Brum (TV series)

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources:  –  ·  ·  · scholar · JSTOR (November 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Brum
Created by	Frank Beattie Anne Wood
Developed by	Ragdoll Productions BBC Television
Starring	Brum
Narrated by	Toyah Willcox (1991–1994) Tom Wright (2001–2002) Sarah Wichall (2001–2002)
Ending theme	"Brum Brum (Gets Things Done)"
Composers	Andrew McCrorie-Shand (Season 1) Robert Hartley (Season 2) Paul Honey Howard McGill (Season 3)
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	3
No. of episodes	66
Production
Executive producers	Tom Poole Vic Finch
Running time	10-15 minutes
Production company	Ragdoll Productions
Distributor	HIT Entertainment (Seasons 1-2, except UK[1]) Ragdoll Productions (Seasons 3-5)
Release
Original network	BBC One
Picture format	4:3 (1991–1994) 16:9 (2001–2002)
Audio format	Dolby Surround
Original release	26 September 1991 (1991-09-26) – 4 November 2002 (2002-11-04)

Brum (/ˈbrʌm/), also known as The Adventures of Brum, is a British children's television series about the adventures of a small, sentient vintage car. The series was originally narrated by Toyah Willcox, who also provided the voice for Brum and all the characters. The show aired for five series between 1991 and 2002 with two revived CGI series airing in 2016. The show was first aired on BBC One on the children's block, Children's BBC (CBBC).

Set in Birmingham, England and produced by Ragdoll Productions, Brum was first broadcast in 1991 and the last live action series was broadcast in 2002. It was initially directed, written and produced by Anne Wood and initially narrated by Toyah Willcox who also provided the voice for Brum and all the characters in story form. From series 3, all the characters including Brum were silent except for the car noises. The narrator provided commentary rather than the previous story form. A new CGI-animated series, aimed at young pre-school children, was produced in 2016.

Plot and setting[]

Brum is the story of a small, sentient replica car who ventures out into Big Town when his owner isn't looking, and gets up to all manner of adventures. Each episode begins and ends in the same way, with Brum leaving the other cars in the motor museum when the owner's back is turned and heading out to explore Big Town, before eventually returning to his place. Each series has had its own background music. From series 1–2, the introduction music was the same, but in series 2, they used different instruments. From Series 3–5, the music became jazzy and a new title sequence was directed by Nigel P. Harris.

The car can express himself in various mechanical ways including opening and closing his doors and bonnet, bobbing his suspension, and flashing and swivelling. The actors in Brum do not speak – mime and off-screen narration help propel the story. It was therefore easy to prepare episodes for airing in other countries, and the series has been broadcast in many parts of the world and in many languages.

The stories are set in the city of Birmingham, England, since in addition to its onomatopoeic nature of a car engine revving, Brum (as a contraction of "Brummagem") is a common colloquial name for Birmingham. Although later series make no direct mention of Birmingham, calling it simply Big Town, many of the city's streets and landmarks can be seen in each episode.

The show was written by a range of writers. Anne Wood primarily wrote all the first series, while the second was written by Tom Poole, Dirk Campbell, Andrew Davenport and Morgan Hall. The last two series were written by Nigel P. Harris (5 Episodes) and the existing Ragdoll team.

The car itself – a half-scale replica of a late-1920s Austin 7 Chummy convertible – was designed and built by Rex Garrod. It is now housed at the Cotswold Motoring Museum in Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, which is also where the opening and closing sequences of the programme were filmed.

Characters[]

1990s[]

• Museum Owner (Mike Cavanagh): The owner of the car museum where Brum lives. He is the only human character who appears in every episode and the only character who is apparently oblivious to Brum's adventures, despite finding items in Brum's backseat at the end of each episode in Series 1 and 2. The actor, Mike Cavanagh, actually owned the Cotswold Motor Museum until 1999.
• The Lollipop Lady (Shirley-Anne Bohm): A lady who helps people, and Brum, cross the road safely, she appears in every episode in the second series.
• WPC Truncheon (Deborah Grant): the police officer in Big Town.
• The Big Town Robber (Andrew Davenport): Always up to mischief, the robber's antics include stealing the trophy for the big race. Brum is usually the one that foils his plans as seen in "Brum and the Big Chase/Dancing in the Street", and "Brum and the Big Town Race/Brum and the Trophy".
• Mr. and Mrs. La-Di-Dah: A posh married couple who regularly featured in the second series.
• Mr. and Mrs. Doolally (Mark Barnsley) A friendly, if slightly absent-minded, couple who regularly featured in the first and second series.
• Vicky Spoon: A regular cast member of the second series, Vicky is Brum's special friend.
• Micky Mender: A handyman, a regular cast member of the second series.
• Big Town Bullies (Shazad Mahmood and Georgina Treharne)
• The Scrap Dealers (Dave Evans and Mark Walter)
• Two Masked Bank Robbers (Robert Goodman and Barry Robinson)

