Sesame Tree facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sesame Tree
(left to right) Potto, Aunt Claribelle and Hilda the Irish Hare.
Genre	Educational
Theme music composer	Duke Special
Country of origin	Northern Ireland
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	40
Production
Running time	15 minutes
Production company(s)	Sixteen South Sesame Workshop BBC Northern Ireland
Release
Original network	BBC Two CBeebies
Original release	5 April 2008 (2008-04-05) – 28 January 2011 (2011-01-28)
Chronology
Followed by	The Furchester Hotel

Sesame Tree is a fun children's TV show made in Northern Ireland. It's based on the famous American show, Sesame Street. This series was created by Sixteen South, a company in Belfast, and Sesame Workshop.

The very first episode of Sesame Tree was shown on BBC Two in Northern Ireland on April 5, 2008. Later, in August 2008, the first season was broadcast across the whole country on CBeebies. A second season of the show started in November 2010. It was also shown on CBeebies and BBC Two starting November 22, 2010.

Making Sesame Tree

Plans for Sesame Tree began way back in 2004. The creators wanted to use the "Sesame" idea to teach kids about respect and understanding. This was especially important for bringing different groups together in Northern Ireland.

In January 2006, a group called The American Ireland Fund helped make the project happen. Other groups, like the International Fund for Ireland (IFI), also gave money. They wanted to help with peace and understanding. The IFI and Northern Ireland Screen also funded the second season.

How the Show Works

The first season of Sesame Tree had twenty episodes, each about seventeen minutes long. It was made for children aged 3 to 6 years old. The show was set up like The Hoobs. It had new puppet parts with Muppets made just for the show.

It also included short films about what life is like for children in Northern Ireland. Plus, it showed classic Muppet clips from the original Sesame Street.

The Sesame Tree Setting

The main place in the show is the "Sesame Tree." This is a hollow tree where children can ask questions and get answers. It's like the street in the original Sesame Street show. The characters who live in the tree are Potto and Hilda. Archie joined them in the second season.

Who Created the Characters?

Sesame Workshop and Sixteen South worked together to create all the characters. The Muppets for the show were built by The Jim Henson Company in New York. Local writers and Muppet performers were chosen to bring the characters to life. Martin P. Robinson helped find and train these local performers. Some of them include Lesa Gillespie, Paul Currie, and Mike Smith.

Ian McDonald, a science fiction writer from Northern Ireland, wrote some of the scripts. Other local writers, Kieran Doherty, Danny Nash, and Ian Nugent, also wrote episodes. Each of these four writers wrote five episodes for the first season.

The Show's Important Messages

When the second season of Sesame Tree started, Colin Williams, an executive producer, talked about the show. He said Sesame Tree shows everyday life in Northern Ireland. It teaches important lessons like respecting differences and sharing. It also helps kids with new experiences, like starting school. These lessons are important for children everywhere.

Dr. Charlotte Cole from Sesame Workshop also spoke about the show. She said they worked with experts in Northern Ireland. They created things that help children learn about being part of a community. She believes Sesame Tree will help young children see the world in a positive way. It will also help them understand their own role in it.

The show also came out around the same time as Tar ag Spraoi Sesame. This was an Irish version of Play With Me Sesame shown on TG4. The music for Sesame Tree was created by Duke Special, an artist from Northern Ireland.

Meet the Characters

• Potto (played by Paul Currie) – He is the main character. Potto is a monster who loves books and inventing things. He likes to "potter" around with his inventions. Potto is best friends with Hilda the Hare. He is also the cousin of Telly Monster from Sesame Street. His puppet looks like Humphrey from Sesame Street.
• Hilda (played by Lesa Gillespie) – She is an Irish Hare and Potto's best friend.
• Claribelle (played by Alana Kerr) – A red Muppet bird who wears glasses.
• Samson and Goliath – These are little Bookworms who live among Potto's books.
• Weatherberries – These are singing fruits. They tell Hilda what the weather will be like each day.
• Archie (played by Mike Smith) – A red squirrel who wears glasses and loves math. He joined the show in Season 2.

Episodes

Series 1

1. The Bookworms Move House
2. Food for Thought
3. Booga Granny Hare!
4. The Share Necessities
5. Big Hare Day
6. Finders Keepers
7. A Present for Claribelle
8. CSI Sesame Tree
9. Beezer Broccoli Birthday Cake
10. Arty Party
11. Turn and Turn About
12. Practice Makes Perfect
13. Potto's Really Rockin' Pocket Shoes
14. One Wee Minute
15. Hilda's Two Birthdays
16. Same Difference
17. Potto's Perfect Picnic
18. Sad Hare Blues
19. The Goldfish Tree
20. A Very Special Visitor

Series 2

1. Hilda's Beezer Buddies
2. Best of Furry Friends
3. Let's Have a Party
4. Run Potto Run
5. Out of Tune
6. Super Squirrel's Super Glasses
7. Potto's Heard of Cows
8. Potto's Movie Mania (Elmgrove Primary School)
9. Squirrel's Day
10. It's Not Me It's You
11. Potto's Never Ending Story
12. Pizza Perfection
13. Scaredy Squirrel
14. Treemendous
15. The Trying Game
16. Promises, Promises
17. Squirrel School
18. The Big Sleepover
19. Yes We Can
20. Potto's Big Day Out

Cast

• Paul Currie – Potto
• Lesa Gillespie – Hilda
• Alana Kerr – Maisie the Weatherberry, Goliath the Bookworm (Series 1), Claribelle (Series 2)
• Sarah Lyle – Samson the Bookworm, Weatherberries
• Michael McNulty – Weatherberries, Potto (Right Arm)
• Helen Sloan – Claribelle, Weatherberries (Series 1)
• Mike Smith – Archie

Sesame Tree at BBC Programmes