Tiny Planets facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Tiny Planets
Title card
Genre	Children, Animated
Created by	Casey Dobie
Directed by	Alastair McIlwain
Voices of	Dashiell Tate Kim Goody
Opening theme	Bing and Bong by Kim Goody
Ending theme	Bing and Bong by Kim Goody
Composer(s)	Kim Goody Alan Coates
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	65
Production
Executive producer(s)	Paul J. Michael Nina Elias-Bamberger
Producer(s)	Richard Morss
Editor(s)	Samantha Hatton-Brown
Running time	5 minutes
Production company(s)	Sesame Workshop Pepper's Ghost Productions Ltd.
Release
Original network	CITV
Original release	10 June 2001 (2001-06-10) – 21 December 2002 (2002-12-21)

Tiny Planets is a fun computer-animated TV show for kids. It was made by Casey Dobie in the United Kingdom. This show was created by Sesame Workshop from the US and Pepper's Ghost Productions.

The series has 65 episodes, each lasting five minutes. There's no talking in the show! It follows two furry aliens, Bing and Bong. They travel through their universe and solve a different problem in every episode.

What Happens in Tiny Planets?

Bing and Bong's Adventures

Deep in the Tiny Universe is the Home Planet. This is where Bing and Bong live. Every day, these two explorers zoom off to other worlds. They travel on a special flying white sofa!

As they visit different planets, they learn new things. They also meet new friends and have lots of fun. Each trip is a new adventure where they figure out how to solve problems.

Meet the Characters

Bing

Bing is the bigger and older of the two.
He loves to explore and always has useful gadgets.
Bing is wise and often leads the way.
He is patient and likes to solve problems.
He's always ready to help others and is very positive.
Bing doesn't speak words. He uses his body, eyebrows, and hums to show how he feels.
Dashiell Tate provides his sounds.

Bong

Bong is the smaller, energetic one.
He is playful, friendly, and sometimes a bit cheeky.
Bong loves to join games and be the center of attention.
He gets sad if he's not getting along with Bing.
Like Bing, Bong doesn't speak words.
He uses his face and body to express himself.
He makes high-pitched sounds, like grunts or squeaks, and happy cries.
Kim Goody, who sings the show's theme song, makes Bong's sounds.

Halley

Halley is a small alien with big eyes.
She is named after Halley's Comet.
Halley flies in a saucer and gives updates on what's happening.
She "films" the action with a camera.
At the end of each episode, she shows a summary.
Kim Goody also voices Halley.
Halley only appeared in the US version of the show. This version was shown on Nickelodeon's Noggin channel from 2002 to 2006.

Flockers

Flockers are creatures that live on each Tiny Planet.
Each planet has its own unique group of Flockers.
Bing and Bong often help these social creatures.
Flockers might need help cleaning windows or making their homes stronger.
They are always causing problems that need solving!
Flockers don't speak words. They use body language and make sounds.
Their look changes depending on the planet. Some have one head, some two. Some have one leg, some two. Only a few have arms.

Locals

Locals are smaller inhabitants of the planets.
They can appear in large groups.
They are usually round with blinking eyes and small antennas.
Locals don't speak. They communicate by bouncing, blinking, and squeaking.
On some planets, Locals are shaped like squares, circles, or triangles.
They are always colorful, friendly, and fun.

Robots

Robots are round creatures with mechanical arms.
They move with wheels or helicopter parts.
You mostly find them on the Tiny Planet of Technology.
Like all robots, they think in a straight line and try to do many things at once.
They are there to help, but sometimes they don't follow instructions well.
Bing and Bong learn how to work with them to get the best results.

Where Bing and Bong Travel

There are six Tiny Planets that Bing and Bong visit. They also have their own Home Planet.

Home Planet

Bing and Bong live inside the Home Planet.
This is where their adventures begin each morning.
It's a cold world covered in snow and ice.
Their home is inside a giant crystal. It looks like a steampunk style, with lots of brass.
The most important thing here is their fluffy white sofa.
This sofa is their bed and also their way to travel between planets!
It's tied to the Home Planet with a bungee cord. A huge catapult launches them into space.

Tiny Planet of Nature

On this planet, Bing and Bong learn about weather, plants, and animals.
They discover the power of wind and how rain turns into snow.
It's a green and lively world with trees, lakes, mountains, and flowers.
The seasons here are like those in a mild part of Earth. There's snow in winter, hot sun in summer, and falling leaves in autumn.

