Image caption L to R: Dunceton the Brain, Bobby the Banana, Otis the Aardvark, Gordon the Gopher, Edd the Duck, Dodge T Dog, Hacker T Dog, Emlyn the Gremlyn, Oucho T Cactus

The 30th anniversary of the CBBC 'Broom Cupboard' has been marked with an hour-long programme featuring 30 former Children's BBC presenters.

Phillip Schofield, Andi Peters and Zoe Ball were among those looking back at their time on the BBC strand.

Schofield presented the first slot for the all-new 'Children's BBC' at 15:55 BST on 9 September 1985 on BBC One.

Gordon the Gopher and Edd the Duck are among the non-human characters to have made the Broom Cupboard their home.

Hacker's Birthday Bash: 30 Years of Children's BBC was screened on CBBC and was hosted by Cel Spellman, Katie Thistleton, Hacker T Dog and Dodge T Dog.

The live programme included archive clips from the past 30 years and saw past presenters share memories and play classic CBBC games.

Phillip Schofield, now the host of ITV's This Morning, was the first continuity announcer to broadcast from the tiny Children's BBC studio.

"I had great fun in the Broom Cupboard, learning the skills of live TV," he said. "If you can introduce Newsround with a fluffy Gopher squeaking next to you, you can handle anything."

Andy Crane, now a presenter on BBC Radio Manchester, followed Schofield into the Broom Cupboard, though he had to share it with Edd the Duck and Wilson the Butler.

"We had no idea how successful it would be," Crane told BBC Breakfast earlier. "Millions of people loved Gordon, Edd and all the other characters."

Andi Peters spent four years in the Broom Cupboard before going on to produce and present Top of the Pops.

"When I last presented Children's BBC, Take That were topping the charts and Chris Evans was everywhere," he said. "Perhaps not that much has changed in the last 22 years after all."

Josie d'Arby and Simeon Courtie joined forces with Otis the Aardvark to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Children's BBC in 1995.

Michael Underwood, pictured at Wimbledon with Emlyn the Gremlyn, went on to marry fellow Children's BBC presenter Angellica Bell.

Zoe Ball was among those who joined Hacker T Dog on Wednesday's anniversary programme, which saw the newest recruit to the CBBC presenting team revealed live on air.

"Thirty years is a fantastic achievement," said the presenter, who now presents Strictly Come Dancing's sister show It Takes Two. "It's such a joy to have been part of."