The topic of this page has a wiki of its own: Fireman Sam Wiki.
- "Sam is the hero next door!"
- ―The theme song
Fireman Sam is a Welsh animated children's series about a fireman called Sam, his fellow firefighters, and other residents in the fictional Welsh rural village of Pontypandy. The original idea for the show came from two ex-firemen from London, England, who took their idea to artist and writer Rob Lee who developed the concept, and the show was commissioned.
Plot
From SproutOnline.com:
- "Fireman Sam and the Pontypandy Fire Brigade never seem to have a quiet day -- their services are always needed. Whether stuck on a high cliff-face or caught in a cave, the children of Pontypandy know help is close at hand -- thanks to the brave and resourceful Fireman Sam." (link)
From the Fire Safety page:
- "Like all children, Norman Price and his friends love to play, and sometimes adventures can have unpredictable and potentially disastrous results! Luckily, help is always close -- thanks to the brave and resourceful Fireman Sam. This entertaining preschool series combines humor and drama to teach safety. Every Saturday and Sunday at 8:30 a.m." (link)
For Parents
- "Talking about things that go is a great way to introduce the concept of community helpers. Who drives the school bus? Who rides on an ambulance?"
History on Sprout
One of the shows on the "Children's Favorites" category, the show had a strong performance on Sprout On Demand when it launched, and premiered on the channel a year later in 2006 with the Sparkles the Safety Dog Fire Tips. Sparkles the Fire Safety Dog was a dalmatian owned by firefighter Dayna Hilton, and they appeared on Sprout to provide tips on how to stay safe from fire. Fireman Sam debuted alongside it, and was featured on SproutOnline.com's Fire Safety page when the website was rebranded in August 2007. It aired three times a day, including at 8:30AM ET, and initially on weekends. After its premiere on cable television, the show continued to perform well on demand.
The show aired at 6:45AM ET when Musical Mornings launched, and later at 10:15AM during The Let's Go Show when that block was moved to weekend mornings until getting replaced by Roary the Racing Car on the latter in October 2008. In June 2008, It also started airing during The Sunny Side Up Show, initially airing at 10:30AM ET, replacing Jay Jay the Jet Plane. In March 2011, it moved to 10:20AM ET when Super WHY! began airing on Sunny, and then to 9AM ET in November 2011 when Noodle and Doodle started airing on weekdays and took Roary the Racing Car's former timeslot, until getting replaced by Make Way for Noddy in the 9AM timeslot when the latter series returned to Sprout in 2012. In 2010, when The Let's Go Show dissolved and The Sunny Side Up Show started to air on weekends, it started airing at 8AM ET on weekend mornings until March 2012, where it was moved to 6:30AM ET. In September 2011, it began airing at 2:17PM ET on the Afternoon Block but was moved to 2:37 when The Super Sproutlet Show launched. It later returned to the Afternoon Block at 2:30PM ET when Super Sproutlet moved to weekday mornings, replacing Sprout's Wiggly Waffle.
At first, it aired the stop-motion episodes, but the CGI episodes premiered during Fire Prevention Week on The Sunny Side Up Show in 2009. The CGI episodes premiered in September 2009, around the time Sprout rebranded.[1] New episodes of the series premiered on Sprout on October 4, 2010.[2]
It had its very own Sprout Diner snack, Fireman Sam's Sloppy Fire Truck. The recipe became unbranded in later years, despite the show still airing on the channel.
Episodes of the show were released on both Let's Grow volumes. "High Jinks" was included in Safety First, and "Mother's Helper" in Lend a Helping Hand.
The Great Fire of Pontypandy premiered on Sprout during Number 1 Dad's Day in 2012, followed by an Afternoon marathon of the series.
Sam stopped airing on Sprout on May 31st, 2014, when the channel's broadcasting rights expired. The US dub of the series later moved to Qubo, a channel previously owned by NBCUniversal, continuing to air until February 28, 2021, when the network shut down after Ion Media, its owners, were acquired by The E.W Scripps Company.
Characters
- Fireman Sam (character)
- Sarah and James
- Norman Price
- Elvis Cridlington
- Station Officer Steele
- Penny Morris
Games
Notes
- The original design of the titular character, from Bumper Films Ltd., who also made Joshua Jones and Starhill Ponies, was seen on a birthday card for a Sproutlet named Isaac uploaded to SproutOnline.com and two other ones for Evan and Conor.
- Unlike other originally British shows on Sprout, the US dub of this show never aired on Sprout. The UK dub aired on Sprout as late as 2014.
- The original four series of the show that Bumper Films animated and was aired in Wales and the UK did not air in the US.
- SproutOnline.com has had a section with crafts, recipes, and printables for a Fireman Sam-themed birthday party.
Gallery
Videos
Episodes
See List of Fireman Sam episodes.
Sources
- ↑ Hilton, Dayna, New Fire Safety Tips on Sprout® with Firefighter Dayna and me! (September 23, 2009), Retrieved September 27, 2024
- ↑ SPROUT® CELEBRATES NATIONAL FIRE PREVENTION MONTH WITH SPARKLES THE FIRE SAFETY DOG (October 11, 2010), Retrieved September 27, 2024