Coolabi Receives Nick UK Commission

LONDON, February 1: Nickelodeon UK’s preschool channel Nick
Jr has commissioned Coolabi Productions to produce the 52×11-minute animated
series Poppy Cat, based on the
bestselling books by Lara Jones.

Due to air in late 2009, the series is Coolabi’s first
original commission for Nickelodeon. Last year, Nick Jr picked up two seasons
of Coolabi’s animated series King Arthur’s Disasters.

Poppy Cat will use a
multi-plane technique to mirror the pop-up feel of the books. The series is
based on the books by Lara Jones, which have sold more than 1.7 million copies
in Europe, Asia and Latin America since their publication in 2002.

This most recent deal with Nick Jr follows the success of
Coolabi’s The Large Family on the BBC’s
preschool channel Cbeebies and its development deal with Disney Channel’s
London-based Global Original Programming hub for The Shaila Show.

Julian Scott, the head of children’s programming for
Coolabi, commented: “Poppy Cat is a
fantastic and loveable character, who we know appeals to pre-school kids across
the world. We’re convinced that her existing fans, as well as loads of new
ones, will fall in love with her on-screen incarnation, and its great to be
continuing Coolabi’s relationship with Nickelodeon in bringing her to life.”

Debbie MacDonald, the VP programming director for
Nickelodeon UK, added, “There is a brilliant creative team with a great track
record behind Poppy Cat, and we at
Nickelodeon are hugely excited to be working with Coolabi in recreating such a
popular character for the small screen.”

—By Irene Lew