Plug-in Media and Fryday Brands eye toy partners as pre-school hit Tee and Mo returns to CBeebies

Plug-in Media is eyeing potential toy partners for its popular pre-school property, Tee and Mo, an animated monkey duo that made its return to CBeebies last month with the premiere of Big Boots Birthday: A Tee and Mo Mini Musical.

The animated property’s tenth musical special to launch on the channel, Big Boots Birthday: A Tee and Mo Mini Musical featured three new songs and once again starred the voice talent of BBC Radio 6’s Lauren Laverne.

The Tee and Mo Mini Musical launched with the aim of re-imagining the musical genre for pre-schoolers, aged two to five. The 11-minute episode is designed to help young children feel understood, and focuses on the theme of what it feels like to grow up.

Released on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer on Saturday, November 21st this year, alongside an EP of the songs it featured on Spotify, iTunes, and Amazon Music, Big Boots Birthday: A Tee and Mo Mini Musical has already been watched 160,000 times on BBC iPlayer, all within the first seven days of its launch.

The popularity of the special episode, along with previous episodes and series of Tee and Mo, has given encouragement to producers Plug-in Media, who is working with licensing stalwart Valerie Fry to build out a consumer products programme for the IP. The plans kick off with a current focus on appointing a toy partner for the brand.

Fry said: “Fryday Brands is proud to work with the fantastic and creative team at Plug-in Media to develop Tee and Mo products for its huge fan base. With over 185 million YouTube views and a 50 per cent increase in iPlayer views to over 15 million in 2020, we know from our social media engagement that fans are clamouring for products.”

Written and Directed by Plug-in Media’s creative director, Dominic Minns, Big Boots Birthday sees yet another successful collaboration with BAFTA-winning composers Ellie Wyatt and Joss Peach.

The Tee and Mo Mini Musical was produced entirely through remote-working, due to the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic. Plug-in’s team of exceptionally talented production staff and animators rose to the challenge of developing new workflows for efficient collaboration under unique circumstances.

Big Boots Birthday takes place on the morning of Tee’s birthday, who wakes up a whole year older and a whole inch taller. To mark the occasion, Mo has given him a brand new pair of Big Boy Boots to wear. However, a chance encounter with his old favourite Froggie Wellies gives him pause for thought. Does being big mean that he can’t be little anymore?

As ever, Mo is on hand to listen to his worry and reassure him that no matter how big he gets, she’ll always be his Mum. Cue the best birthday party ever.

#ToyLikeMe lands pre-school series MixMups to give disability better visibility on screen

A new pre-school, stop frame animated TV series that highlights the importance of giving disability better visibility on screen and in children’s entertainment and media is going into production.

Called MixMups, the series concept was devised and created by Rebecca Atkinson, founder of the viral #ToyLikeMe campaign that has been the catalyst for many changes in attitudes towards inclusivity and representation both in the toy space and the wider children’s entertainment sphere.

Atkinson is recognised as a forerunner in the disruption of the global toy industry with the #ToyLikeMe campaign, which has now helped to deliver inclusivity for 150 million disabled children worldwide. Her latest achievement for the movement sees Raydar Media join forces with Mackinnon & Saunders to bring the new pre-school series into production.

The exciting new series – developed with support from the BFI’s Young Audience Content Fund – sees Pockets, Giggle, and Spin transported from their Helter-Skelter home, through a Magic Box Dress-Up portal, to embark upon costume-filled, problem-solving adventures which address the day-to-day life experiences of children living with and without disability.

“In MixMups I wanted to create an innovative show and brand, bursting with fun, magic and play, which would bring disability representation into the mainstream in a way which has never been done before,” said Atkinson.

According to Raydar Media’s Alison Rayson, the “dream team” that Atkinson has assembled to work on the series is a particular feather in the cap for its production, with all involved having first hand experience of disability and the ability to make that experience a central part of the series.

“Debbie Macdonald who is also co-writer on MixMups brought Raydar into the team and I feel very blessed that she did. Having a son with Down Syndrome, I know first hand that MixMups is the opposite of a “tick box” series,” said Rayson.

