Boohbah

Boohbah is a British children's television programme created by Anne Wood. It premiered on 14 April 2003 on ITV1 in the United Kingdom, followed by its Nick Jr. UK premiere on 30 September 2003.[1] It aired in the United States on PBS Kids from January 19, 2004 until January 31, 2010. In Canada it aired on Treehouse. The series, with 104 episodes, was produced by Ragdoll Productions.

Boohbah
Created by	Anne Wood
Starring	Emma Insley Alex Poulter Cal Jaggers Phil Hayes Laura Pero
Narrated by	Chris Langham
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of episodes	104
Production
Running time	25 minutes
Production company(s)	Ragdoll Productions, GMTV
Distributor	Ragdoll Productions
Release
Original network	ITV1 (CITV)
Original release	14 April 2003 – 6 January 2006
Chronology
Related shows	Teletubbies In the Night Garden...

Characters

The series focuses on the Boohbahs: five plump, fuzzy, furry, gumdrop-shaped creatures played by actors in full-body costumes. Their fur sparkles and shimmers with tiny lights, and they are hairless with big eyes and rows of lights for eyebrows. They do not speak; instead, they make noises such as squeaks, squeals, "poofs", and clicks. The Boohbahs can retract their heads into their furry necks. Each Boohbah is a different colour.

A list of the Boohbahs is available below.

• Humbah, portrayed by Emma Insley, is a yellow Boohbah.
• Zumbah, portrayed by Alex Poulter, is a purple Boohbah.
• Zing Zing Zingbah, portrayed by Cal Jaggers, is an orange Boohbah.
• Jumbah, portrayed by Phil Hayes, is a blue Boohbah.
• Jingbah, portrayed by Laura Pero, is a pink Boohbah.

The Boohbahs can fly; part of their routine is to assemble into a circle, holding hands like skydivers. Each then emits a different musical note as a flash of coloured light (matching the Boohbah's colour) is sent out from their heads to a central point.

The Boohbahs were designed and made by costume and creature designer, Vin Burnham.

Storypeople

The Storypeople are a diverse group of familial characters who inhabit Storyworld and there participate in various vignettes inspired by the presents (see below). They are:

• Grandmamma (Linda Kerr-Scott) – An elderly yet spry Caucasian woman. She has white banana hair and wears a dark pink housedress, pale blue sweater, white socks, and red trainers.
• Grandpappa (Robin Stevens) – An elderly yet spry Caucasian man. He has white hair and a white moustache; he wears a long-sleeved yellow shirt, dark grey slacks, red braces, and white trainers.
• Mrs. Lady (Harvey Virdi) – An Indian woman. She has dark hair and wears a loose light blue blouse, loose bright pink trousers, and pink trainers.
• Mr. Man (Mark Ramsey) – A black man. He wears a short-sleeved bright pink shirt, white trousers, and black trainers.
• Brother (Manuel Bravo) and Sister (Vee Vimolmal) – Always paired, they both appear to be in their late teens. Brother: A Latino boy with short black hair; he wears a bright blue T-shirt, bright red knee-length shorts, and white trainers with pink laces. Sister: A Thai girl with hip-length black hair in a long ponytail; she wears a bright red T-shirt, bright blue capri pants, and white trainers with pink laces.
• Auntie (Sachi Kimura) – A Japanese woman. She has short black hair and wears a long-sleeved lavender blouse, black trousers, purple tights, and black shoes.
• Little Dog Fido (Dash) – A Jack Russell Terrier. He wears a red collar.

The Storypeople do not speak. (When Little Dog Fido appears, he gives an "arf!") Though they sometimes exhibit frustration or confusion, the Storypeople rarely, if ever, appear upset or sad. The Storyworld segments are narrated by actor Chris Langham. In each episode the Storypeople magically receive an object sent to them by a child or group of children.

The Boohzone

The main setting of Boohbah is the Boohzone, which is the Boohbahs' habitat. The Boohzone somewhat examples a multi-coloured dome with bubbles on its walls, and a rainbow streak leading up to the Boohball. In the middle of the Boohzone is a coloured walkway leading to a spot that resembles either a rainbow spiral or a blank circle when the Boohbahs come down to that area to dance. In the introductions to the "Storyworld" segments, some children will come into the Boohzone to give a present to the Storypeople, and the Boohball will pick it up and send it to Storyworld.

