Big Barn Farm facts for kids

Big Barn Farm is a fun British TV show for kids. It mixes real animals with animation. The show is a comedy about four young farm animals. It was made by The Foundation for the BBC children's channel CBeebies.

The show was narrated by Ben Fairman in the first season. Dave Lamb narrated the second season.

What is Big Barn Farm About?

The show takes place on a busy farm. It follows the adventures of four young animals. They are called the Farmyard Bunch. These friends are Petal the piglet, Gobo the goat, Dash the donkey, and Digger the puppy.

The stories are told from the animals' point of view. They explore their feelings and the situations they get into. The Farmyard Bunch learn about friendship. They also discover their roles on the farm. Other farm animals help them along the way.

Each episode is a new story. The main characters often face a small problem. They work together to solve it. The show helps kids understand friendship. It also teaches them about the world. Plus, it helps them develop problem-solving skills.

Before each show, a CBeebies presenter might ask kids to sing along. The theme song is fast and introduces the main characters. The closing song is longer. It tells you about all the animal characters, even the smaller ones.

Meet the Characters

The Farmyard Bunch

• Dash (voiced by Ben Fairman) is a young male donkey. Dash is very kind and thoughtful. He is also a bit cautious. Dash often prefers to watch others be brave. But he always joins in because he is so kind. He likes to think carefully before acting. Dash is the tallest of the group. This helps him see over things. His catchphrase is, "Calm down, calm down."

• Gobo (voiced by Elly Fairman) is a young goat or kid. Gobo is smart and very energetic. He eats a lot, often too fast! This means Gobo burps a lot too. Gobo thinks about food most of the time. He is always happy to nibble on anything. Gobo can be noisy. He sometimes rushes into things without thinking. But if there's a hay bale to climb, Gobo is first in line! His catchphrase is "Go, go, Gobo!"

• Petal (voiced by Gemma Harvey) is a female piglet. Petal is a cheeky and brave young piglet. She likes to think she is the leader of the four friends. Petal loves adventure. She is usually the first to explore new things. Sometimes this gets her into trouble. Other times, she sounds braver than she feels. Petal isn't very "girly." She is happy splashing in the mud. Her catchphrase is "Piglet Power!"

• Digger (voiced by Shelley Longworth) is a male Labrador Retriever puppy. Digger is the youngest of the four friends. He is always eager to show what he can do. Digger is very cute and innocent. He always wants to please his friends. Digger has tons of energy. He is always the first to volunteer for new adventures. He isn't always the brightest. It sometimes takes him a while to understand things. But Digger loves playing with his friends. His catchphrase is "I can do that! I can do that!"

Other Farm Animals

Many other animals live on Big Barn Farm:

• Mac (voiced by Mike Winsor) is a tall and wise male horse.
• Madame Moo Moo (voiced by Kate O'Sullivan) is a French female cow.
• Mrs. Snuffles (voiced by Kate O'Sullivan) is a pig. She is the mother of Petal and her siblings.
• The Mrs. Chickens (voiced by Kate O'Sullivan) are the farm's chickens. They love to gossip a lot.
• Mrs. Paws (voiced by Carla Mendonca) is a grey female cat.
• The Duck Girls (voiced by Kate O'Sullivan) are female ducks. They live at the farm pond. They are very proud and always fuss about their feathers.
• Old Pop (voiced by Mike Winsor and Keith Wickham) is a male Shepherd dog. His job is to keep everyone on the farm safe.
• Ewenice (voiced by Kate O'Sullivan) is a female sheep.
• Lester (voiced by Keith Wickham) is a very serious male rooster. He crows every day at Dawn.

There are also human characters on the farm. They do not speak. These include the farmer (played by Chris Noel), the farmer's wife (played by Laura Wyles), their son (played by Reef Matthews), and their daughter (played by Katie Parks).

How Big Barn Farm Was Made

Big Barn Farm was created by The Foundation. This company is part of the RDF Media group. The show uses a special mix of real animal footage and animation.

The amazing visual effects were made by Ian Carley and James Kearsley. They used 450 different shots of talking animals! Sarah Colclough was the Executive Producer for CBeebies.

The show's set was built around a flint stable block and a barn. This was not a real working farm. The animals lived on the set or very close by during filming. The filming took place at Stede Court Estate. This is near Maidstone in Kent, England.

A DVD of Big Barn Farm was released. It was called "Welcome to Big Barn Farm." It came out on November 17, 2008.

Episodes

The show has 40 episodes across two seasons. Each episode tells a new story about the Farmyard Bunch and their friends.