Toronto, ON – February 4, 2025 – WildBrain, a global leader in kids’ and family entertainment, has signed a deal to bring the witchy new animated kids’ series, Badjelly, to UK audiences with ITV, Britain’s largest commercial broadcaster and streamer.
Based on the beloved book, Badjelly the Witch: A Fairy Story, by renowned comedian Spike Milligan, and starring a stellar voice cast including Miriam Margolyes, Rhys Darby, Ava Diakhaby and rising star Malachi Hall, the series delivers a fresh take on this classic story for today’s kids, all while preserving the crazy humour, bizarre situations and quirky characters from the original tale. Badjelly is produced by New Zealand’s Mukpuddy Animation, the UK’s Cantilever Media and Canada’s Sphere Media.
Darren Nartey, Senior Acquisitions Manager: Films & Kids at ITV, said: “We’re proud to be extending our fantastic kids’ offering with Badjelly, and we’re sure our younger viewers will love spending time with these great characters when the series launches on ITV this autumn.”
Katie Wilson, VP Global Sales and Acquisitions at WildBrain, said: “ITV is the perfect partner to introduce—or reintroduce—the world of Badjelly to UK audiences. With a weird and wonderful story from comic genius Spike Milligan, beautiful animation from Mukpuddy, Cantilever and Sphere, and a powerhouse cast, Badjelly is an enchanting and hilarious series that ITV’s audiences are sure to fall in love with.”
Carys Rowan, Head of Creative at Cantilever Media and Producer of Badjelly, added: “We’re delighted to partner with ITV to launch Badjelly in the UK. Spike Milligan’s legacy is a cherished part of British comedy, so it’s only right that the show finds its home here. This has been a dream project, with a team united by a vision to create funny, relatable, and visually stunning content that speaks to children in a meaningful way. We’re so proud to be part of it.”
Distributed globally by WildBrain (excluding ANZ), Badjelly (13 x 22’) tells the exciting and hilarious story of two curious kids whose future is in the balance after their beloved cow is cow-napped. Will they be made into boy/girl soup to rehydrate the desiccated has-been, Badjelly? Or will they enlist the help of a paranoid sausage-hatted tree goblin, a rusty metal lion, an inhumanly strong worm and an ex-banana mouse to defeat evil and win a bonus giant?
Commissioned by New Zealand’s TVNZ and WildBrain Television’s Family Channel in Canada, Badjelly is produced in association with Te Puna Kairangi Premium Productions for International Audiences Fund, NZ On Air and UK Global Screen Fund.
For more information, please contact:
Aimée Norman at Liberi Consulting, external PR for WildBrain
+44 (0) 7957 564 050
About WildBrain
At WildBrain we inspire imaginations through the wonder of storytelling. As a leader in 360° franchise management, we are experts in content creation, audience engagement and global licensing, cultivating and growing love for our own and partner brands around the world. With approximately 14,000 half-hours of kids’ and family content in our library—one of the world’s most extensive—we are home to such treasured franchises as Peanuts, Teletubbies, Strawberry Shortcake, Yo Gabba Gabba!, Inspector Gadget and Degrassi. WildBrain’s mission is to create exceptional entertainment experiences that captivate and delight fans both young and young at heart.
Our studios produce such award-winning series as The Snoopy Show; Snoopy in Space; Camp Snoopy; Strawberry Shortcake: Berry in the Big City; Sonic Prime; Chip and Potato; Teletubbies Let’s Go! and many more. Enjoyed in more than 150 countries on over 500 platforms, our content is everywhere kids and families view entertainment, including YouTube, where our network has garnered approximately 1.5 trillion minutes of watch time. Our television group owns and operates some of Canada’s most loved family entertainment channels. WildBrain CPLG, our leading consumer-products and location-based entertainment agency, represents our owned and partner properties in every major territory worldwide.
WildBrain is headquartered in Canada with offices worldwide and trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: WILD). Visit us at wildbrain.com.
