"This mural is a reminder of those beautiful and happy times, when authentic Macedonian production was encouraged, there were things to watch and things to be proud of," he said.

The mural was painted by Dragan Kitanovski Drash and Miroslav Grchev Miks with financial support from the Municipality of Centar. The event was organzied by Vidi Vaka Storytelling Studio. mr/