Episodes

104 episodes were produced, including:

Series 1

1. "Skipping Rope" (14 April 2003)
2. "Pearly Shells" (15 April 2003)
3. "Rope and Rock" (16 April 2003)
4. "Magical Pipe" (17 April 2003)
5. "Windows" (18 April 2003)
6. "Comfy Armchair" (21 April 2003)
7. "Record Player" (22 April 2003)
8. "Squeaky Socks" (23 April 2003)
9. "Pile of Balls" (24 April 2003)
10. "Painting the Fence" (25 April 2003)
11. "Big Bass Drum" (28 April 2003)
12. "Hammock" (29 April 2003)
13. "Squeaky Seesaw" (30 April 2003)
14. "Jack-in-the-Box" (1 May 2003)
15. "Bubbles" (2 May 2003)
16. "Couch and Cushions" (5 May 2003)
17. "Big Comb" (6 May 2003)
18. "The Big Ball" (7 May 2003)
19. "Yellow Woolly Sweater" (8 May 2003)
20. "Musical Instruments" (9 May 2003)
21. "The Bed" (12 May 2003)
22. "The High Wall" (13 May 2003)
23. "Cakes and String" (14 May 2003)
24. "The Door" (15 May 2003)
25. "Building Blocks" (16 May 2003)
26. "Hot Dog" (19 May 2003)
27. "Treasure Chest" (20 May 2003)
28. "Flippers" (21 May 2003)
29. "Two Hats" (22 May 2003)
30. "Bells" (23 May 2003)
31. "Shed" (26 May 2003)
32. "Shining Armour" (27 May 2003)
33. "Flowers and Vase" (28 May 2003)
34. "Leaky Hose" (29 May 2003)
35. "Parping Horn" (30 May 2003)
36. "Island" (2 June 2003)
37. "Pencil Sharpener" (3 June 2003)
38. "Following the Signs" (4 June 2003)
39. "Tunnel" (5 June 2003)
40. "Heavy Suitcase" (6 June 2003)
41. "Beards" (9 June 2003)
42. "Big Switch" (10 June 2003)
43. "Paper Plane" (11 June 2003)
44. "Droopy Flowers" (12 June 2003)
45. "Sticky Wrapper" (13 June 2003)
46. "Sailing Boat" (16 June 2003)
47. "Bat and Ball" (17 June 2003)
48. "Ice Cream Cone" (18 June 2003)
49. "Stream" (19 June 2003)
50. "Pulling the Rope" (20 June 2003)
51. "Falling Oranges" (23 June 2003)
52. "Comfy Slippers" (24 June 2003)

Series 2

1. "Banana Split" (25 June 2003)
2. "Crossroads" (26 June 2003)
3. "Hole in the Fence" (27 June 2003)
4. "Little White Cloud" (30 June 2003)
5. "Fido's Bone" (1 July 2003)
6. "Bucket and Spade" (2 July 2003)
7. "Ball and Hoop" (3 July 2003)
8. "Wardrobe" (4 July 2003)
9. "Camera" (7 July 2003)
10. "Umbrella" (8 July 2003)
11. "Flying Fish" (9 July 2003)
12. "Unwinding Carpet" (10 July 2003)
13. "Bouncy Castle" (11 July 2003)
14. "Little Rocky Boat" (14 July 2003)
15. "Collecting Mail" (15 July 2003)

Series 3

1. "Gigantic Carrot" (16 July 2003)
2. "Grass Skirt" (17 July 2003)
3. "Book" (18 July 2003)
4. "Glowing Lanterns" (18 July 2003)
5. "Upright/Double Bass" (21 July 2003)
6. "Accordion" (22 July 2003)
7. "Bagpipes" (23 July 2003)
8. "Pots and Pans" (24 July 2003)
9. "Washing Machine" (25 July 2003)
10. "Playground" (28 July 2003)
11. "Jungle Gym" (29 July 2003)
12. "Construction Vehicles" (30 July 2003)
13. “Fido’s Picture” (31 July 2003)

References

1. https://web.archive.org/web/20060304094335/http://www.nickjr.co.uk/shows/boohbah/index.aspx

External links

• Boohbah on IMDb
• Will Boohbah be next 'Teletubbies'? (MSNBC)