Gigglebiz

Gigglebiz
Created by	CBeebies
Starring	Justin Fletcher as multiple characters Kae Alexander Ellie Kirk
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	4[1]
Production
Running time	13 minutes[2]
Production company(s)	British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)[3]
Release
Original network	CBeebies[4]
Original release	7 September 2009 – present

Gigglebiz is a children's television programme (a 'live action comedy sketch show'^[5]) made in the UK. There have been four series, first broadcast on CBeebies,^[6] the BBC's younger children's channel, in 2009.

The programme's star and creator is Justin Fletcher, who plays the chief characters in all the comic sketches. Some sketches are filmed in the studio; one regular external location is Portmeirion, used for the town of Wiggyville where the Captain Adorable sketches are set. The sketches are interspersed with 'Giggle Box' - film segments of children viewers telling Justin jokes.

The first series was broadcast in September 2009 and comprised 25 15-minute episodes. The second series of 15 episodes was shown in January 2011 (with a Christmas Special on Wednesday 15 December 2010). The new series saw some characters disappear to make way for new ones.

In July 2018, a spin-off quiz show entitled GiggleQuiz was announced, with Justin Fletcher reprising his role as all the characters.^[7]

Characters

All of these characters are played by Justin Fletcher, who also wrote some sketches in the first series of Gigglebiz.

• Anna Conda: a reptile expert, with thick glasses who can be a bit zany. (only appeared in Series 1)
• Ann Teak: a very careless antiques expert who doesn't actually know much about antiques and cares more about items like cardboard boxes and shop bought sandwiches. (appears in every series)
• The Berrito Brothers: Three circus performers. The youngest always ruins the show in some way. (appears in every series)
• Packed Lunch Pete: keeps trying to eat his packed lunch, but is prevented from doing so in any number of ways. (only appeared in Series 1)
• Arthur Sleep: a regional newsreader with a taste for very bad jokes. (Appears in every series)
• King Flannel: a naughty, childish monarch, who needs to be constantly kept in line by his butler. (appears in Series 1, 2 and 3)
• Rapids Johnson: an explorer who never quite manages to spot the prey. (appears in every series)
• Chip Munk: a pet shop worker who avoids selling the pets in his shop. (only appeared in Series 1)
• DIY Dan: a practitioner who never quite manages to demonstrate what to do without making a hash of it. Wallpaper, sloppy paint, wonky shelves, three-legged tables, sloping beds, all are grist to Dan's DIY mill. (appeared in Series 1, returned in Series 3-present)
• Doctor Doctor: a doctor who tells jokes to people who need his help and he likes saying "Doctor Doctor will see you now, next!" (only appeared in Series 2)
• Captain Adorable: a rather less than super superhero who tries to help the people of Wiggyville and his catchphrase is "Captain Adorable away!" (appears in every series)
• Gail Force: a weather presenter, sometimes a fool, constantly at the mercy of events, usually involving water; also works as an outside presenter to combine Arthur Sleep segments. She mainly does her reports at a fictional village called Little Bottom. (appears in every series)
• The Lost Pirate: is always on the lookout for his lost treasure; he has a parrot called Captain Squawk and in series 4 Captain Crackers. (appeared in Series 1 and 2, returned in Series 4 - present)
• Nana Knickerbocker: a pantomime dame who lives her entire life as if she were still in on stage, she lacks common sense in the modern world. (appeared in Series 1, returned in Series 3 - present)
• Professor Muddles: a crazy scientist who gets a bit muddled. (appears in every series)
• Farmer Dung: an incomprehensible farmer and lacks common sense. (appeared in Series 1, 2 and 3)
• Humphrey: a man who obliviously causes trouble wherever he is. Drives a Morris Minor permanently hitched to a Teardrop trailer, and dotes on his dog Woody. (appeared in Series 1, returned in Series 3-present)
• Dina Lady: a not-so-hot cook, with her assistant Tommy Tummy. (appears in Series 1 and 2, returned in Series 4 - present)
• Major Boogie: an old tin soldier who dances when no one is around. (appears in Series 1 and 2)
• Simon Pieman: A delivery man who always has trouble delivering his pies. (only appeared in Series 2)
• Postie: a hapless postman that always tries to deliver the mail on time. (only appeared in Series 1)
• Milkshake Jake: a zany and excitable sundae bar tender who unwittingly sprays his customers with the ingredients of their orders. (only appeared in Series 1)
• Keith Fitt: a Geordie sports instructor whose "20 year" experience hasn't gained him any skills. (appears in Series 2 - present)
• Opera Oliver: an opera singing waiter who always makes his customers leave. (only appeared in Series 2)
• Rod and Annette Rod is a fisherman who catches something but loses it. Annette thinks he never catches anything and it makes him happy. (only appeared in Series 2)
• Ug and Ig: Ug and Ig live in a rock-made cave, but Ug is always wrong with his ideas about Ig. (only appeared in Series 3)
• Storybook Stan: tells stories, but mostly makes mistakes. (appears in Series 3-present)
• Sue Keeper: a zookeeper who gets mixed up with different animals. (only appeared in Series 3)
• Will Singalot: a minstrel for Robin Hood who always spoils Robin's efforts to impress Marion. (appears in Series 3 - present)
• Enrique Pasadoble a dancer who is not good at dancing. (appears in Series 3 - present)
• Dan Step : is thrown off his dancing stride as he encounters prop malfunctions throughout his routines. (appears in Series 3 - present)
• Will Barrow: a farmer who always gets animals everywhere. (appears in Series 3 - present)

Additional characters

• Botham: Captain Adorable's Butler who does most of the work for Captain Adorable, who always calls him "Bottom". (appears in series 1 and 3)
• Q.T: Captain Adorable's sidekick, an 11-year-old girl.
• Awesome Girl: (Kae Alexander) Captain Adorable's trusty super-heroine companion. (only appeared in series 4)
• Woody: Humphrey's dog.
• Tommy Tummy: (Richard Sutton) Dina Lady's assistant who knows more about cooking than Dina Lady.
• Giant Panda: The frequent and elusive subject of Rapids Johnson's search. (only appears in series 1 and one episode in series 2)
• King Flannel's Butler: (Simon Grover) Long suffering, and tries to keep King Flannel in line - not always successfully. (appears in series 1, 2 and 3)
• Reggie: Farmer Dung's assistant. He is a recurring character from Series 1 to 2, and becomes regular in Series 3.
• Robin Hood: Will Singalot's best friend who Robin calls him his enemy. His Catchphrase is " That Minstrel has got to go" ( appears in series 3 - present )
• Marion: (Ellie Kirk) a maiden who Robin has lived all his life to marry.( appears in series 3 - present )
• Doreen: works in the newsroom with Arthur Sleep. Her arm only appears. (appears in episode 1 in series 1 and episode 3 in series 2 now regular in Series 3 - present)
• Humphreys Neighbour: - Humphrey always gets him into trouble (appears in series 3 - present)
• Brown Bear: Rapids Jonson searches for him but doesn't know he is behind him. (appears in series 3 - Present )
• Bobo:Professor Muddles's teddy bear (appears in episode 26 in series 3 - Series 4 Regular )

Locations

• Little Bottom: A fictional village where Gail Force mainly presents weather and strange forecasts. The villagers of Little Bottom are often the victims of unusual outbreaks like fleas or sneezing. The village's railway station is unusually large with 47 platforms. (Series 2, Episode 8)
• Wiggyville: The home of Captain Adorable in series 1 and 2 Outside shots of the town show it to be Portmeirion in North Wales.

References

https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/gigglebiz/about/