This article needs additional citations for verification .(September 2024) |
Fun Song Factory | |
---|---|
Genre | Children's Pre-School |
Created by | Will Brenton & Iain Lauchlan |
Presented by |
|
Voices of |
|
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
No. of episodes | 7 (DTV series) 23 (GMTV series) 52 (CITV series) |
Production | |
Producer | Tell-Tale Productions |
Running time | 50 mins (DTV series) 20 mins (GMTV Series) 10 mins (CITV Series) |
Production companies | Tell-Tale Productions Abbey Broadcast Communications (Original DTV Videos and 1998 TV series) Entertainment Rights (2004 series) |
Original release | |
Network | ITV (CITV) ITV2 (CITV/GMTV) |
Release | 1 December 1994 – January 2006 |
Fun Song Factory is a British preschool children's television series and video series. It was originally created in 1994 by Will Brenton and Iain Lauchlan, who at the time, were part of the Playdays production team. The series was produced through their studio Tell-Tale Productions and was originally released as a Direct-to-video series through Abbey Home Entertainment (and later PolyGram Video)'s "Tempo-Pre-School" imprint.
The series centers around a factory where music is created. In it, live presenters alongside children come inside and sing a number of nursery rhymes, which depend on per episode.
The series began as a series of direct-to-video features which were recorded in front of a live audience.
The first Fun Song Factory was released on 1 December 1994, and released as part of a series of original straight-to-video content commissioned by Abbey Home Entertainment's Abbey Broadcast Communications subsidiary. It was filmed at the Polka Theatre in Wimbledon, presented by Iain Lauchlan, Sarah Davison and Dave Benson Phillips, a team of children known as "Factory Workers", and costumed versions of Postman Pat, Rupert Bear, SuperTed and Dusty the Dinosaur making special guest appearances.
Following the commercial success of the feature, Abbey commissioned Tell-Tale to produce a second feature, recorded at the Chicken Shed in North London. Released on 5 January 1996, Fun Song Factory 2 was presented by Iain, Dave and Michelle Durler, with a new selection of factory workers, and Postman Pat, Rupert Bear and SuperTed returning as special guests.
Following the success of the second tape and the purchase of a stake in Abbey by PolyGram, several additional commissions were made. Party Time at the Fun Song Factory, released on 26 July 1996, began a transition to a standard format, featuring a standard factory set, and a cast of original characters being added – A fully-costumed dog character named Ozzy Octave (voiced by Nick Mercer), the foreman of the Fun Song Factory, and the puppets Fred Fixer (voiced by Iain Lauchlan), Talking paint pots and Sally Cat (voiced by Sally Preisig). Iain, Sarah and Dave reprised their roles as presenters once again, and this would continue through to The Fun Song Factory at Old MacDonald's Farm (28 September 1996), Christmas at the Fun Song Factory (30 November 1996), Fun Song Factory – Fun and Games (24 September 1997), which featured Katy Stephens instead of Sarah Davison and special guest stars Postman Pat, SuperTed and Bump the Elephant, and Fun Song Factory – Nursery Rhyme Land (5 November 1997), featuring a special guest appearance from SuperTed.
All seven DTV volumes were reissued in 2002 by Universal Pictures Video.
After the original 7 videos sold a combined total of 750,000 copies in the UK, GMTV commissioned a television series in 1998, consisting of twenty-three episodes. Dave Benson Phillips now became the main presenter, and appeared in every episode. Other presenters rotated from a selection of four – Katy Stephens, who previously appeared on Fun Song Factory: Fun and Games, Karl Woolley, a producer for Tell-Tale Productions who had also presented Playdays, Justin Fletcher, who made his television debut role in the series, and Alex Lovell, who also made her television debut.
