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Australian children's television series From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bananas in Pyjamas is an Australian children's television series that first aired on 20 July 1992 on ABC. It has since been syndicated in many countries and dubbed into other languages. In the United States, the "Pyjamas" in the title was modified to reflect the American spelling pajamas. It aired in syndication from 1995 to 1997 as a half-hour series, then became a 15-minute show paired with a short-lived 15-minute series The Crayon Box, under a 30-minute block produced by Sachs Family Entertainment titled Bananas in Pajamas & The Crayon Box. Additionally, the characters and a scene from the show were featured in the Kids for Character sequel titled Kids for Character: Choices Count. The pilot episode was Pink Mug.
| Bananas in Pyjamas | |
|---|---|
| |
| Created by | Helena Harris |
| Directed by |
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| Starring |
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| Narrated by | Karina Kelly |
| Theme music composer | Carey Blyton |
| Opening theme | Bananas in Pyjamas by Trapaga Vocal Group |
| Ending theme | Bananas in Pyjamas (instrumental) |
| Composers |
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| Country of origin | Australia |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 6 |
| No. of episodes | 304 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Production location | ABC Studios |
| Running time | 5 minutes |
| Production company | Australian Broadcasting Corporation |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC-TV |
| Release | 20 July 1992 – 14 December 2001 |
The concept was inspired by the success of the song Bananas in Pyjamas, written by Carey Blyton in 1967, on Play School.[1][2] This song, which had become a regular item on Play School, became the theme of the new series. The series was revamped in May 2011 as a CGI animated series created by Southern Star Entertainment.
The main characters are two anthropomorphic bananas named B1 and B2. Other characters include the three teddy bears Amy, Lulu and Morgan, and Rat in a Hat. The bananas, the teddies and Rat in a Hat all live in the same neighbourhood, a cul-de-sac called "Cuddles Avenue". The bananas live next to the beach and serve as beach patrol. The teddies live next to and look after the park. Rat in a Hat works and lives at the community store. The characters enjoy eating "munchy honeycakes" and "yellow jelly".
The characters were inspired by a 1969 song written for children by British composer Carey Blyton (nephew of renowned children's author Enid Blyton). The jaunty song describes (an unspecified number of) bananas in pyjamas chasing teddy bears, with a slight twist at the end where a musical sting emphasises that the bananas like to "catch them unawares". The song was shown on the Australian version of Play School for many years accompanied by an animation depicting pairs of bananas in blue-and-white striped pyjamas. This led to a "banana" plush toy being created as part of the "toy cast", which formed the basis of the physical appearance of B1 and B2.
Creator, producer and showrunner Helena Harris devised the content of the ABC program at ABC Studios. Two of the bear characters, Amy and Morgan, are named after Helena Harris' children.[3] The show was performed using human actors in elaborate costumes, in the style of the British Tweenies and Teletubbies. In the show's early days, the voices of the bananas were provided by the same actors as were inside the costume, but the original actors eventually gave up that aspect of the show and substitutes wore the hot, stuffy costumes. The show aired new episodes from its 1992 debut to its eventual run in syndication in 2002. The show aired approximately three hundred episodes as well as four specials. Its debut in the United States was in 1995. It made videos and other media from 1995 to 1999. A toy line, developed by TOMY, debuted in 1996.
| Bananas in Pyjamas | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Helena Harris |
| Written by |
|
| Directed by | Craig Handley |
| Starring |
|
| Theme music composer | Carey Blyton |
| Opening theme | Bananas in Pyjamas by Rebecca Lavelle |
| Ending theme | Bananas in Pyjamas (instrumental) |
| Composer | Chris Harriott |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 156 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producer | Jacqueline Chan |
| Running time | 12 minutes |
| Production company | Southern Star Group |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC2 |
| Release | 2 May 2011 – 22 July 2013 |
On 2 May 2011, a reboot of Bananas in Pyjamas, produced by Southern Star Entertainment in full CGI, was premiered on ABC2 in Australia; it was shown in other countries soon after that date. It contains new songs, stories, and characters, including Topsy the cheeky kangaroo, Charlie the inventive monkey and Bernard the wise old dog. Development of the new series commenced in 2009, and production started in early 2010. The new series contains 104 12-minute episodes.[4][5]
The series has been released to home video, originally for VHS, later also for DVD.
The Bananas in Pyjamas were featured among other famous Australians during the parade of the 2000 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.[13]
In 2017, the Royal Australian Mint produced a commemorative set containing five-cent and 20-cent coins to mark the 25th anniversary of Bananas in Pyjamas. The five-cent coin, which is coloured for the first time, depicts Rat-in-a-Hat, while the twenty-cent coin depicts B1 and B2.[14]
| Year | Nominated works | Award | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | "We Like Wearing Pyjamas" (Franciscus Antheunis p.k.a. Franciscus Henri) | Most Performed Children's Work | Nominated | |
| Year | Nominated works | Award | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Bananas in Pyjamas | Best Children's Album | Nominated | |
| 1996 | It's Singing Time! | Nominated | ||
| 1999 | It's Show Time! | Best Original Cast/Show Recording | Nominated | |
| 2005 | Sing And Be Happy | Best Children's Album | Nominated | [16] |
| 2012 | Playtime! | Nominated |
| Year | Nominated works | Award | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Bananas in Pyjamas Special | International | Nominated | [18] |
| Year | Nominated works | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Bananas in Pyjamas | Most Popular Children's Program | Nominated |
| 2000 | Most Outstanding Children's Program | Nominated |
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