The New Adventures of Black Beauty facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The New Adventures of Black Beauty
Genre	Children Drama
Starring	Season 1 (1990-1991) Amber McWilliams William Lucas Stacy Dorning Season 2 (1992) Rebecca Gooden Caroline Winnall Peter Evangelista Michael Burkett
Theme music composer	Denis King
Composer(s)	Chris Neal
Country of origin	United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	1990-1991: 1(UK), 2(US) 1992: 1
No. of episodes	1990-1991: 26 1992: 26
Production
Production location(s)	Season 1(1990-1991) England, New Zealand Season 2(1992) Australia
Running time	30 minutes
Production company(s)	Season 1 (1990-1991) Isambard Productions Ltd The Fremantle Corporation Beta/Taurus London Weekend Television 7 Network Season 2 (1992) The Fremantle Corporation Pro Films Pty Ltd Beta Film 7 Network
Release
Original network	ITV
Picture format	Colour (4:3)
Original release	1990 (1990) – 1992 (1992)
Chronology
Preceded by	The Adventures of Black Beauty

The New Adventures of Black Beauty was a TV show made in the early 1990s. It's a drama series for kids and teens. The show was first made in New Zealand, then later in Australia. Even though they had the same name, the two parts of the show had different characters and stories. The only thing that connected them was the famous horse, Black Beauty!

This series was a follow-up to an older TV show called The Adventures of Black Beauty, which aired from 1972 to 1974. The first season of The New Adventures takes place about 20 years after the original series. It even brought back two characters from the first show: Dr. James Gordon and Jenny Gordon Denning.

The first season was made in 1990-1991. It had 26 episodes and was shown in the United Kingdom on ITV. Later, it was also shown in the United States. In 1992, the show moved its production to Australia. This new Australian season was almost like a brand new show. It had different characters and a new story. The only link was a short scene at the start of the first episode. This scene explained that Black Beauty had been set free in the Australian wild.

Today, both parts of The New Adventures of Black Beauty are often sold together on DVD. The 1990-91 New Zealand season is called "Season 1," and the 1992 Australian season is called "Season 2."

About the Story

Season 1: New Zealand Adventures (1990-1991)

This first part of The New Adventures of Black Beauty was mostly filmed in New Zealand. However, the very first two episodes were set and filmed in England. The story focuses on a young girl named Victoria 'Vicky' Denning. The show is set around the year 1907. This is about 20 years after the original The Adventures of Black Beauty series.

The story begins with Jenny Denning and her new husband, Nigel. They are getting ready to move to Nigel's farm in New Zealand. Jenny is a veterinarian, which means she's a doctor for animals. Vicky, Nigel's daughter, has been staying with her grandfather in England. She has also been at boarding school.

Vicky's grandfather, Lord Fordham, doesn't want her to go to New Zealand. He tries to convince her to stay in England. But Vicky really wants to go back to her home country with her dad and new step-mom. While in England, Vicky meets Jenny's horse, Black Beauty, and loves riding him.

Nigel goes to New Zealand first to get the farm ready. Then, bad news arrives: his ship was delayed, and some wreckage was found. But there's still hope because some lifeboats were used. So, Jenny and Vicky decide to continue their journey. When they arrive at the farm, they find it's almost ruined. The person who was supposed to be looking after it has run off with all the animals!

But Jenny and Vicky don't give up. A young German worker named Manfred Groenwald is still there and ready to help. Together, they start to fix up the farm.

Then, a letter comes from England. It says that Black Beauty died shortly after Jenny and Vicky left. But the very next night, a wild black horse appears at the farm. It has the same markings as Black Beauty! Vicky names him Black Beauty, and their exciting adventures begin. Jenny's father also comes to join them in New Zealand later in the series.

Just like the original show, this series uses the famous theme song "Galloping Home." It was written by Denis King.

Season 2: Australian Adventures (1992)

The second part of The New Adventures of Black Beauty is set in Australia. This season doesn't really connect to the characters or stories from the first season. The only link is Black Beauty himself.

This story is about an orphan girl named Issabelle "Bella" Barret. She tries to escape from a difficult orphanage. During her escape, she helps a mistreated black horse get free. Bella then successfully escapes the orphanage and hides on a ship called the Astoria.

During a big storm, the Astoria hits rocks and breaks apart. Bella is washed ashore and is saved by a black horse. Could it be the same horse she freed? A kind person named Doctor Austin finds Bella and the horse. Bella has lost her memory because of the scary experience. She slowly starts to remember things while living on Doctor Austin's farm.

Meanwhile, some bad people are looking for gold that was supposedly lost on the Astoria. They soon realize that Bella might know where it is. This makes her an important target for them.

The theme song for this season was also "Galloping Home." In the United Kingdom, this season was shown on the BBC between 1994 and 1998.

Main Characters

Season 1 (1990-1991)

• Dr Jenny Denning – Stacy Dorning (26 episodes, 1990–1991)
• Manfred Groenwald – Gedeon Burkhard (26 episodes, 1990–1991)
• Dr. James Gordon – William Lucas (26 episodes, 1990–1991)
• Victoria 'Vicky' Denning – Amber McWilliams (26 episodes, 1990–1991)
• Frank Coats – David Bradshaw (24 episodes, 1990–1991)
• Hilda Burton – Ilona Rodgers (24 episodes, 1990–1991)
• Samuel Burton – Bill Kerr (24 episodes, 1990–1991)
• Isambard – Claire Chitham (9 episodes, 1990)
• Constable Carmody – Andrew Robertt (5 episodes, 1990–1991)
• Lewis Duncan – Timothy Raby (3 episodes, 1990)
• Lord Fordham – Frederick Treves (2 episodes, 1990)
• Nigel – Christian Burgess (2 episodes, 1990)

Season 2 (1992)

• Isabela "Bella" Barrett - Rebecca Gooden
• Doctor Austin - Peter Bensley
• Connie - Caroline Winnall
• Kathy (S02E04) - Tyler-Jane Mitchel
• Sergeant Pickles - Henry Salter
• Weeks - Nicholas Bell
• Walter - Peter Weiss
• Ted - Peter Evangelista
• Frank - Michael Burkett
• Anna Swallow - Celia De Burgh
• Potch - Edwin Hodgeman
• Rudy Swallow - Patrick Frost
• Mrs. Mac - Celine O'Leary
• Aunt Caroline - Jennifer Kent

Episodes

The show had a total of 52 episodes across its two main productions.

Season 1 (UK, 1990–91)

This season had 26 episodes. Here are the titles of some of them:

• The Old World
• A Horse Like Beauty
• Breaking In
• Ride a Black Horse
• Deceptive Appearances
• Fear of Water
• Treasure Hunt
• The Birdman
• Different Races
• A Question of Justice
• Horsepower
• Horse Sense
• Surprise
• A Present for Beauty
• The Sea Horses
• Hope
• At Risk
• Greed Fever
• The Poisoners
• Bush Symphony
• The Convicts
• A Friend in Need
• Out of Sight, Out of Mind
• Deception
• Call of the Wild (Part One)
• Call of the Wild (Part Two)

Season 2 (1992)

This season also had 26 episodes. Here are some of their titles:

• The Fugitive
• Recovery
• Gymkhana
• The Run Away
• Horse Thief
• Accident
• Daylight Robbery
• The Search
• Hunted
• The Imposter
• The Detectives
• Trespasser
• Haunted House
• The Race
• Gold Fever
• The Arrival
• Bella Remembers
• The Fair
• Eureka
• Bella's Dilemma
• Sweet Reward
• The Petition
• Held to Ramsom
• The Exchange
• Captured
• The Wedding