Nick Mercer reprises his role as Ozzy Octave and also performed Old MacDonald in the episode "Farm Animals" (whom Lauchlan previously appeared as in The Fun Song Factory at Old MacDonald's Farm), Lauchlan would reprise the role of Fred and Preisig would reprise the role of Sally, The paint pots would also return. A new character, a talking factory hooter named Hooter was introduced.
The GMTV series was nominated for a BAFTA in 1998.
No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Birthdays" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | May 30, 1998 | |
Ozzy helps hold a birthday party for Fred. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Justin Fletcher | |||||
2 | "Sounds" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | June 6, 1998 | |
Hooter is making all sorts of random sounds. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Alex Lovell & Justin Fletcher | |||||
3 | "Big and Small" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | June 13, 1998 | |
The children make large and small friends with each other with help from Ozzy and help Sally overcome her fear of mice. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips & Katy Stephens | |||||
4 | "Farm Animals" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | June 20, 1998 | |
Old MacDonald visits the factory. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Alex Lovell & Nick Mercer | |||||
5 | "Numbers" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | June 27, 1998 | |
The children and the presenters sing all sorts of counting songs. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Justin Fletcher & Alex Lovell | |||||
6 | "Please and Thank You" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | July 4, 1998 | |
Everybody is being polite and caring on Good Manners Day. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips & Justin Fletcher Children: Isabella Cheevers, Jamie Meyer, Mikayla Jones, Amber Charles & Francesca Baldwin | |||||
7 | "Picnic Time" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | July 11, 1998 | |
Will the weather dampen Ozzy's surprise for the children? Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips & Katy Stephens | |||||
8 | "Helping" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | July 18, 1998 | |
Ozzy is extra busy today, so he asks everybody to help him out at the Factory. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Karl Woolley | |||||
9 | "Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | July 25, 1998 | |
The crew show off what our bodies can do. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Justin Fletcher | |||||
10 | "Colours" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | August 1, 1998 | |
Ozzy and the crew show off the wonderful colours of the rainbow. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Justin Fletcher | |||||
11 | "Collywobbles" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | August 8, 1998 | |
Strange sounds are coming through the factory and Dave wonders if it's the "Collywobbles" to blame... Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips & Karl Woolley | |||||
12 | "Hide and Seek" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | August 15, 1998 | |
Everyone is playing Hide and Seek, and there are quite a few surprises in store! Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Karl Woolley | |||||
13 | "Making Friends" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | August 22, 1998 | |
Everybody shows ways on how to become a good friend. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Justin Fletcher | |||||
14 | "Senses" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | August 29, 1998 | |
The crew shows different ways on how to use their senses. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Karl Woolley | |||||
15 | "Music" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | September 5, 1998 | |
As usual, the crew show off the different kinds of music that can be played in the factory. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Justin Fletcher | |||||
16 | "Creepy Crawlies" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | September 12, 1998 | |
Creepy Crawlies are all throughout the factory today! Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips & Alex Lovell | |||||
17 | "Wild Animals" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | September 19, 1998 | |
Professor Plimsoll and Arnold the Orangutan visit the factory, and it goes a bit wild with them! Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Katy Stephens & Justin Fletcher | |||||
18 | "Times of the Day" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | September 26, 1998 | |
The crew learn how to tell the time. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Alex Lovell & Justin Fletcher | |||||
19 | "Transport" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | October 3, 1998 | |
Everybody travels through various modes of transport. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips & Alex Lovell | |||||
20 | "Water" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | October 10, 1998 | |
Ozzy shows the crew how amazing water can be. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips & Alex Lovell | |||||
21 | "Seasons" | Will Brenton | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | October 17, 1998 | |
The crew learn about the four seasons in a year. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Justin Fletcher & Katy Stephens | |||||
22 | "Letters and Words" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | October 24, 1998 | |
The crew learn about the letters of the alphabet. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips & Katy Stephens | |||||
23 | "People Who Help" | Robin Carr | Iain Lauchlan and Will Brenton | October 31, 1998 | |
The kinds of humans who help us visit the factory. Presenters: Dave Benson Phillips, Alex Lovell & Karl Woolley |
All twenty-three episodes have been released on various VHS tapes, released by Abbey Home Entertainment and later PolyGram Video/Universal Pictures Video.
