Entara Ltd. has just acquired the U.K. licensing rights to the cult classic, THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT. Entara will be developing a comprehensive U.K. licensing program to rollout for immediate effect, now that the property is being reborn as a new animated TV series.
Ellipsanime, Film Action, M6 and Disney Channel France have joined forces to produce a brand new 3D pre-school series (52x11) based on the property. The new MAGIC ROUNDABOUT series will premiere in the U.K. on Nick Jr., while ZDF has acquired the German-speaking rights.
The aim of the new series was not to recreate the original show, but to portray the values of the old series while making it accessible to today's kids. Theresa Plummer-Andrews, children's broadcast specialist and former head of acquisitions and co-productions for Children's BBC, is the U.K. exec producer and Graham Ralph, well known for directing THE FORGOTTEN TOY and HARRY AND HIS BUCKET FULL OF DINOSAURS, is co-director.
Created by Serge Danot in 1965, THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT gained cult status in the '60s in the U.K. where it aired on the BBC. Its distinctive visual style and brightly colored set contained the eponymous roundabout (a fairground carousel) and quirky characters, such as Dougal, a shaggy dog who ate only sugar; an eccentric bouncing character called Zebedee; Dylan the rabbit and Ermintrude, the pink cow.
Danot said about his show, "It comes from a simple history of everyday life, with characters having humor, poetry and an anecdote and aims to be as close to the parents as children, which makes it possible to join together various generations."
"As planned, we are rapidly moving ahead with our strategy to acquire unique and cult properties to complement Entara's current strong portfolio and this cult classic, THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT, is without a doubt a perfect addition," said Entara ceo Daniel Isman. "Our aim will be to attract a new generation of children that have never heard of the show, which we are confident we will achieve with the expertise of our highly experienced team and skillfully developed licensing program."
"We are extremely passionate and committed to the new series of THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT and consider Entara to be the perfect partner for this," added Film Action's Lauren Rodon. "Entara has significant experience of working with cult brands, fully understands the direction and focus for the new series and we are very confident that, together, we will make the Magic Roundabout as a big a hit as it was the first time."
LE MANÃGE ENCHANTÃ (known in English as THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT) was a 500x5 children's television program created in France in 1963 by Danot. Originally broadcast between 1964 and 1971 on ORTF, the series became best known in the U.K. The English version was narrated by Eric Thompson, the father of Emma Thompson, and broadcast Oct. 18 1965 to January 1977. This version of the show attained cult status and was watched as much by adults for its dry humor as by the children for whom it was intended.
It was made into an animated feature CG-animated feature SPRUNG! THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT from Pathe Pictures Intl with a British and Australian voice cast. The film was co-produced by France's Films Action and the U.K.'s Bolex Bros./SPZ. Jean Duval, Frank Passingham and Dave Borthwick directed the feature.
The Pathe production was retitled DOOGAL, the second 3D-animated feature acquired by The Weinstein Co., which recently found its way onto DVD (Genius Products). The kid-friendly comedy/adventure was recast with predominantly American stars. and rewritten by FAIRLY ODDPARENTS creator Butch Hartman, with lots of American movie references thrown in.
London-based Entara (www.entara.co.uk) is a privately owned, worldwide entertainment rights company founded in 2001 to develop its debut property, JAKERS! THE ADVENTURES OF PIGGLEY WINKS and now manages and represents a diverse portfolio of kids, music and fashion brands, including DOMO, HABBO and POPWORLD. Entara's aim is to grow the business through the acquisition, development and licensing of a dynamic portfolio of worldwide brands through intellectual property management and licensing rights representation.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
