Brum (TV series)

Brum (/ˈbrʌm/), also known as The Adventures of Brum is a British children's television series about the adventures of a small, radio controlled vintage car.

Brum
Created byFrank Beattie
Anne Wood
Developed byRagdoll Productions
BBC Television
StarringBrum
Narrated byToyah Willcox (1991-1994)
Tom Wright (2001–2002)
Sarah Wichall (2001–2002)
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original language(s)English
No. of series5 + 3 revival
No. of episodes66
Production
Executive producer(s)Tom Poole
Vic Finch
Running time10-15 minutes
Production company(s)Ragdoll Productions
HIT Communications PLC (Season 1-2)
DistributorHIT Communications PLC (Seasons 1-2, except UK[1])
Ragdoll Productions (Seasons 3-5)
Release
Original networkBBC One (UK)
Picture format4:3 (1991–1994)
16:9 (2001–2002)
Original release26 September 1991 (1991-09-26) –
4 November 2002 (2002-11-04)
Chronology
Related showsOther Ragdoll Shows

Set in Birmingham, England and produced by Ragdoll Productions, Brum was first broadcast in 1991 and the last live action series was broadcast in 2002. It was initially directed, written and produced by Anne Wood and initially narrated by Toyah Willcox. The show was first aired on BBC One, as well as airing on satellite and pay television where it was screened on TCC and Living, and also aired in the United States on Discovery Family, in Australia on ABC, Max, Nickelodeon, ABC Kids and ABC2, in Brunei on RTB, in India on Pogo, in Indonesia on antv, in Singapore on Kids Central, in South Africa on SABC2 (with both an English dub and an Afrikaans dub) and CBeebies, in Kenya on KBC, in New Zealand on TV2 and TV3, in Namibia on NBC, in Zimbabwe on ZTV, in Ireland on RTÉ, in Germany on BFBS and SSVC Television, in the Netherlands on Nederland 3, in Bangladesh on BTV, in Malaysia on TV3 and in the Emirates on Dubai 33. It also aired on the now-defunct children's channel, KPC "Kids Pick Cartoons". A new CGI-animated series, aimed at young pre-school children, was produced in 2016.

Plot and setting

Brum is the story of a small replica car who ventures out into Big Town when his owner isn't looking, and gets up to all manner of adventures. Each episode begins and ends in the same way, with Brum leaving the other cars in the motor museum when the owner's back is turned and heading out to explore Big Town, before eventually returning to his place. Each series has had its own background music. From series 1-2 the introduction music was the same but in series 2 they used different instruments. From Series 3-5 the music became jazzy and a new Title sequence was Directed by Nigel P. Harris.

The car can express himself in various mechanical ways including opening and closing his doors and bonnet, bobbing his suspension, and flashing and swivelling. The actors in Brum do not speak – mime and off-screen narration help propel the story. It was therefore easy to prepare episodes for airing in other countries, and the series has been broadcast in many parts of the world and in many languages.

The stories are set in the city of Birmingham, England, since in addition to its onomatopoeic nature of a car engine revving, Brum (as a contraction of "Brummagem") is a common colloquial name for Birmingham. Although later series make no direct mention of Birmingham, calling it simply Big Town, many of the city's streets and landmarks can be seen in each episode.

The show was written by a range of writers. Anne Wood primarily wrote all the first series, while the second was written by Tom Poole, Dirk Campbell, Andrew Davenport and Morgan Hall. The last two series were written by Nigel P. Harris (5 Episodes) and the existing Ragdoll team.

The car itself – a half-scale replica of a late-1920s Austin 7 Chummy convertible – was designed and built by Rex Garrod. It is now housed at the Cotswold Motoring Museum in Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, which is also where the opening and closing sequences of the programme were filmed.

Characters

1990s
  • Museum Owner (Mike Cavanagh): The owner of the car museum where Brum lives. He is the only human character who appears in every episode and the only character who is apparently oblivious to Brum's adventures, despite finding items in Brum's backseat at the end of each episode in Series 1 and 2. The actor, Mike Cavanagh, actually owned the Cotswold Motor Museum until 1999.
  • The Lollipop Lady (Shirley-Anne Bohm): A lady who helps people, and Brum, cross the road safely, she appears in every episode in the second series.
  • WPC Truncheon (Deborah Grant): the policewoman in the Big Town.
  • The Big Town Robber (Andrew Davenport): Always up to mischief, the robber's antics include stealing the trophy for the big race. Brum is usually the one that foils his plans as seen in "Brum and the Big Chase/Dancing in the Street", and "Brum and the Big Town Race/Brum and the Trophy".
  • Mr. and Mrs. La-Di-Dah: A posh married couple who regularly featured in the second series.
  • Mr. and Mrs. Doolally (Mark Barnsley) A friendly, if slightly absent-minded, couple who regularly featured in the second series.
  • Vicky Spoon: A regular cast member of the second series, Vicky is Brum's special friend.
  • Micky Mender: A handyman, a regular cast member of the second series.
  • Big Town Bullies (Shazad Mahmood and Georgina Treharne)
  • The Scrap Dealers (Dave Evans (actor) and Mark Walter (actor))
  • Two Masked Bank Robbers (Robert Goodman (actor) and Barry Robinson (actor))