About ITVX
Launched in late 2022, ITVX is UK’s freshest streaming service, letting viewers stream new programme exclusives, with adverts, for free; ranging from premium dramas, documentaries, US series, comedy and reality shows to blockbuster films and much, much more. ITVX is the first streaming service in the UK to offer viewers the flexibility to access free content with ads and ad-free paid subscription, all in one place. Paying subscribers also have access to BritBox UK. ITVX live streams must-watch events, from live sport to Love Island, as they are broadcast on ITV’s channels. ITVX also offers an ever-changing host of exclusive themed channels in line with viewer preferences and popularity; these constantly evolving pop-up channels provide a scheduled experience through a streaming service.
For more information on ITVX please contact itvxpublicity@itv.com and visit our press centre.
About Cantilever Media
Cantilever Media’s most successful film to date is the award-winning The Amazing Maurice, a family animated feature for Sky Cinema based on the award-winning book The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents by Sir Terry Pratchett. Written by Terry Rossio (Shrek, Aladdin) and co-produced with Ulysses Productions in Germany, the film features an all-star UK cast, including Hugh Laurie, Emilia Clarke, David Thewlis, Himesh Patel, Gemma Arterton, Hugh Bonneville, Ariyon Bakare, and David Tennant. The film has won several awards, including a British Animation Award and accolades at Cartoons On the Bay. It was longlisted for both the BAFTA Film Awards and the Academy Awards, shortlisted at the European Film Awards, and premiered in the USA at the Sundance Film Festival.
Building on this success, Cantilever Media is developing The Amazing Maurice 2 and has several exciting projects in production. These include the animated feature Bollywoof, being sold internationally by Embankment Films, and the animated TV series Badjelly, commissioned by WildBrain Television’s Family Channel (Canada) and TVNZ. Badjelly is co-produced with Mukpuddy Animation (N.Z.) and Sphere Animation (Canada), in association with Te Puna Kairangi Premium Productions for International Audiences Fund, NZ On Air, and the UK Global Screen Fund.
About Mukpuddy
Formed in a basement in 2002 by three young friends fresh out of animation school, Mukpuddy has grown to become New Zealand’s premiere 2D animation studio. Now a self-contained, full-service studio, Mukpuddy caters to all aspects of the 2D animation process, from scriptwriting and voice-over recording through to compositing, with in-house character designers, background artists, editors and animators.
Mukpuddy is committed to telling funny, heartfelt, original stories, and creating rich, interesting worlds for their characters to explore and grow in. From the lovably odd residents of Ngaro Island in The Barefoot Bandits, to the wide world of characters Quimbo meets on his quests, to the intergalactic Adventures of Tumeke Space, Mukpuddy is known for their ability to create unique and funny shows, that appeal to an international audience.
Short-form works include the NZFC-funded short Out of Order, The Drawing Show, animated slacker comedy Jandal Burn and comedy-horror Night Eyes, as well as helping bring to life New Zealand’s first 100% te reo Māori cartoon for preschool children, Pipi Mā.
With a strong sense of nostalgia for the shows and movies we loved as kids, Mukpuddy makes cartoons that are both silly and exciting, with characters we truly care about.
About Sphere Media
Sphere Media captivates audiences with its films and television programs, which are broadcast by major networks in Canada and around the world. The company creates, produces and distributes its content, offering a catalogue of hundreds of projects across various genres— including 2D animation, scripted series, films, documentaries, reality & game show.
Sphere Animation, a division of Sphere Media is one of Canada’s largest 2D digital animation studios. Led by artists with exceptional expertise and supported by state-of-the-art production infrastructure, the studio has achieved significant success both in Canada and internationally. It draws on two decades of experience to deliver large-scale projects for giants such as Netflix, Universal and PBS. These include well-known titles like Curious George, Arthur and F is for Family. Sphere Animation is also behind original creations for young and older alike, including Red Ketchup, Riley Rocket, Chop Chop Ninja, ToonMarty, My Goldfish is Evil! and Ben’s City.