CiTV orders Cosgrove Hall pre-schooler

In the UK, commercial terrestrial ITV has greenlit toon studio Cosgrove Hall Films to produce a new cgi/stop-motion series for next year, centring on a chirpy mechanic and his pals.

Engie Benjy is a 26×10' pre-school series that follows the adventures of the eponymous grease-monkey, and his team Dan the Van and Jollop the Dog. Also appearing are Dottie the bus driver, Pilot Pete, Farmer Fred and Fisherman Fin.

The show is set in a crazy world of ice-lolly fields and fruity fizz clouds, where buses take holidays, planes creep out at night to go to parties and trees can fly. {It's nonsense but also quite logical in a way,{ said CHF's Iain Pelling. {Egg and cress sandwich trees are the sort of things kids would grow if they could.{

The show was greenlit by controller of kids' and youth TV, Janie Grace. Four episodes will be wrapped before Christmas, according to Pelling, with a tx date due around Q2 next year.

Bafta-winning creative director Bridget Appleby (Oakie Dokie) said the show is {the most colourful, humorous and visually stimulating show I've ever created.{ The show will be available internationally in 2002, with distribution rights yet to be finalised.

The 25-year-old Cosgrove Hall, 75% owned by Granada Media, is currently in production on a number of toons including Bill & Ben and Andy Pandy for CBBC, Albie for CiTV, and Little Robots for Lego Media.