Summerton Mill
Encyclopedia
Summerton Mill is a British children's television series
created by Pete Bryden and Ed Cookson. It was first shown on the CBeebies
channel in 2005 as a segment of the BBC
's Tikkabilla
. It has subsequently been repeated both within Tikkabilla and as a standalone show on CBeebies and BBC2.
It is a stop-motion animated series featuring the characters Dan, his companion Fluffa, Dr and Mrs Naybhur who live up on the hill, Francoise the cow, Mousey-Tongue the cat, two "yellow-spinner" chickens and the "millfreaks", tiny creatures which appear to resemble small, furry hedgehogs.
In all, twenty-six episodes (and a pilot episode) have been produced, and the show has been broadcast in several European and Middle Eastern countries, including Iceland
, Finland
, Slovenia
, Slovakia
, and Iran
.
) provided the voices of Bill and Ben
, Captain Pugwash
, the Daleks and The Woodentops
.
Although the series is made very much in the style of Oliver Postgate's Smallfilms
, much of the background humour is in a similar vein to that of Aardman Animation's Creature Comforts
.
Summerton Mill was inspired by Somerton Mill, a riverside property owned by Pete Bryden.
The iTeddy children's media player, featured on the British TV series Dragons' Den
, was distributed throughout the United Kingdom via the Argos
chain of stores and came loaded with an episode of Summerton Mill, with others available from the iTeddy website.
Children's television series
Children's television series, are commercial television programs designed for, and marketed to children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run in the early evening, for the children that go to school...
created by Pete Bryden and Ed Cookson. It was first shown on the CBeebies
CBeebies
CBeebies is the brand used by the BBC for programming aimed at children 6 years and under. It is used as a themed strand in the UK on terrestrial television, as a separate free-to-air domestic British channel and used for international varients supported by advertising, subscription or both...
channel in 2005 as a segment of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Tikkabilla
Tikkabilla
Tikkabilla is a UK children's television programme, shown on BBC1, BBC2 and on the CBeebies channel.The programme aims to educate pre-school children in an entertaining manner...
. It has subsequently been repeated both within Tikkabilla and as a standalone show on CBeebies and BBC2.
It is a stop-motion animated series featuring the characters Dan, his companion Fluffa, Dr and Mrs Naybhur who live up on the hill, Francoise the cow, Mousey-Tongue the cat, two "yellow-spinner" chickens and the "millfreaks", tiny creatures which appear to resemble small, furry hedgehogs.
In all, twenty-six episodes (and a pilot episode) have been produced, and the show has been broadcast in several European and Middle Eastern countries, including Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, and Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
.
Additional information
The series is voiced by Silas Hawkins, whose father (Peter HawkinsPeter Hawkins
Peter John Hawkins was an English actor and voice artist.- Career :Born in London and a native of Brixton, Hawkins' long association with British children's television began in 1952 when he voiced both Bill and Ben, the Flower Pot Men. In 1955–1956, He voiced Big Ears & Mr. Plod from The...
) provided the voices of Bill and Ben
Bill and Ben
The names Bill and Ben, when used together, may refer to:*Bill and Ben, The Flower Pot Men children's television show*Bill and Ben, locomotive characters from The Railway Series children's books by Rev. W...
, Captain Pugwash
Captain Pugwash
Captain Pugwash is a fictional pirate in a series of British children's comic strips and books created by John Ryan. The character's adventures were adapted into a TV series, using cardboard cut-outs filmed in live-action , also called Captain Pugwash, first shown on the BBC in 1957, a later colour...
, the Daleks and The Woodentops
The Woodentops
The Woodentops are a British rock band that have enjoyed critical acclaim and moderate popularity in the mid-1980s.-History:The band formed in 1983 in South London with an initial line-up of Rolo McGinty , Simon Mawby , Alice Thompson , Frank DeFreitas , and Paul Hookham .After a...
.
Although the series is made very much in the style of Oliver Postgate's Smallfilms
Smallfilms
Smallfilms was a British company that made animated television programmes for children, from 1959 to the 1980s. It was a partnership between Oliver Postgate and Peter Firmin . Several very popular series of short films were made using stop-motion animation, including The Clangers, Noggin the Nog,...
, much of the background humour is in a similar vein to that of Aardman Animation's Creature Comforts
Creature Comforts
Creature Comforts was originally a 1989 British humorous animated short film about how animals feel about living in a zoo, featuring the voices of the British public "spoken" by the animals. It was created by Nick Park and Aardman Animations...
.
Summerton Mill was inspired by Somerton Mill, a riverside property owned by Pete Bryden.
The iTeddy children's media player, featured on the British TV series Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den is a series of reality television programmes featuring entrepreneurs pitching their business ideas in order to secure investment finance from a panel of venture capitalists. The show originated in Japan as "Manē no Tora"...
, was distributed throughout the United Kingdom via the Argos
Argos (retailer)
Argos is the largest general-goods retailer in the United Kingdom and Ireland with over 800 stores. It is unique amongst major retailers in the UK in that it is a catalogue merchant...
chain of stores and came loaded with an episode of Summerton Mill, with others available from the iTeddy website.
Episodes
- Pilot episode (Extended Introduction)
- The Hole
- Kite Flying
- The Sock Thing
- Wing Nuts
- Hiding
- Dr Naybhur's Song
- Cheering Up
- The Baby Millfreak
- Lost and Found
- Mrs Naybhur's Vegetables (Rework of the pilot episode)
- Chinese Whispers
- The Picnic
- Mrs Naybhur's Poem
- Buried Treasure
- Counting the Stones
- Dan's Amazing Magic Show
- The Lazy Day
- Dan's Little Job
- Laughing
- The Story
- Painting
- Statue
- Dan's Seeds
- Dr Naybhur's Balloon
- The Bottle Organ
- The Present