Entertainment Rights ups its library

UK coproducer-distributor Entertainment Rights quadrupled its programming library last year from 240 hours to 1,000 – and expects more growth to come.

The library now includes more than 2,600 episodes of programming from more than 100 titles, including Basil Brush, Felix the Cat and the BBC1 animated hit Hamilton Mattress.

The media group's properties were boosted with the purchase of Link Licensing last April and Woodland Animations – which includes Postman Pat – in November.

Announcing its annual results, Entertainment Rights' chairman Rod Bransgrove said: {With a strong cash position, key brands continuing to perform well, and new productions coming on stream, we believe the group is extremely well positioned for sustained growth.{

Basil Brush is returning to BBC1 for a 26-part series, The Basil Brush Show, to be co-produced with The Foundation and due to air in the autumn.

The group is also celebrating 600k video sales in the UK alone for Barbie in the Nutcracker, the first ever feature-length animated film starring the famous doll.