‘Teletubbies‘ are set to return to BBC with 60 new episodes.
Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa, and Po, who became worldwide sensations in the late 1990s will return for new episodes on BBC.
During the late late 1990s and early 2000s you could not go anywhere without hearing about the ‘Teletubbies‘. They were one of the most popular pre-school TV series and caused parents to search stores across the country in order to get their child a Teletubbie doll.
Although the program is aimed at children between the ages of one and four, it had a large cult following with older generations, mainly university and college students.
The mixture of bright colours, unusual designs, repetitive non-verbal dialogue, ritualistic format, and the occasional forays into physical comedy appealed to many who considered the show as having psychedelic qualities. Teletubbies was controversial for this reason. Other critics felt the show was insufficiently educational.
Teletubbies was also at the centre of a controversy when American televangelist and conservative pundit Jerry Falwell claimed in 1999 that Tinky Winky, one of the Teletubbies, was a homosexual role model for children.
Now, BBC is planning on reviving the TV series with 60 new episodes. The new TV series will be broadcast on a replica set of the original but, will feature enhanced CGI graphics to give a modern look and feel. According to the BBC, new episodes will premiere on CBeebies, BBC’s child network.
“I think that now is the right time to create new episodes of this much-loved, iconic show for the current CBeebies audience,” said Kay Benbow, controller of CBeebies.
New episodes will be produced by Darrall McQueen, a UK production company that has also produced “Baby Jake” and “Topsy and Tim” for CBeebies.
Maddy Darrall, executive producer for Darrall McQueen, said, “To work on the new evolution of ‘Teletubbies’ is like being handed the television crown jewels. ‘Teletubbies’ changed the landscape of children’s television and remains a much-loved pre-school series.” Darrall continued, “Our creative focus is on respecting the legacy and the heritage of the original and giving it a little creative scrub-up and technological sparkle to match the viewing expectations of a new generation.”
There is no word as to when the new Teletubbies series will premiere in the United States. But, assuming from the popularity in the 1990’s, it should be rather quickly.
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