Nickelodeon UK's, Nicktoons and Nick Jr. Channel's August 2011 Highlights

According to the Sky Media website, here are Nickelodeon UK's, Nicktoons and Nick Jr. Channel's highlights for August 2011:

Sneak Peek: T.U.F.F. Puppy
Nickelodeon
Starts Monday 29 August, 08.30

Tuff puppy is a comedy action show about an energetic dog named Dudley Puppy who finds himself accidentally thrust into the role of hero when he's recruited by the Super Secret Crime Fighting Organisation T.U.F.F (Turbo Undercover Fighting Force). Aided by his feminine feline partner Kitty Katswell - an amazing kung-fu and weapons expert - Dudley protects his hometown of Petropolis - and the rest of the world against the evil animal organization know as D.O.O.M (Diabolical Order of Mayhem).

Best Player (Film)
Nickelodeon
Saturday 27 August, 19.00

Although they couldn't have less in common, Chris "Prodigy" Saunders and Quincy "Q" are on a collision course. Chris is an unpopular high school student. Quincy is well past his 30th birthday and still lives in his parents' basement. The pastime these oddballs do share? Pwning noobs in an online gaming world called Black Hole. When Quincy's parents announce that they will be selling their house and leaving their son in the lurch, he enters a major gaming contest and seeks out the only opponent who can beat him - a mysterious master called "Prodigy." From this point on, Chris and Quincy's lives become impossibly tangled with hilarious results!

SpongeBob Week
NickToons
Monday 22 August - Sunday 28 August, 9.00 - 20.30

SpongeBob is here to brighten up your summer. Tune in to check out SpongeBob and gang in their adventures on NickToons this month!

Thomas the Tank Engine (New Episodes)
Nick Jr
Starts Monday 1 August, 14.00

Check out brand new episodes of Thomas the Tank engine and find out what exciting activities Thomas and friends get up to this month on Nick Jr! In all new CGI!

Also, according to digiguide, Nickelodeon UK will start to show one of Nickelodeon Australia's versions of Camp Orange called "Camp Orange Oz: Castle Mountain" from Tuesday 30th August 2011 at 11am.

Camp Orange Oz: Castle Mountain

A chance to see the original Australian Camp Orange series, direct from down under!

Nickelodeon UK To Premiere New Nickelodeon Show 'Supah Ninjas' In September 2011

According to Nickelodeon UK's official website for the upcoming brand new Nickelodeon show "Supah Ninjas", Nickelodeon UK will premiere "Supah Ninjas" on Monday 12th September 2011 at 6pm.

Below is a description of the brand new Nickelodeon show "Supah Ninjas" from Nickelodeon UK's official "Supah Ninjas" website:

Mike Fukanaga is quiet and a little shy, having never quite realised his potential. But his world is turned upside down when he discovers a secret underground dojo, where a hologram of his Grandpa awaits to train him in the ways of the Ninja. Mike discovers he is the latest in a long family line of Ninjas, and ultimately learns about leadership, friendship, and romance while saving Empire City from villains.

Also, here is a description of the brand new Nickelodeon show "Supah Ninjas" from Nickelodeon USA's official "Supah Ninjas" website:

About Supah Ninjas

Mike Fukanaga thought dealing with his jokester best friend, Owen Reynolds and trying to win the heart of his long time crush Amanda Mckay would be the biggest challenges in high school. Boy was he wrong. When Mike discovers that he comes from a long line of ninjas, he's ushered into the exciting world of crime-fighting, butt-kicking, and villain-battling. Mike & Owen team up as "Supah Ninjas" and begin training with Mike's grandpa a.k.a "Hologramps." Too bad it's not as easy as it sounds -- between dealing with drama at school and fighting super villains, these Supah Ninjas are in for one tough battle.

Nickelodeon Orders Second Season Of 'House of Anubis'

From Entertainment Weekly, via The official House Of Anubis Twitter page (@HouseOfAnubis):

Nick orders second season of 'House of Anubis'

Think tweens aren’t into telenovelas? Think again: Nickelodeon’s wildly popular live-action drama House of Anubis has been picked up for a second season after posting impressive numbers in its first year.