2000s[]

• Traffic Policeman (Mark Powlett): A "knockabout" policeman, who owns a horse called Arrow.
• Granny Slippers (Linda Kerr Scott): An old lady who wears slippers wherever she goes. She also has a kitten named Lucky.
• The Visiting Man (Jos Houben): A tourist who loves taking photographs with his camera, especially Brum.
• Mr. Brillo (Rob Thirtle): A man who lives next door to Granny Slippers. His favourite picture is the Gnoma Lisa. He has loads of gnomes in his garden.
• Gorgeous Gordon (Enoch White): A self-centred, full-of-himself hairdresser who wears a wig as hair.
• Bob & Job (Kevin McGreevy & Adam Schumacher): Two comically clumsy men, who wear green dungarees and yellow T-shirts and help the town in a way of slapstick style from Laurel and Hardy.
• Scruffy: Brum's friend, a dog who loves burying things.
• Big Town Mayor (John Woodford): The town manager.
• The Visiting Lady (Iona Kennedy / Carole Davies): The Visiting Man's wife who lives in the town.
• The Mayoress: The mayor of Big Town
• The Celebrity (Johnnie Fiori): A celebrity who appeared in the episode 'Brum and the Airport Adventure' when she had her jewels stolen by Bubble & Squeak at the Big Town Airport.
• Sally: A woman in the Big Town who had her cake stolen by teenagers on her birthday in the episode "Brum and the Birthday Cake/Brum and the Cake Gang".
• Policewoman (Lisa Allen)
• Rob & Nick (Dan Carey and Jason Segade): A bumbling pair of thieves who are best known for stealing Mr. Brillo's gnome, robbing the golf buggy at the Big Town Golf Course, a posh celebrity's dog, Money hat from the artist and a waiter's apron at the pizza restaurant.
• Bubble & Squeak (Chalky Skywalker Chawner and Paul Jackson): A pair of thieves who appeared in Brum and the Airport Adventure, Brum and the Bank Robbers/Brum and the Heavy Safe, and Brum and the Golden Loo.
• Big Bad (Paul Filipiak) Appeared in Brum and the Pantomime Cow/Brum and the Theatrical Thieves, Brum and the Snow Thieves, Brum and the Splash and Grab and Brum - Chasing Balloons.
• Big Bad's 1st Girlfriend (Christine Nayrolles) Appeared in Brum and the Snow Thieves, Brum an the Shop Window Dummy/Brum and the Mannequin.
• Big Bad's 2nd Girlfriend (Kay Stanley) Appeared in Brum and the Splash and Grab.
• Big Bad's Girlfriend (Justine Marriott) Appeared in Bushes on the Run.
• Big Bad's Assistant (Eric Mallett) Appeared in Brum and the Pantomime Cow/Brum and the Theatrical Thieves with Big Bad, Bushes on the Run with his girlfriend.
• The Shadow (Miles Anthony) A menacing thief who appeared in Brum and the King of Thieves and Brum and the Gorilla Caper.
• Pickpocket Polly (Catherine Marimer): A thief who stole a wallet from a visiting man, and, of course, she took the items from people and put them in her swag bag.
• Penny Pincher (Julia West) Appeared in Brum and the Music Box and Brum and the Stopwatch Botch.
• Cake Gang: (Kerry Dean, Gavin Cooper, David Smith, Charmaine Samuels and Liam Mullan) : A group of greedy teenagers who stole a birthday cake from Sally in "Brum and the Birthday Cake/Brum and the Cake Gang".
• Magic Paul (Andy Dawson) a Magician who is his assistant of Pickpocket Polly
• The Beady-Eyed Robber (Heather Tyrrell) Appeared in Brum and the Stolen Necklace. .

