Thomas & Friends Heads to France

LONDON, October 3: HIT
Entertainment has signed a deal with France 5 for the first two CGI seasons of
its hit Thomas & Friends franchise.

HIT has also named France
Télévisions Distribution (FTD) as the licensing agent for Thomas &
Friends in France, with a range of
consumer products set to launch in 2009.

France 5 will launch the
series under the title Thomas le Petit Train in December. The French broadcaster is currently
home to other HIT Entertainment properties, including Bob the Builder and The Pingu Show, and has preordered the new CGI series Angelina
Ballerina: The Next Steps.

Alison Homewood, HIT’s
executive VP of worldwide TV distribution, commented, “We are thrilled to be
bringing Thomas & Friends
to a new audience in France. Thomas
has been globally one of the most successful preschool shows in the world, now
broadcasting in over 185 countries and in more than 25 languages. We look
forward to working closely with France 5 and FTD to make Thomas as well-loved
with French children as he is elsewhere.”

Celine Limorato, the
deputy director in charge of animation, global media and diversification of
programs for the new FTV Children's Department, added, “The series Thomas le
Petit Train corresponds to our
policy of acquisition: properties with international potential and high
potential for global media distribution. The series Thomas & Friends is a phenomenon in the U.K. but also in over 185
countries worldwide. This emblematic property meets our values and our
editorial requirements.”

—By Kristin
Brzoznowski