Bristol,
21 January 2010. Aardman Rights has secured a number of key licensing partners
for its hit pre-school property Timmy Time, plus a range of new
gift deals for the award-winning Wallace & Gromit, Shaun the Sheep and Morph.
Martin
Yaffe International Ltd have signed with Aardman to produce Timmy Time outdoor toys. Launching
in Summer 2010, the outdoor play equipment for the toddler and pre-school
market will include hoppers and outdoor sports & playground games. In other
Timmy Time deals, Baylis & Harding are to launch a range of
toiletries including bathtime gift packs; Little Star Creations will devise a
line in branded stationery and children's activity packs and Abbey Home Media
Group is partnering with Aardman to produce audio story CDs.
Other
licensing deals for new gifts ranges from some of Aardman's world-class
properties include Cheatwell Games, who are to produce a range of lenticular
puzzles including Shaun the Sheep jigsaws and a Morph board game.
In
addition, Ethos International Ltd is to introduce a line of Shaun the
Sheep
and Wallace & Gromit mugs and homeware gifts and The Novelty Gift Company
will launch a range of Morph novelty gifts, including book ends,
desktop buddy and wall clock.
Sean
Clarke, Head of Aardman Rights says: "We are thrilled to sign new partners
across our portfolio as we head into Toy Fair. The range and diversity of these
deals highlights the flexibility and broad appeal of all our brands."
Timmy
Time
has enjoyed huge success since its launch on CBeebies in April 2009. The 52 x
10-minute stop-motion animated series has now reached over 9.4 million
individuals*, and has proven to be such a hit that the BBC has now has ordered
26 more episodes, slated to start shooting from June 2010. Aimed at boys and
girls, the non-dialogue series features a variety of animal noises, comedy, fun
and strong character animation. Aardman's Jackie Cockle is the Creator and
Producer, and Miles Bullough is Executive Producer.
The
first series of Shaun the Sheep racked up television sales and
licensing deals in over 150 territories and won several prestigious accolades,
including the International Emmy Award. The second series recently launched on
WDR in Germany and CBBC in the UK to impressive ratings, with UK audiences
consistently outperforming the channel benchmark, reaching average audiences of
over 172k**.
Shaun
the Sheep is also proving to be a major licensing success, achieving over
£25million retail sales since launch, with UK licensees across a broad range of
categories, including Golden Bear, Egmont, Danilo, Silverknit, D3 Europe and
H+A, in addition to numerous international licensees.
Wallace &
Gromit celebrated their 20th anniversary last year in style, taking
over the prestigious 'Google Doodle' for the day and featuring in a Culture
Show special, whilst maintaining a high UK profile throughout the year through
the Cracking Ideas exhibition at the Science Museum in London (now relocating
to the Glasgow Science Centre) and various promotional partnerships including
Marks & Spencer and npower. Wallace & Gromit have also been chosen to
front a brand new live action TV series, Wallace & Gromit present A
World of Invention, commissioned by BBC One for late 2010 and also picked up
by ABC Australia.
The unmistakable Morph has been on TV screens
for over 30 years, since he first made an appearance on an episode of Take Hart
in 1977. He remains a national treasure and is now attracting a new generation
of fans.
