It was written by Helen Cresswell and set in the country village of Little Hemlock, where a young girl, Penelope, with a vivid imagination (played by future Blue Peter presenter Tina Heath) encounters a local witch (Sonia Dresdel) whom only she can see and hear.

[1] It is unclear whether this was originally meant to be a pilot, but following the success of the December 1972 broadcast, a full series of Lizzie Dripping was ordered by the BBC.

Unlike other BBC properties by Cresswell, Lizzie Dripping's status as a series based on previous novels is somewhat ambiguous.

[2] The episodes were directed by Paul Stone, who had been a director on Jackanory since 1969 and would later spend the 1980s producing some of Britain's top children's dramas, some of them written by Cresswell herself.

However, when the series proper began in March 1973, the narration was provided by the titular character, played by Tina Heath.

"Lizzie Dripping" is a slang term in the Nottingham area for a lively girl who has difficulty distinguishing between fact and fiction.

Though most of the publication activity in the years since the television show ended has surrounded republication of work done in 1973 and 1974, there have been occasional new stories, such as 1994's Lizzie Dripping on Holiday.