Balamory
Balamory is a
live action television series on
British television (
BBC Two and
CBeebies) for
preschool children based around the small (fictional)
island community of Balamory in
Scotland. It was produced between
2002 and
2005, with 254 episodes (Including a DVD-exclusive Christmas episode) made.
The series was created by
Brian Jameson, and is mostly filmed in the Scottish port town of
Tobermory in
Mull, with the exceptions of scenes in the nursery which are filmed at a television studio in
Glasgow, and Archie's castle (which is in fact at
Fenton Tower in
North Berwick).
The series can now be seen in the
United States on the
Discovery Kids channel, and on
TLC.
Other than Suzie Sweet and Penny Pocket, who share a building, each main character has their own house in the town, and each house has a distinctive colour (which is the same as the clothes they wear; except for Penny Pocket, who lives in the Red House but wears blue, and PC Plum, who lives in the White House but wears a police uniform). They also have their own songs which they often sing during their appearances in the programme.
| Character | Actor | Role | House | Songs |
|---|
| Miss Hoolie | Julie Wilson Nimmo | Nursery schoolteacher | Green house
* Nursery Song (Everybody, Everyone)
* What Do You Want To Do Today? (Day Off Song One)
* Strike Up The Band (Day Off Song Two) |
| Archie | Miles Jupp | Inventor | Pink castle
* I'm Archie, The Inventor
* Great Inventions, Groovy Solutions |
| Josie Jump | Kasia Haddad; previously Buki Akib | Fitness instructor | Three-story yellow house
* Jump A Little Higher
* Cheer You Up |
| Edie McCredie | Juliet Cadzow | Bus driver | Blue garage/house
* When I Honk My Horn
* Let Me Take You On A Journey |
| PC Plum | Andrew Agnew | Policeman | White police station
* I'm PC Plum
* Follow The Clue |
| Spencer | Rodd Christiansen | American painter/musician | Orange house
* Climbing Up My Musical Ladder
* If You Need A Little Rhythm |
| Suzie Sweet | Mary Riggans | Shop and café operators | Red building |
* Suzie's Cooking
* I'm Suzie Sweet, I'm Penny Pocket |
| Penny Pocket | Kim Tserkezie |
* Penny's Song
* Sort It
* I'm Suzie Sweet, I'm Penny Pocket |
A typical episode begins with Miss Hoolie opening the nursery and telling the audience what the weather is like in Balamory today, and then meeting one of the other main characters who has a "problem" that can be solved by visiting another main character. The main character with the problem sings and dances to a
calypso-style song to decide which of the coloured houses "is the one for me" (i.e. is the one where the helpful character lives), and then makes a procession of visits to various characters until the problem is solved.
At each visit, the progress of the story to date is summarised by drawing a rainbow of balloons in the air with the hands. The balloons burst to reveal a
flashback summary of today's "story in Balamory" narrated by the visitor. The entire story is also summarised at the end of each programme by Miss Hoolie.
Each episode of Balamory contains at least four songs;
* Opening song (What's The Story In Balamory?)
* Miss Hoolie Song (Nursery Song or a Day Off song depending on if it is a working day or a day off)
* Which Coloured House Are We Going To?
* One or more character songs
In addition to its intended pre-school audience, Balamory has attracted a somewhat more aged viewership in the form of university students and other "grown-ups" keen to spot innuendo (perceived or otherwise) and story-lines more commonplace in adult
soap operas. (Indeed, the shows creator had intended it as a "soap opera for children" .) There is an unspoken
sexual tension between Miss Hoolie and PC Plum, something played upon in several episodes; for example, the pair share a kiss during a wedding. Further innuendo is implicit in the "friendship" between PC Plum and Archie The Inventor, who wears a kilt and pink jumper and lives in a pink castle. The two hold hands in one episode; in another, Archie makes an arguably loaded comment, possibly referring to Plum's sexuality ("Ah yes, he's in Venice visiting his..." (with raised eyebrows) "...'Policeman Chum'."). Another episode involving a pantomime horse leads Archie to say (to Edie McCredie) "You go in the front and I will take up the rear".
In PC Plum's Theme Tune, He states that "If you call on me, we can make a cup of tea, I'll tell you all about the bees, and birds, and mice" The "Birds and Bees" is a popular euphamism for teaching a teenager about sex.
There is also a daily driving home of the work ethic by Miss Hoolie when she says "..and everybody (in Balamory - all of whom are good and likeable) here is busy going to work and school". And when Archie's inventions or Spencer's artwork are "commissioned" by the characters they are well appreciated but when they come up with something on their own the response is less enthusiastic and almost dismissive but eventually a makeshift and unintended application is found to make the character happy.
The show can also be seen in a humorous light. The characters in Balamory are somewhat naive and light-hearted; often appearing to be children trapped in adult bodies with adult roles. The entire storyline often revolves around problems which seem obvious and simple to older viewers.
There are many songs in Balamory, mainly sung by the actors. These songs are used consistently throughout the series when characters or circumstances are introduced to the episode. In the run starting from October 2004, new songs were introduced. These songs are longer and take up more time in the episode, so the old versions are still used often.
In addition to the character-specific songs mentioned above, there are many more general songs:
* What's The Story In Balamory?
* Coloured House Song (several slightly different versions, depending on who is singing it)
Some of these songs are available on a CD named
Balamory: Strike Up The Band.
* Balamory is frequently parodied on the programme
Dead Ringers. Sketches include , the declaring of Balamory North in the
2005 UK General Election and the depressing 'real' drama, Balamöry.
*In the
Christmas Eve 2005 episode of
Little Britain,
Andy Pipkin ignores
Lou Todd while watching Balamory and singing along with the theme tune.
*In
Tooth and Claw, a
2006 episode of the
sci-fi series
Doctor Who which is set in
1879 Scotland the
Tenth Doctor pretends to be a "Doctor James McCrimmon of the township of Balamory".
*The show has quite a few similarities to
The Singing Kettle. They are both Scottish. The Singing Kettle asks which coloured kettle they open, whereas in Balamory they ask which coloured house they are going to. In one episode of Balamory, Miss Hoolie had a problem with a singing kettle.
*
Season One Episodes*
Season Two Epsodes#
The Sunday Herald talks to the Balamory cast and production team*
The official Balamory website on the BBC*
Details of live show tour in UK 2005*
Tips on travelling to Tobermory, where Balamory is filmed