The live-action show, already an established hit for Nick in Europe, averaged 1.2 million kids ages 6-11 and 1.0 million tweens ages 9-14 when it aired five nights a week during its January and February run. Talk about a hit with the Clearasil set: The show beat Glee, Pretty Little Liars, and Gossip Girl among all kids and tweens.

House of Anubis follows a group of students who uncover and solve hidden mysteries at an English boarding school, while dealing with the highs and lows of their teenage years. In season 2, the teens undertake a series of challenges to find a powerful and long-forgotten treasure.

Production on the next 45 half-hour episodes will begin July 21 in Liverpool, England — where the show was taped last season. New episodes will premiere in 2012.

According to Toys 'n' Playthings, Nickelodeon will introduce several new characters in season two of House of Anubis, including Eddie (played by Burkely Duffield), a self-styled punk bad boy from America.

It is currently unknown whether there will be a new series of the Nickelodeon UK show Anubis Unlocked, which goes behind the scenes of The House of Anubis, and is presented by Nickelodeon UK presenters Jamie Rickers and Anna Williamson.

Also, from First News, the award-winning newspaper for kids:

First News interviews Brad Kavanagh from House of Anubis

In issue 270 of First News we ran a competition to win a walk on part in series two of Nickelodeon’s House of Anubis. You've still got until 2 September to enter, so Brad Kavanagh, who plays Fabian in the show, has some words of advice!

What advice would you give to anyone who wants to be an actor or for a reader who wins the walk on part on House of Anubis?

Oh wow, that’s amazing! I think the best advice for anyone wanting to be an actor on any TV show, or any kind of acting is just to be yourself and be willing to work hard. That’s the most important thing really to work and work and work and never give up. If you really, really want to do something then you just need to be dedicated.

What things should they know about being on a set? Is it as glamorous as it seems?

It is really glamorous and fun. I love my job so much but people should also know that it is really, really hard work. Some days you film all day long and are in every scene and then you have to go home and learn all your lines for the next day. Sometimes there are 10–15 pages of lines to learn per night. So it is hard work, but it is definitely worth it.

Do you have any advice for learning lines?

Sometimes you will have two or three lines and sometimes you’ll be in every scene and have loads of lines. I really like learning my lines and I pick them up quite quickly. I’d say the best thing would be to go home, get comfortable and put your comfy socks on, or whatever it is that makes you feel relaxed, and focus. Turn off the TV and radio and just go over them. Although sometimes I think a bit of Mozart is good for learning lines!

You've just started filming series two of House of Anubis. What’s it like being back on set?

It’s so nice, it’s really great to have everyone back together again. It doesn't feel like there's been six months off in between. I know everyone always says it but we really are such good friends and we’re spread all over the world, so it's nice to get back together to film.

The second season won’t be on TV until 2012. Can you tell us a bit about what’s in store?

I don't know too much as we've just started reading the scripts, but I think there’s going to be a lot more mystery and suspense. The eight characters are still at House of Anubis and there are lots of exciting things that are coming up. I will give you a bit of a sneak peek though and tell you we have some new characters coming in, which is really exciting! We all really wanted to make sure any new people coming into the show fitted in and felt at home and I think they do. It’s like they've always been here now!

At the end of season one Fabian shared a kiss with Nina – will there be romance in season two?

I hope so. I think a lot of the fans would like to see the romance go forward, they keep telling me on Twitter. I hope they both overcome their shyness to give it a go. I won’t spoil anything but I think they’re in for some trials in their relationship!

Watch House of Anubis series 1, weekdays at 12pm and 8pm on Nickelodeon. See nick.co.uk/anubis

To enter our competition to win a walk on part in series two go to www.firstnews.co.uk/competitions

Nickelodeon UK To Launch Channel Rebrand In February 2010

From Broadcast Now:

Nickelodeon drops splat for ‘older’ identity

Nickelodeon UK is ditching its famous orange splat as part of a major global rebrand.

From Friday, the main Nickelodeon channel will have a new typographical logo, which will be rolled out to Nick Jr and NickToons in the second quarter this year, and eventually used in all territories.