In 2004, CITV commissioned Tell-Tale Productions to create a rebooted version of the series, consisting of 52 10-minute episodes. Following Tell-Tale's purchase by Entertainment Rights in September 2004, the rebooted series went under the ER umberella.
The 2004 series was formatted similarly to other children's music shows like Hi-5 , where in addition to the show's action songs, every episode featured a pop song. The 2004 series also ditched using presenters, instead using a cast of characters with acting names who appeared in every episode: Melody (Laura Hamilton), OJ and Cookie (Chris Till and Aston Merrygold, the latter being later part of the boyband JLS), Paige (Polly Parsons) and Cal (Kerry Newell).
Ozzy Octave and the paint pots were the only characters who returned for the 2004 series, with Ozzy now voiced by Justin Fletcher. A new character was also introduced, Ozzy's nephew named Harry (voiced by Jane H. Pickworth).
In 2006, a live show produced by Imagine Theatre (under license from Entertainment Rights) featuring the cast toured theatres across the United Kingdom. The show featured brand new songs that were not heard in the TV series. [1] [2] A series of shows performed at Butlins holiday parks in June 2008 featured Dave Benson Phillips and Emma Quintin as presenters. [3]
In the United Kingdom, a double-VHS/DVD release of the series, titled "Favourite Songs"/"Farm" was released by Universal Pictures Video and Right Entertainment in August 2005. Containing twelve episode altogether. [4]
In Singapore, HVN Entertainment released thirteen 4-episode DVD and VCD volumes of the series that made up the entire series. The volumes were titled "In the Countryside", "Songs to Please", "In the Town", "Things That Grow", "Transport", "Birds", "Sailors", "Words", "Kings & Queens", "Energy", "Important People", "In the Garden" and "Friends".
In 2006, an album containing several action songs from the show was released by Demon Music Group under their "Little Demon" imprint and Right Records, titled "Songsational". [5]
In 2019 creator and original presenter Iain Lauchlan produced a new series titled "Magical Musical Market" for his production company "Checky Chimps TV". The show is designed to fit a similar format as Fun Song Factory itself but instead is set in a market. Lauchlan presents each episode along with two children. The children visit a different stall and meet its owner (played by Lauchlan) and then sing a song related to an item being sold. At the beginning of each episode Lauchlan and the children must sing a song in order for the market to open. Many of the songs featured were carried over from Fun Song. Episodes were also broadcast on its official YouTube channel.
Postman Pat is a British stop motion animated children's television series first produced by Woodland Animations. The series follows the adventures of Pat Clifton, a postman who works for the Royal Mail postal service in the fictional village of Greendale.
The Little Mermaid is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation based on the 1989 animated feature film of the same name. It features the adventures of Ariel as a mermaid prior to the events of the film. This series is the third Disney television series to be spun off from a major animated film. Some of the voice actors of the film reprise their roles in the series, among them Jodi Benson as Ariel, Samuel E. Wright as Sebastian, Kenneth Mars as King Triton, and Pat Carroll as Ursula. Other voice actors include Edan Gross as Flounder, and Jeff Bennett as Prince Eric.
Dragon Tales is an animated educational fantasy children's television series created by Jim Coane and Ron Rodecker, developed by Coane, Wesley Eure, Jeffrey Scott, Cliff Ruby and Elana Lesser, and produced by the Children's Television Workshop, Columbia TriStar Television and Adelaide Productions. The series focuses on the adventures of two siblings, Emmy and Max, and their dragon friends Cassie, Ord, and Zak and Wheezie.
Playdays is a British preschool television programme which ran from 1988 to 1997 on Children's BBC. The show was the successor to Play School and, like its predecessor, was designed as an educational programme.