Tiny Planet of Technology

Bing and Bong design gadgets here.
They learn about springs, wheels, levers, pulleys, balance, forces, gears, and structures.
The planet itself is a huge, detailed brass sphere.
It has four satellites attached: two cubes and two spheres.
Most of the action happens inside this planet. It focuses on how things are built and the rules of physics.

Tiny Planet of Self

Here, Bing and Bong learn about fitness, cleanliness, and healthy eating.
They also learn more about themselves and others.
This planet is a group of rocky islands floating in a sunny sky.
Stepping-stones connect the islands.
There are pagoda-like pavilions and a sports arena.
Sky-boats are used for travel.
Lessons about health, feelings, and good manners are learned here.

Tiny Planet of Sound

Bing and Bong join bands on this planet.
They play tubas, beat drums, and try out rhythm, harmony, pitch, and acoustics.
It's a rocky desert with strange plants.
Some plants are like extendable flutes that can be blown. Others have maraca leaves or are self-playing Tom-tom trees.
Flockers and Locals often have concerts here.
From space, the planet looks blue. It's surrounded by many small asteroids that spin around it.

Tiny Planet of Light and Colour

On this planet, Bing and Bong discover rainbows, shadows, animation, and colour mixing.
It's a place where they explore how light works.
Around the planet is a wide, clear band with changing colors.
The land looks like a desert.
The most noticeable things are bullet-shaped rock pillars with paint spots on them.

Tiny Planet of Stuff

Bing and Bong explore groups of things and what they are made of.
They play with patterns and numbers.
They also sort things by colour, shape, and sound.
The planet is shaped like a giant Möbius strip. It has a pink-and-blue graph paper pattern.
This is where Bing and Bong solve problems using math, logic, and geometry.

Episodes by Planet

Nature Episodes

Seasons Machine
Snow Problem
Gone With the Wind
It's Raining Bongs
Winter Warm-Ups
On the Right Track
Blown Away
Egg-stra Large
Body Talk
Big and Small

Technology Episodes

Tip the Scales
Spring Cleaning
Tools, Glorious Tools
Free Wheeling
Slippery Slope
Pedal Meddle
Pivotal Points
The Right Angle
The Fisher Bing
Strength in Girders

Self Episodes

Tuba Trouble
Night Light, Sleep Tight
Shower Power
That's What Friends are For
Flockercise
Sweet Temptations
Odd Bing Out
Box of Tricks
Keep Your Head
Easy Rider
Moving and Grooving
Birthday Build-Up
Be a Sport
Love is All You Need
Pooling Resources
Everyone's a Winner

Sound Episodes

Highs and Lows
Flower Power
Jammin' Session
A Chorus Line
Desperately Seeking Silence
Hear My Song
Bing Bong Bell
Found Sounds Orchestra
Rhythm and Moods

Light and Colour Episodes

Shadow Showdown
True Colours
Making Rainbows
Flocker Flicker
Contrasting Views
The Light Fantastic
3D or Not 3D?

Stuff Episodes

Patterns on Parade
Picnic Poser
Suits You
Give Me Five
Shapes Alive
Magnificent Seven
Shapes and Ladders
Mirror Magic
A Place for Everything
Road Block
What's Cooking?
Colour Clues
Ramping Up

Where Tiny Planets Was Shown

Around the World

Tiny Planets first aired in its home country, the United Kingdom, on ITV.

On April 1, 2002, the show started airing in the United States on Noggin. At first, it was shown as 5-minute clips between other shows. In June 2004, it became a full half-hour show and stayed on Noggin until April 9, 2006.

The show was also broadcast in many other countries:

ABC in Australia
K-T.V. World in South Africa
BFBS in Germany, Belize, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, and Bosnia and Herzegovina
TV3 in New Zealand
Kids Central in Singapore
JimJam in Malta
e-Junior in the Emirates
TVB Pearl in Hong Kong and Macau
Disney Channel in Asia
CBC in Canada

Some countries also made their own versions of the show in their local languages:

Super RTL in Germany
NRK in Norway
HRT in Croatia
NHK in Japan
UBC Kids in Thailand
SBS in Korea
Astro Ria in Malaysia
Italia 1 in Italy
Discovery Kids in Latin America
Televisa in Mexico

Awards and Recognition

BAFTA Awards

Tiny Planets was nominated for several awards from the BAFTA.

It won the 2002 BAFTA Interactive Children's Entertainment Award.
It was nominated for the 2001 BAFTA Interactive Award for Online Learning.
It was also nominated for the 2003 BAFTA Pre-school Animation Award.
A website based on the series won the 2001 BAFTA Interactive Entertainment Website Award.