The move is also designed to skew Nickelodeon’s channels slightly older and tap into the “music generation”.

Peter Drake, Nickelodeon vice-president and creative director, told Broadcast: “Kids are becoming ‘older’ younger and the splat was playing a little young. This can take the channel into a more aspirational, contemporary place.”

He batted away suggestions that the move towards global uniformity and the January departure of longstanding UK managing director Howard Litton signalled a shift away from localised content.

“Howard was very passionate about UK commissioning but the fact that he has left doesn’t mean the passion has left,” he said.

Instead, the rebrand will free up cash for more UK shortform commissions and make it easier to repurpose local productions in many different territories, Drake said.

“Until now, we have had disparate looks around the world, but this means we can share creatives a lot more easily. It removes all the barriers, so I genuinely think this will get UK work out there much more than it is now.”

Also, from Digital Spy:

Nickelodeon UK to launch channel rebrand

Nickelodeon UK has announced plans to launch a new unified on-air and off-air branding for its major channels.

The rebranding project, which starts on February 15 for the flagship Nickelodeon channel, will include a completely new network logo.

Replacing the previous 'splat' symbol, the new logo will be a "simple, bold and timeless typographical execution which retains a link with the network's heritage while giving it a more contemporary feel".

The branding will be implemented on the TV channel, along with all related online platforms, consumer products and theatricals. Sister channels Nick Jr, Nick Jr 2, NickToons and NickToons Replay will also take on the new logo and branding during the second quarter.

Following the rebranding, the entire Nickelodeon global network will carry the same logo and on-air brand identity for the first time ever.

Nickelodeon UK introduced the 'splat' in 2003 to represent "how kids felt about rules, authority and being tidy", but the new logo is designed to "work everywhere, and play well with others".

"The channel rebrand signals a new global focus for the network; and an extremely exciting time for Nickelodeon," said Nickelodeon UK vice president of creative Peter Drake.

"The look is fresh, contemporary and addresses the needs of our audiences in a more relevant way. This simple and succinct execution offers a consistent stamp of approval which allows our characters, brands and properties to shine through - and do the talking. It has a contemporary feel and effectively enables us to leverage the power of our brands globally."

Last week, Nickelodeon UK also revealed plans to revamp its flagship pre-school mini-sites under the Nick Jr's brand to offer better structure and navigation.

Nick Jr Picks Up New Stop-Frame Series 'Toby’s Toy Circus' From Start-Up Komixx

From Broadcast Now:

Nick Jr picks up £4m stop-frame series from start-up Komixx

Nick Jr has ordered a stop-frame animation thought to be worth £4m about a little boy whose toys come to life.

The 52 x 10-minute Toby’s Toy Circus is being produced by children’s newcomer Komixx Entertainment and distributed by Target Entertainment Group. It was commissioned by Nickelodeon UK vice-president and programming director Debbie MacDonald and is lined up to air in late 2010 or early 2011.

Each episode of the pre-school series will begin as seven year-old Toby goes to bed and his favourite toys spring to life. Rather than sleeping, Toby forms a circus with his toy friends in which he is the ringmaster.

Grandpa In My Pocket writers Jan Page and Mellie Buse are penning the scripts and key characters include a horse called Giddy and two acrobats who fall out with each other - but learn they are better off working together.

“There is always a life lesson,” said MacDonald. “A lot of companies are moving out of stop-frame animation and into CGI, but we love that this is done in the traditional way. It’s a very sweet preschool series.”

MacDonald will executive produce with Target director of children’s and family entertainment Oliver Ellis. Co-production financing is still being thrashed out and a producer has yet to be named.

Separately, MacDonald has ruled out taking on Howard Litton’s old role as Nickelodeon UK managing director.

The Commissioning Index

Title: Toby’s Toy Circus

Broadcaster: Nick Jr

Producer: Komixx

Commissioner: Debbie MacDonald

Executive producers: Debbie MacDonald, Oliver Ellis

Length: 52 x 10 minutes

TX: late 2010/early 2011