Tweenies is a British live-action puppet children's television series created by Will Brenton and Iain Lauchlan. The programme was focused on four preschool-aged characters, known as the "Tweenies", playing, singing, dancing, and learning in a fictional playgroup in England. They are cared for by two adult Tweenies and their dogs.
Dave Benson Phillips is a British entertainer, comic, children's television presenter and wrestler, best known for his work presenting Playhouse Disney (1998–2006) and The Fun Song Factory (1994–1999). He also presented the popular CBBC game show Get Your Own Back.
Tikkabilla is a British children's television programme, shown on CBeebies. The programme aims to educate preschool children in an entertaining manner. The title "Tikkabilla" comes from the Hindi word meaning "Hopscotch", a popular children's game.
BB3B is a British animated series produced by Tell-Tale Productions in 2005. The entire series consists of thirteen episodes of twenty minutes each. It was shown on CBBC in the UK and ABC Kids in Australia. It first went on air in 2005.
Alexandra "Alex" Lovell is an English television presenter, actress, newsreader and voice-over artist who is employed by ITV West Country. Her previous roles include stage and television acting, and she presented or co-presented the regional news programme BBC Points West from 2005 until 2023.
The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! is an American live-action/animated television series that aired from 4 September to 1 December 1989, in syndication. The series is based on the video games Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 2 by Nintendo, and is the first of three television series to be based upon the Mario video game series. The animation was provided by South Korean company Sei Young Animation.
The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 is an American animated television series. It premiered on September 8, 1990, on NBC. It is the second animated series to be based on Nintendo's Mario video game series and is loosely based on the video game Super Mario Bros. 3. The animation was provided by Sei Young Animation.
Boo! is a British animated children's television series created by Will Brenton and Iain Lauchlan, and produced through their company Tell-Tale Productions for CBeebies with Universal Pictures handling co-funding and worldwide television distribution, home video and consumer product rights. The series aired for a total of 104 episodes and one Christmas special; it was nominated for the British Academy Children's Award for Pre-School Animation in 2003.
Bertha is a 13-episode British stop motion-animated children's television series about a factory machine of that name that aired from 1985 to 1986. All the characters were designed by Ivor Wood, and the series was produced by his company, Woodland Animations. It was broadcast on BBC Television, It was intended as a replacement to the Postman Pat series, until the second series aired in 1996.
Justin Fletcher is an English children's television presenter, actor and comedian, appearing mainly on the BBC pre-school television channel CBeebies. Speaking and performing in various, often self-created, roles, he specialises in slapstick comedy and works with children with special educational needs through his show Something Special.
Madeline is an animated preschool television series produced by DIC Entertainment, L.P., as part of the Madeline media franchise. It began as a series of six television specials from 1988 to 1991, and then continued as Madeline and The New Adventures of Madeline from 1993 to 2001. The show is narrated by Christopher Plummer.
VeggieTales is an American Christian CGI-animated series and franchise for children created by Phil Vischer and Mike Nawrocki under Big Idea Entertainment. The series stars Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber leading a variety of fruit and vegetable characters as they retell stories from the Bible and parody pop culture while also teaching life lessons according to a biblical world view.
Will Brenton is a writer/producer-director who has worked in many areas of television and theatre, primarily through his companies Tell-Tale productions and Wish Films, both of which he founded with Iain Lauchlan. Together they gained six BAFTA nominations, as well as many other awards for their work together. They won a 2000 BAFTA, Best Pre-School Live Action.
Wish Films is an animation and live-action studio, established by Will Brenton and Iain Lauchlan in 2006. It is the predecessor to Tell-Tale Productions, which was formed in 1994, first producing live shows, and later went on to produce TV shows.
Wimpole Village is a pre-school series which aired on Children's ITV. The stories began as their own children's comic and the animations first aired on TV-am's Are You Awake Yet children's programme in 1985.