Episodes[]

Series 1 (1991) (EU)/(1997) (NA)[]

• 1. Brum to the Rescue - 4 February 1991/1997 (production), 26 September 1991/1997 (TV)
• 2. Brum and the Kite – 11 February 1991/1997 (production), 3 October 1991/1997 (TV)
• 3. Brum and the Scrapyard – 18 February 1991/1997 (production), 10 October 1991/1997 (TV)
• 4. Brum at the Opera – 25 February 1991/1997 (production), 17 October 1991/1997 (TV)
• 5. Brum and the Mad Mower – 4 March 1991/1997 (production), 24 October 1991/1997 (TV)
• 6. Brum at the Seaside – 11 March 1991/1997 (production), 31 October 1991/1997 (TV)
• 7. Brum and the Little Girl Lost – 18 March 1991/1997 (production), 7 November 1991/1997 (TV)
• 8. Brum and the Wheels – 25 March 1991/1997 (production), 14 November 1991/1997 (TV)
• 9. Brum and the Removal Van – 8 April 1991/1997 (production), 28 November 1991/1997 (TV)
• 10. Brum and the Magician – 15 April 1991/1997 (production), 5 December 1991/1997 (TV)
• 11. Brum and the Runaway Pram – 22 April 1991/1997 (production), 12 December 1991/1997 (TV)
• 12. Brum on Safari – 29 April 1991/1997 (production), 19 December 1991/1997 (TV)
• 13. Brum and the Stilt Walker – 1 April 1991/1997 (production), 26 December 1991/1997 (TV)

Series 2 (1994) (EU)/(2000) (NA)[]

• 14. Brum and the Helicopter – 6 October 1994/2000
• 15. Brum and the Crane – 13 October 1994/2000
• 16. Brum Goes Ice Skating – 20 October 1994/2000
• 17. Brum Dances in the Street – 27 October 1994/2000
• 18. Brum at a Wedding – 3 November 1994/2000
• 19. Brum and the Rascally Robber – 10 November 1994/2000
• 20. Brum and the Supermarket – 17 November 1994/2000
• 21. Brum and the Very Windy Day – 24 November 1994/2000
• 22. Brum and the Street Party – 1 December 1994/2000
• 23. Brum and the Naughty Kitten – 8 December 1994/2000
• 24. Brum and the Marching Band – 15 December 1994/2000
• 25. Brum and the Flood – 22 December 1994/2000
• 26. Brum Goes House Painting – 29 December 1994/2000

Series 3 (2001-2002) (EU)/(2007-2008) (NA)[]

This season no longer included a narrator but instead it had children commenting on what was happening. This season shows Brum as a super car, stopping thieves in many of the episodes and even had a new song at the end of each episode which is praised even today.

• 27. Brum and the Airport Adventure – 3 September 2001/2007
• 28. Brum and the Naughty Dog – 10 September 2001/2007
• 29. Brum and the Pizzeria – 17 September 2001/2007
• 30. Brum and the Gymnast – 24 September 2001/2007
• 31. Brum and the King of Thieves – 1 October 2001/2007
• 32. Brum and the Skateboarding Bride – 8 October 2001/2007
• 33. Brum-Chasing Balloons – 15 October 2001/2007
• 34. Brum and the Stolen Necklace – 22 October 2001/2007
• 35. Brum and the Pantomime Cow – 29 October 2001/2007
• 36. Brum and the Runaway Train – 5 November 2001/2007
• 37. Brum and the Birthday Cake – 12 November 2001/2007
• 38. Brum and the Mobile Phone – 19 November 2001/2007
• 39. Brum-Bushes on the Run – 26 November 2001/2007
• 40. Brum and the Diamond Dog – 3 December 2001/2007
• 41. Brum and the Music Box – 10 December 2001/2007
• 42. Brum and the Runaway Statue - 17 December 2001/2007
• 43. Brum and the Snow Thieves – 27 December 2001/2007
• 44. Brum and the Kitten Rescue - 8 April 2002/2008
• 45. Brum and the Splash and Grab – 15 April 2002/2008
• 46. Brum and the Golden Loo – 22 April 2002/2008
• 47. Brum and the Golf Buggy – 29 April 2002/2008
• 48. Brum the Soccer Hero – 6 May 2002/2008
• 49. Brum and the Rampant Robot – 13 May 2002/2008
• 50. Brum and the Shop Window Dummy – 20 May 2002/2008
• 51. Brum and the Bowling Alley – 27 May 2002/2008
• 52. Brum the Basketball Star – 3 June 2002/2008
• 53. Brum and the Gorilla Caper – 10 June 2002/2008
• 54. Brum and the Runaway Sofa – 17 June 2002/2008
• 55. Brum and the Kidnapped Garden Gnome – 24 June 2002/2008
• 56. Brum and the Runaway Ball – 1 July 2002/2008
• 57. Brum and the Stunt Bike Rescue – 2 September 2002/2008
• 58. Brum and the Stopwatch Botch – 9 September 2002/2008
• 59. Brum and the Cream Balloon – 16 September 2002/008
• 60. Brum and the Pickpocket – 23 September 2002/2008
• 61. Brum and the Daring Gnome Rescue – 30 September 2002/2008
• 62. Brum and the Mischievous Mouse – 7 October 2002/2008
• 63. Brum and the Bank Robbers – 14 October 2002/2008
• 64. Brum and the Runaway Rickshaw – 21 October 2002/2008
• 65. Brum and the Paint Pandemonium – 28 October 2002/2008
• 66. Brum and the Crazy Chair Chase – 4 November 2002/2008