2000s
  • Granny Slippers (Linda Kerr Scott): An old lady who wears slippers wherever she goes.
  • Mr. Brillo (Rob Thirtle): A man who lives next door to Granny Slippers. His favourite picture is the Gnoma Lisa. He has loads of gnomes in his garden.
  • Scruffy: Brum's friend, a dog who loves burying things.
  • Big Town Mayor (John Woodford): The town manager.
  • Mrs. Posh (Iona Kennedy / Carole Davies): A posh lady who lives in the town.
  • Traffic Policeman (Mark Powlett): A "knockabout" policeman, who owns a horse called Arrow.
  • The Mayoress: The mayor of Big Town
  • Gorgeous Gordon (Enoch White): A self-centred, full-of-himself hairdresser who wears a wig as hair.
  • Bob & Job (Kevin McGreevy & Adam Schumacher): Two comically clumsy men, who wear green dungarees and yellow T-shirts and help the town in a way of slapstick style from Laurel and Hardy.
  • The Celebrity (Johnnie Fiori): A celebrity who She's lovely appeared in the episode 'Brum and the Airport Adventure' when she had her jewels stolen by Bubble & Squeak at the Big Town Airport.
  • Rob & Nick (Dan Carey (actor) and Jason Segade): A bumbling pair of thieves, also known as the Big Town baddies who are best known for stealing Mr. Brillo's gnome, robbing the golf buggy at the Big Town Golf Course a posh celebrity's dog and A customer's apron at the pizza restaurant.
  • Policewoman (Lisa Allen)
  • Pickpocket Polly (Catherine Marimer): A thief who stole a wallet from a visiting man, and of course she took the items from people and put them in her swag bag.
  • Sally: A woman in the Big Town who had her cake stolen by teenagers on her birthday She's lovely in the episode "Brum and the Birthday Cake/Brum and the Cake Gang".
  • Cake Gang: (Kerry Dean (actress), Gavin Cooper (actor), David Smith (actor), Charmaine Samuels (actress) and Liam Mullan (actor)) : A pair of greedy teenagers who stole a birthday cake from Sally in "Brum and the Birthday Cake/Brum and the Cake Gang".
  • Bubble & Squeak (Chalky Skywalker Chawner and Paul Jackson (actor)): A pair of thieves who stole golden jewels from Brum and the Airport Adventure,Brum and the Bank Robbers/Brum and the Heavy Safe and Brum and the Golden Loo. Their clothes never fit them because they steal them from other people's washing lines.
  • Magic Paul (Andy Dawson (actor))
  • Big Bad's 1st Girlfriend (Christine Nayrolles) Brum and the Snow Thieves
  • Big Bad's 2nd Girlfriend (Kay Stanley) Brum and the Splash and Grab
  • Big Bad (Paul Filipiak)
  • Big Bad's Assistant's Girlfriend (Justine Marriott) Bushes on the Run
  • Big Bad's Assistant (Paul Cawley) Brum and the Pantomime Cow/Brum and the Theatrical Thieves
  • Penny Pincher (Julia West) She's sneaky, appeared in Brum and the Music Box & Brum and the Stopwatch Botch.
  • The Beady-Eyed Robber (Heather Tyrrell) She's evil, appeared in Brum and the Stolen Necklace.
  • The Shadow (Miles Anthony) A menacing thief appearing in Brum and the King of Thieves & Brum and the Gorilla Caper.
  • The Visiting Man (Jos Houben): A tourist who loves taking photographs with his camera, especially Brum.

Episodes

Series 1 (1991)
  • 1. Brum to the Rescue - 26 September 1991
  • 2. Brum and the Kite – 3 October 1991
  • 3. Brum and the Scrapyard – 10 October 1991
  • 4. Brum at the Opera – 17 October 1991
  • 5. Brum and the Mower – 24 October 1991
  • 6. Brum at the Seaside – 31 October 1991
  • 7. Brum and the Little Girl Lost – 7 November 1991
  • 8. Brum Goes Racing – 14 November 1991
  • 9. Brum and the Stilts – 28 November 1991
  • 10. Brum and the Removal Van – 5 December 1991
  • 11. Brum and the Bank Robbers – 12 December 1991
  • 12. Brum and the Runaway Pram – 19 December 1991
  • 13. Brum at the Safari Park – 26 December 1991

