Boohbah

Boohbah
File:Boohbah logo.png
Created by	Anne Wood
Developed by	Ragdoll Productions
Starring	Emma Ainsley Alex Poulter Cal Jaggers Phil Hayes Laura Pero
Narrated by	Chris Langham
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of episodes	65
Production
Running time	25 minutes
Production company(s)	BBC Worldwide Limited Ragdoll Limited GMTV
Distributor	ITV
Release
Original release	16 April 2003 – 6 January 2006
Chronology
Related shows	Teletubbies In the Night Garden...
External links
[{{#property:P856}} Website]

Boohbah is a British children's television programme created by Anne Wood. It premiered on 16 April 2003 on ITV in the United Kingdom. The series is produced by Ragdoll Productions.

Characters

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

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 colored light (matching the Boohbah's color) is sent out from their heads to a central point.

Storypeople

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

• Grandmamma (Linda Kerr-Scott) – An elderly yet spry woman. She has white hair and wears a dark pink housedress, white sweater, white socks, and red sneakers.
• 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 gray slacks, red suspenders, and white sneakers.
• Mrs. Lady (Harvey Virdi) – A heavyset Indian woman. She has dark hair and wears a loose light blue blouse, loose bright pink pants, and pink sneakers.
• Mr. Man (Mark Ramsey) – A husky African man. He is bald and 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, lavender socks, 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 Storyland 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.

Vignettes

Each episode follows the same sequence of events. This is:

• Opening title. The Boohball flies over at least three out of 15 different countries (Australia, China, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Jamaica, Japan, Namibia, Russia, South Africa, Spain, United Kingdom, United States).
• Boohbah warm up dance. The children call the Boohbahs by their names (" Humbah, Zumbah , Zing Zing Zingbah , Jumbah, Jingbah -- Booh!"), and then the Boohbahs join each other one by one in a simple dance. After all have joined in, the pace increases until all the Boohbahs are out of control. As a child calls out their names, they then freeze, stand spread-eagled, and retract their heads. When all have stopped, the children yell, "Booh!" and the Boohbahs fly upward into their circle formation.
• Present giving, in which a group of children bring "a present for the Storypeople" and they blow it into the Storyworld with the power of Boohbah magic. The present given will be the theme of the segment.
• Storyworld and the Storypeople, which is based on the present given in the last segment. During the segment, one or more of the Storypeople (a diverse cast of familial characters) will find the present and interact with it. Often the Storypeople will encounter a problem, inspiring the unseen but observing children to say the magic word, which is "Boohbah!" This freezes the story and allows the children to blow another gift to the Storypeople, which enables the story to continue and lead to the problem's solution. These segments are filmed in Spain, unless the segments involve snow, in which case, the respective segment is filmed in South Africa.
• Boohbah dance, during which the Boohbahs perform a dance somewhat related to the "Storyworld and the Storypeople" segment. This dance is slightly more complex than the "warm up" dances.
• Look What I Can Do, shown in the American version in which actual children perform dances of their own. Three different dances are featured per show, and are simple so that the home audience can follow along.

The Boohball

One of the common features in Boohbah is the Boohball. The Boohball, a glowing white ball, is where the Boohbahs live, and it appears out of nowhere in various parts of the show. It travels from country to country when it is called by children. Inside the Boohball is a spinning recharging pod, where the Boohbahs recharge energy. It resembles five deep spoons with the handles linked, or, alternately, the hammocks resemble five fig halves. The energy is created by the laughter of the children when playing with the Boohbahs, the Boohball, and the Storypeople.

Episodes

65 episodes were produced, making up three seasons.

Season 1 (2003-2004)

• "Skipping Rope" (19 January 2004)
• "Pearly Shells" (20 January 2004)
• "Rope and Rock" (21 January 2004)
• "Magical Pipe" (22 January 2004)
• "Windows" (23 January 2004)
• "Comfy Armchair" (26 January 2004)
• "Record Player" (27 January 2004)
• "Squeaky Socks" (28 January 2004)
• "Pile of Balls" (29 January 2004)
• "Painting the Fence" (30 January 2004)
• "Big Bass Drum" (2 February 2004)
• "Hammock" (3 February 2004)
• "Squeaky Seesaw" (4 February 2004)
• "Jack-in-the-Box" (5 February 2004)
• "Bubbles" (6 February 2004)
• "Couch and Cushions" (9 February 2004)
• "Big Comb" (10 February 2004)
• "The Big Ball" (11 February 2004)
• "Yellow Woolly Sweater" (12 February 2004)
• "The Bed" (13 February 2004)
• "The High Wall" (12 April 2004)
• "Cakes and String" (13 April 2004)
• "The Door" (14 April 2004)
• "Building Blocks" (15 April 2004)
• "Hot Dog" (16 April 2004)
• "Treasure Chest" (19 April 2004)
• "Flippers" (20 April 2004)
• "Two Hats" (21 April 2004)
• "Bells" (22 April 2004)
• "Shed" (23 April 2004)

Season 2 (2004-2005)

• "Shining Armor" (6 September 2004)
• "Flowers and Vase" (7 September 2004)
• "Leaky Hose" (8 September 2004)
• "Parping Horn" (9 September 2004)
• "Island" (10 September 2004)
• "Pencil Sharpener" (13 September 2004)
• "Following the Signs" (14 September 2004)
• "Tunnel" (15 September 2004)
• "Heavy Suitcase" (16 September 2004)
• "Beards" (17 September 2004)
• "Big Switch" (7 February 2005)
• "Paper Plane" (8 February 2005)
• "Droopy Flowers" (9 February 2005)
• "Sticky Wrapper" (10 February 2005)
• "Sailing Boat" (11 February 2005)
• "Bat and Ball" (14 February 2005)
• "Ice Cream Cone" (15 February 2005)
• "Stream" (16 February 2005)
• "Pulling the Rope" (17 February 2005)
• "Falling Oranges" (18 February 2005)

Season 3 (2005-2006)

• "Comfy Slippers" (5 September 2005)
• "Banana Split" (6 September 2005)
• "Crossroads" (7 September 2005)
• "Hole in the Fence" (8 September 2005)
• "Little White Cloud" (9 September 2005)
• "Fido's Bone" (12 September 2005)
• "Bucket and Spade" (13 September 2005)
• "Ball and Hoop" (14 September 2005)
• "Closet" (15 September 2005)
• "Camera" (16 September 2005)
• "Umbrella" (2 January 2006)
• "Flying Fish" (3 January 2006)
• "Unwinding Carpet" (4 January 2006)
• "Bouncy Castle" (5 January 2006)
• "Little Rocky Boat" (6 January 2006)

Broadcast

Boohbah aired in the United Kingdom on CITV, GMTV, and Nick Jr.. In the US it was shown on PBS Kids and Sprout. The programme aired on ABC in Australia. In Canada it aired on Treehouse and CBC. The programme was shown on SABC 2 in South Africa.

External links

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