Telecast[]

The show was first aired on BBC One on the children's block, Children's BBC (CBBC), as well as airing on satellite and pay television where it was screened on TCC and Living, and also aired in the USA on Discovery Kids, in Canada On YTV in Australia on ABC, Max, Nickelodeon, ABC Kids and ABC2, in Brunei on RTB, in India on Pogo, in Indonesia on ANTV, in Singapore on Kids Central, in South Africa on SABC 2 (with both an English dub and an Afrikaans dub) and CBeebies, in Kenya on KBC, in New Zealand on TV2 and TV3, in Namibia on NBC, in Zimbabwe on ZTV, in Ireland on RTÉ, in Germany on BFBS and SSVC Television, in the Netherlands on Nederland 3, in Bangladesh on BTV, in Malaysia on TV3 and in the Emirates on Dubai 33.

DHX Media revivals[]

February 2016 saw the release of a rebooted Brum, made by the current owners of the franchise DHX Media. The show is now takes place in a white-coloured setting instead of Big Town and features new friends for Brum. The first episode, "Brum's Car Wash Adventure", premiered on 4 March 2016 via the official Brum YouTube channel.^[2] A total of 25 CGI episodes were produced, with a second series currently airing.

Another series, this time animated using Toon Boom Harmony Animation called "Brum & Friends" premiered on the channel in September 2017.

Kiddie ride[]

A coin operated kiddie ride of Brum was made by Amutec Ltd. 3 versions were made in the years 2004, 2005 and 2006.

UK VHS/DVD Releases[]

• Brum - Rescue and Other Stories (1991) (VHS)
• Brum - Wheels and Other Stories (1992) (VHS)
• Learn with Brum: Safari Park and other stories (1992) (VHS)
• Brum: Stilts, Seaside & Rescue (1994) (Very rare Watch and Play VHS release which contains the following episodes listed)
• Children's Choice (1992) (Compilation VHS which contains the episode, "Brum and the Pram")
• Brum - Bumper Special: Seaside and 9 Other Stories (1993) (VHS)
• Brum: 2 on 1 - Rescue/Wheels and other stories (1995) (VHS)
• Brum and the Helicopter and Other stories (1994) (VHS)
• Brum - The Big Chase and other stories (1995) (VHS)
• Brum - The Naughty Kitten and Other Stories (1995) (VHS)
• Brum - The Little Drummer Boy and other stories (1995) (VHS)
• My Little Brum - Brum and the Big Chase/Ice Skating Star (1996) (VHS)
• My Little Brum - Brum and the Helicopter/The Wedding (1996) (VHS)
• Brum - Biggest Party Video (1998) (VHS)
• Brum: Airport and Other Stories (2001) (VHS/DVD) (there was also an extremely rare M&S/Marks & Spencer VHS release of Airport which has "Brum and the Runaway Train" as a bonus episode, which was released in early 2002)
• Brum: Snow Thieves and Other Stories (2002) (VHS/DVD)
• Brum: Runaway Statue (2002) (The VHS was released in 2002, the DVD was released in 2004)
• Brum: Soccer Hero and Other Stories (The VHS was released in 2002, whilst the DVD was issued in 2004, it was only released in carry case form)
• Brum: Stunt Bike Rescue and Other Stories (2003) (VHS/DVD)
• Brum: Crazy Chair Chase and other stories (2003) (VHS/DVD)
• Brum - Kitten Rescue and other stories (2003) (VHS/DVD)
• Brum - Stopwatch Botch and other stories (2004) (VHS/DVD)
• The Very Best of Brum (2004) (VHS/DVD) (The DVD release contains "Brum and the Pickpocket" as a bonus episode whilst the VHS release doesn't)

References[]

External links[]

• Brum at IMDb