Mio Mao

Mio Mao (pronounced me-o mow [ˈmiː.o mɑu̯]), also known as Mio and Mao, is an Italian-British stop-motion animated preschool children's television series created by Francesco Misseri in the 1970s, produced using Claymation animation.^[1]

Mio Mao
Polish DVD cover
Genre	Children's Claymation Educational
Created by	Francesco Misseri
Written by	Francesco Misseri
Directed by	Ianfranco Baldi (series 1)
Narrated by	Derek Griffiths (Five)
Theme music composer	Piero Barbetti
Opening theme	"Mio Mao"
Ending theme	"Mio Mao"
Country of origin	Italy United Kingdom (series 2 and 3)
No. of series	3
No. of episodes	78
Production
Producer	Augusic Righi (series 1)
Running time	4-5 minutes
Production companies	1974 series: PMBB 2005 series: Misseri Studio Associati Audiovisivi
Original release
Network	Programma Nazionale (series 1) Five (series 2 and 3)
Release	1974 (1974) – 2007 (2007)

The original series was produced by PMBB and aired on Programma Nazionale in 1974. After Francesco Misseri's production company Misseri Studio acquired Mio Mao in 2000 and remastered series 1 in 2003, Misseri Studio and Associati Audiovisivi created two more series for Five's Milkshake! block in 2005 and 2007. In the United Kingdom, the episodes are narrated and the characters are voiced by Derek Griffiths. Mio Mao has aired on BabyFirst in the United States.

Plot

Each episode is approximately five minutes long and focuses on the kittens Mio and Mao. As the episode progresses, they discover a variety of mysterious animals and objects on the other side. The garden changes appearance depending on the theme of the episode, or the animal or object featured.

The kittens go to investigate alone, they sometimes forget about the animal or object and wander off to look at the scenery. After a while, they get there but return scared, before watching from a distance and discovering that the scary item was either a friendly animal or a fun object.

Often, near the end of the episode, the animal or object will need help, and Mio and Mao come to their rescue, then invite the animal or object to come play with them. Gracious, the animal or object follows them as they squish and bounce back to the other side, posing together and looking at the viewers as the episode draws to a close, with the words “THE END”.

List of episodes

Series 1 (1974)

1. The Peacock
2. The Little Lamb
3. The Ants
4. The Chameleon
5. The Beehive
6. The Spider
7. The Tortoise
8. The Caterpillar
9. The Cicada
10. The Egg
11. The Snake
12. The Dog
13. The Dormouse
14. The Polyp
15. The Hippopotamus
16. The Squirrel
17. The Monkey
18. The Hedgehog
19. The Shell
20. The Tadpole
21. The Snail
22. The Owl
23. The Mole
24. The Beaver
25. The Piglet
26. The Hare

Series 2 (2005-06)

1. The Fox
2. The Worm
3. The Anteater
4. The Seed
5. The Cricket
6. The Swan
7. The Turkey
8. The Crocodile
9. The Racoon
10. The Crab
11. The Penguin
12. The Little Bear
13. The Christmas Tree
14. The Snowman
15. The Seal
16. The Parrot
17. The Mushroom
18. The Dragonfly
19. The Bat
20. The Chestnut
21. The Hornet
22. The Kangaroo
23. The Cow
24. The Ladybird
25. The Donkey
26. The Koala

Series 3 (2006-07)

1. The Deer
2. The Elephant
3. The Mouse
4. The Ostrich
5. The Pelican
6. The Dove
7. The Kingfisher
8. The Television
9. The Claw
10. The Dolphin
11. The Ghost
12. The Goldfish
13. The Zebra
14. The Vacuum Cleaner
15. The Sky Terrier
16. The Sloth
17. The Gorilla
18. The Jinn
19. The Bull
20. The Train
21. The Little Theater
22. The Tap
23. The UFO
24. The Vulture
25. The Piano
26. The Dinosaur

References

1. Crump, William D. (2019). Happy Holidays—Animated! A Worldwide Encyclopedia of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year's Cartoons on Television and Film. McFarland & Co. p. 68. ISBN 9781476672939.

External links

• Misseri Studio's YouTube Channel