| Underground Ernie | |
|---|---|
| Format | Animated children's television series |
| Created by | John Deery Sid Rainey |
| Starring | Gary Lineker Janet Brown Emma Weaver Tim Whitnall Chris Jarvis |
| Theme music composer | Miles Hunt, Sid Rainey, Martin Bell (The Wonder Stuff) |
| Opening theme | "The Importance of Being Ernie" |
| Ending theme | "The Importance of Being Ernie" (Edit) |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | John Deery Sid Rainey |
| Running time | 15 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | CBeebies, BBC Two |
| Original run | 5 June 2006 – 21 May 2009 |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Underground Ernie is a Computer-animated children's television series produced by Joella Productions in the UK and shown by the BBC on both CBeebies and BBC Two. It is set in International Station, a fictional worldwide underground network, and focuses on the everyday adventures of Ernie, a friendly Underground supervisor, Millie, his multilingual colleague and Mr Rails the lovable maintenance man. The trains under Ernie's watchful eye all have characters of their own. There's Bakerloo, Victoria, Circle, Jubilee and the twins, Hammersmith & City. From time to time they are joined by their friends from across the world including; Paris, Brooklyn, Moscow, Sydney and Osaka.
The show is aimed at children between the ages of 3 and 8 years old. The initial series has 26 episodes each lasting 15 mins. Its first showing on was on Monday 5 June 2006 on CBeebies.
The Producers of the show 'Joella Productions' are currently trying to raise money to get another series of 'Underground Ernie' created. The Production costs for a series is £4 million.
Contents |
In its premiere run, Underground Ernie was broadcast twice a day five days a week—firstly on BBC Two at 9 am and then repeated on CBeebies at 4.30 pm
In the first episode, "Pop Decoy", pop superstar "Sam 7" is performing at the theatre and Jubilee has to get him there without hundreds of fans finding out. Alas, the excitable Jubilee can't keep a secret and he and Ernie have to come up with a plan to get Sam 7 safely to the theatre.
All the visuals for the show are produced using CGI computer graphics and that largely explains the high cost of the production (USD$7 million/£4 million) [1]. The first series was produced using LightWave 3D software.[2]
Some critics have pointed out the similarities between Underground Ernie and Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends, in that both series feature anthropomorphised talking trains. Whilst acknowledging a similarity, the producers make it clear that this is very different from Thomas and is very much based in the 21st century. Despite being underground trains, they often travel overground around open countryside to various stations including seaside resort.
The overall design is inspired by the real London Underground, and Transport for London has allowed the series to use design elements directly taken from their brand, in particular the use of their distinctive Underground logo, or 'roundel' as it's known.
The majority of the characters are trains most of which take their names from lines of the London Underground network, though in Underground Ernie's world it is called "International Underground".*
There are also five international trains, which Millie visits when she goes abroad every weekend. She always bring back exciting stories for Ernie, as well as a souvenir:
In each twelve-minute episode Ernie faces a problem, which he needs to fix with the help of the trains. This will typically involve one of the locations on International Underground or visitors coming via the Underground - often both.
| Number | Title | Writer | Synopsis |
| 1 | Pop Decoy | Louise Kramskoy | Jubilee lets slip his secret about pop superstar Sam 7. Bakerloo gets into pop. |
| 2 | Sir Clunkalot | Diane Redmond | The medieval pageant sees Ernie save a damsel in distress. |
| 3 | Mr Rails Never Fails | Diane Redmond | Ernie's heavy cold leads to confusion over the arrangements for Mr. Rails' surprise party. |
| 4 | Brooklyn and Rocky Two Shoes | Diane Redmond | American athlete Rocky Two Shoes rides over on Brooklyn and overcomes his fears. |
| 5 | Pulling Together | Jan Page | Hammersmith and City have split loyalties while Victoria gets into football. |
| 6 | Caught Purple Handed | Diane Redmond | A rather absent-minded explorer brings a rare plant to the Underground. |
| 7 | Ernie's Big Trip | Jan Page | Paris visits. Is Ernie going to France forever? Don't go, Ernie! |
| 8 | Finders Keepers | Jan Page | A Golden Ticket becomes lost property. |
| 9 | The Magician's Assistant | Diane Redmond | Millie assists as Paris brings Maestro the magician to town. |
| 10 | Cover Story | Ross Hastings | Ernie tries to take some pictures for Tunnel Times; Sydney is in town. |
| 11 | Millie's Day Dream | Ross Hastings | Millie's won a dream day. Can the Underground cope without her? |
| 12 | Mr Movie Jones | Diane Redmond | A case of mistaken identity as Mr. Movie Jones visits Sea Shell Bay. |
| 13 | Summer Breeze | Louise Kramskoy | Phew, what a scorcher on the Underground! |
| 14 | Running Late | Lisa Akhurst | Is Victoria headed for the scrapyard? |
| 15 | Light at the End of the Tunnel | Jan Page | A tiny crack opens and Miss Relic sees her mummy again. |
| 16 | The Wreck of Sea Shell Bay | Diane Redmond | Sam and Dan are seriously bad kids - but they get lucky. |
| 17 | Catnapped | Louise Kramskoy | Pippa's cat Patch goes missing as the rain pours down. |
| 18 | Monster Mystery | Jan Page | Monster on the Underground? Not a good time for a practical joke. |
| 19 | Bon Appetit | Jan Page | Millie cooks for French chef Marcel Le Magnifique, who arrives on Paris. |
| 20 | A Change Is as Good as a Rest | Diane Redmond | The trains decide to swap lines; Pippa doesn't hear the announcement. |
| 21 | Elementary, My Dear Bakerloo! | Jan Page | A jumble sale saves the nature reserve. |
| 22 | The Magic Lamp | Louise Kramskoy | Is this a genie I see before me? A theatre prop spreads confusion. |
| 23 | How Great The Art | Ross Hastings | Modern art - who wants it? How about a squashed wheelbarrow for Brooklyn? |
| 24 | The Mayor's Visit | Ross Hastings | Mr. Rails gets the wrong end of the stick. The mayor gets stuck. |
| 25 | Techno Trouble! | Lisa Akhurst | Osaka gives Jubilee some Japanese technology that is just too good. |
| 26 | Snow Go | Jan Page | The Underground suffers from the wrong kind of snow as Moscow visits. |
In November 2005, Halsall International Ltd. announced that they had secured the rights to produce merchandising linked to Underground Ernie [4]. They hope to have products on sale by the autumn of 2006 with a comprehensive range available in 2007. The use of London Underground names and trains is a deliberate step to lead into merchandising suitable for children's gifts the revenue from which will be shared with Transport for London.
Halshall International Ltd. as of 2009 have stopped making 'Underground Ernie' models.
In 2008 a Railway in Hampshire called Eastleigh Lakeside Steam Railway secured the rights to hold Underground Ernie children's days and held four Underground Ernie events a year called Days Out with Underground Ernie , Miniature versions of 'Jubilee' and 'Ernie 1' were created which passengers could ride behind as well as Meeting a larger than life version of Underground Ernie.
The last Ernie event was held on 26 Dec 09 and ended on Sunday 3 January 2010.
With Days Out with Thomas succeeding the event.
As well as Days Out with Ernie , in 2008 and 2009 Two Ernie Fundraisers were held at the Railway in aid of different charities.
The show's theme song, performed by members of The Wonder Stuff under the name "HRB Music",[1] is called "The Importance of Being Ernie". This is a reference to Oscar Wilde's play The Importance of Being Earnest (Ernie is short for Ernest).The logo is like the London underground logo