Series 2 (1994)
  • 14. Brum to the Rescue! - 10 October 1994
  • 15. Brum and the Big Crane – 13 October 1994
  • 16. Brum Goes Ice Skating – 20 October 1994
  • 17. Brum and the Big Chase – 27 October 1994
  • 18. Brum and the Wedding – 3 November 1994
  • 19. Brum and the Big Town Race – 10 November 1994
  • 20. Brum Goes Shopping – 17 November 1994
  • 21. Brum and the Very Windy Day – 24 November 1994
  • 22. Brum and the Surprise Party – 1 December 1994
  • 23. Brum and the Naughty Kitten – 8 December 1994
  • 24. Brum and the Little Drummer Boy – 15 December 1994
  • 25. Brum and the Flood – 22 December 1994
  • 26. Brum Goes House Painting – 29 December 1994

Series 3 (2001)
  • 27. Brum and the Airport Adventure – 3 September 2001
  • 28. Brum and the Naughty Dog – 10 September 2001
  • 29. Brum and the Pizzeria – 17 September 2001
  • 30. Brum and the Gymnast – 24 September 2001
  • 31. Brum and the King of Thieves – 1 October 2001
  • 32. Brum and the Skateboarding Bride – 8 October 2001
  • 33. Brum: Chasing Balloons – 15 October 2001
  • 34. Brum and the Stolen Necklace – 22 October 2001
  • 35. Brum at the Opera! - 29 October 2001
  • 36. Brum and the Runaway Train - 5 November 2001
  • 37. Brum and the Birthday Cake – 12 November 2001
  • 38. Brum and the Mobile Phone – 19 November 2001
  • 39. Brum: Bushes on the Run – 26 November 2001
  • 40. Brum and the Diamond Dog – 3 December 2001
  • 41. Brum and the Music Box – 10 December 2001
  • 42. Brum and the Runaway Statue - 17 December 2001
  • 43. Brum and the Snow Thieves – 27 December 2001

Series 4 (2002)
  • 44. Brum to the Rescue!! – 8 April 2002
  • 45. Brum and the Splash and Grab – 15 April 2002
  • 46. Brum and the Golden Loo – 22 April 2002
  • 47. Brum and the Golf Buggy – 29 April 2002
  • 48. Brum the Soccer Hero – 6 May 2002
  • 49. Brum and the Rampant Robot – 13 May 2002
  • 50. Brum and the Shop Window Dummy – 20 May 2002
  • 51. Brum and the Bowling Alley – 27 May 2002
  • 52. Brum the Basketball Star – 3 June 2002
  • 53. Brum and the Gorilla Caper – 10 June 2002
  • 54. Brum and the Runaway Sofa – 17 June 2002
  • 55. Brum and the Kidnapped Garden Gnome – 24 June 2002
  • 56. Brum and the Runaway Ball – 1 July 2002

Series 5 (2002)
  • 57. Brum and the Stunt Bike Rescue – 2 September 2002
  • 58. Brum and the Stopwatch Botch – 9 September 2002
  • 59. Brum and the Cream Balloon – 16 September 2002
  • 60. Brum and the Pickpocket Polly – 23 September 2002
  • 61. Brum and the Daring Gnome Rescue – 30 September 2002
  • 62. Brum and the Mischievous Mouse – 7 October 2002
  • 63. Brum and the Bank Robbers! – 14 October 2002
  • 64. Brum and the Runaway Rickshaw – 21 October 2002
  • 65. Brum and the Paint Pandemonium – 28 October 2002
  • 66. Brum and the Crazy Chair Chase – 4 November 2002

DHX Media revivals

February 2016 saw the release of a rebooted Brum, made by the current owners of the franchise DHX Media. The show now takes place in a white world instead of the Big Town and features new friends for Brum. The first episode, "Brum's Car Wash Adventure", premiered on 4 March 2016 via the official Brum YouTube channel.[2] A total of 25 CGI episodes were produced, with a second series currently airing.

Another series, this time animated using Toon Boom Harmony Animation called "Brum & Friends" premiered on the channel in September 2017.

Kiddie ride

A coin operated kiddie ride of Brum was made by Amutec Ltd. 3 versions were made in the years 2004, 2005 and 2006.




Home Video Releases

Brum- Rescue and Other Stories (1991)

Brum- Wheels and Other Stories (1992)

Brum- Learn with Brum (1992)

Brum- Seaside and 9 Other Stories (1993)

Brum and the Helicopter and Other stories (1994)

Brum- The Naughty Kitten and Other Stories (1995)

My Little Brum Bumper Video- Brum and the Big Chase (1996)

Brum- Biggest Party Video (1998)

Brum- Airport and Other Stories (2001)

Brum , Snow Thieves and Other Stories (2002)

Brum: Runaway Statue (2002)

Brum- Soccer Hero and Other Stories (2002)

Brum- Stunt Bike Rescue and Other Stories (2003)

The Very Best of Brum (2004)

References
  1. "HIT ENTERTAINMENT CATALOGUE". 3 July 1998. Archived from the original on 3 July 1998.
  2. Brum & Friends - WildBrain (4 March 2016). "★ Brum ★ Brum's Car Wash Adventure - FULL EPISODE 1 HD - KIDS SHOW FULL EPISODE". Retrieved 6 May 2018 – via YouTube.
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