“It’s a character driven, funny show that everyone will be able to enjoy. We wanted to show that all children play differently and that this is something to embrace – MixMups encapsulates the joy of individuality and demonstrates that “there is always another way to play”.

Mackinnon and Saunders, whose credits include work on global preschool brands such as The Twirlywoos, Postman Pat SDS and Raa Raa the Noisy Lion will produce the show from their Manchester based studio and workshop facilities.

“We fell in love with MixMups the moment we saw it and are delighted to be able to use our considerable experience in producing preschool programming to bring the show to life,” said studio co-founder, Peter Saunders. “MixMups is first and foremost a fun filled entertaining show about these three lovable, highly authentic and highly individual kids through who audiences around the world can experience all the comedy ups and downs of pre-schoolers at play but in this wonderful, magical world that Rebecca has created. It truly is a show for everyone.”

There are licensing plans afoot for the series, too and the team has enlisted the licensing expert, Valerie Fry, as part of the Radar Media team to oversee the development of a global consumer products programme in tandem with the television rights team.

Children’s mindfulness brand Max Mindpower positions for growth across licensing

Max Mindpower, a children’s brand that comprises a range of plush toys, a book series, and a new app all with the focus on promoting and encouraging mindfulness among kids, is pushing ahead with licensing efforts thanks to investment from CHF Media and licensing guidance from industry expert Valerie Fry.

Today, the conversation around mindfulness in the children’s space is in full flow, and in recent months and over a development period of years, Max Mindpower has found itself at the centre of much of it. Developed by Nikki Collins, the Max Mindpower brand already spans a successful book series, mindfulness app and soothing plush bar that encourages mindfulness in children through play and breathing exercises.

Nikki Collins, founder, Max Mindpower

“The topic of mindfulness in children is incredibly important, not only because it’s something that the consumers are actively looking for and want, but because it’s a real issue in society today and not something that is going to go away today or tomorrow,” Collins told Licensing.biz.

“It’s certainly something that is being taken more seriously than it was maybe two years ago, but like anything it takes familiarity before people can take it on board. The more we talk about what is affecting children and what they need, the more the industry will listen and respond.”

Having met with investment from CHF Media and having recently appointed the licensing specialist, Valerie Fry as its commercial director, Max Mindpower is ‘on the cusp of some big things in the licensing space.’

“Max has certainly made an impact on the toy industry and brought mindfulness to the forefront after winning an award at its launch at London Toy Fair,” continued Collins. “I notice a lot of the trends in toys since have been more towards wellbeing, which is so heartening as it shows that this is something which is becoming increasingly important throughout the industry; not just a nice idea.”

Collins’ move into mindfulness toys for children was, in fact, inspired by a number of culminating factors, not least the recorded rise in mental health issues in children today and the fast-vanishing downtime that children have at their disposal in modern day living. But not only this, Max Mindpower was inspired by Collins’ own life experiences, following a hit and run incident that left her with disabilities and mental health issues at the age of 19.

“I was given a very poor prognosis in terms of recovery and was actually recommended mindfulness as a way to come to terms with how my life would be, but I actually got better. It gave me a completely different outlook on life and made me fascinated with psychology, which I went on to study,” she explained.

It was while studying that Collins was struck with the idea of developing an all round children’s toy that ‘conveyed mindfulness through a mainstream children’s toy.’

From then on, Max Mindpower, a toy which “encompassed emotions and coping skills and tricks that children could learn from a young age and use in every day life,” was put into development.

The move has payed off for Collins who has since reported an ‘overwhelmingly positive’ reaction from consumers and retailers to her Max Mindpower concept, and the brand developments around it.

“In terms of retailers, we have some that champion and support us so much, but the consumer reaction is the best. We often get emails, letters, and videos from people letting us know the difference it has made to their children. We are so grateful that people take the time to write to us, and they probably have no idea how much getting these responses means to us,” she concluded.