Fireman Sam facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fireman Sam |
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| Created by |
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| Written by | Various |
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| Narrated by | John Alderton (1987–1994) |
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| Country of origin | United Kingdom Israel |
| Original language(s) | Welsh (S1-4) English (S5-present) Hebrew |
| No. of series | 12 |
| No. of episodes | 213 (list of episodes) |
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| Producer(s) | Various |
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| Original release | 17 November 1987 – present |
Fireman Sam is a British-Israeli animated comedy children's television series about a fireman named Sam, his fellow firefighters, and other residents in the fictional Welsh rural village of Pontypandy (a portmanteau of two real towns, Pontypridd and Tonypandy). The original idea for the show came from two ex-firemen from London, England, who took their idea to artist and writer Rob Lee who developed the concept, and the show was commissioned.
Fireman Sam first appeared as Sam Tân (in Welsh) on S4C on 1 November 1987, and a few weeks later on BBC One on 17 November. The original series finished in 1994, and a new series that expanded the character cast commenced in 2005. The series was also shown as Sam Smalaidh in Scottish Gaelic in Scotland. The series was sold to over 40 countries and has been used across the United Kingdom to promote fire safety.
The theme song was performed by Mal Pope in a classic rock style from 1987 to 1994, then by a different singer in a 2000s alternative rock style since the 2005 new episode broadcasts. This version of the theme song was performed by Cameron Stewart.
Spin-offs
In 1996, a stage production was turned into a feature, Fireman Sam In Action, and released on BBC Video.
In 2009, Fireman Sam appeared with other animated children's TV characters in a Children in Need single. The single was put together by Peter Kay.
The show saw its first feature-length movie, The Great Fire of Pontypandy, released to DVD and iTunes in 2010, and was shown in select cinemas.
Fireman Sam was adapted into a live musical theatre show, which began touring the UK in June 2011.
In 2014, Amazon Prime released Fireman Sam using American voices instead of British voices for children in the US. However, the characters of Tom Thomas, Moose Roberts and Bella Lasagna have their regular, respective Australian, Canadian and Italian voices (instead of their being dubbed them with a US voice actor) due to their accents. This cast includes the voices of Andrew Hodwitz, Jonah Ain, Maraget Brock, Lily Cassano, Dave Pender, Jacob James, Scott Lancastle, Ashley Magwood, Mike Pongrazc, Becky Shrimpton, Sarah Lynn Strange, Carter Treneer, Joe Marth (later replaced by Dave McRae), Adam Turgeon and Chrstia Clahane.
In 2015, the show's second feature-length movie Heroes of the Storm (also known as Ultimate Heroes in the US) was due to be released in September 2015; however, it was released for American audiences in November 2014.
See also
In Spanish: Sam el bombero para niños
