Tinga Tinga Tales

Tinga Tinga Tales
Genre	Children's Television
Starring	Lenny Henry
Voices of	Eugene Muchiri Shaun Parkes Johnnie Fiori Lenny Henry Patrice Naiambana Miriam Margolyes
Theme music composer	Eric Wainaina Aaron Rimbui
Opening theme	"Tinga Tinga Tinga"
Country of origin	United Kingdom Kenya
Original language(s)	English Swahili
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	52[1]
Production company(s)	Tiger Aspect Productions Homeboyz Animation DreamWorks Classics
Release
Original network	CBeebies Disney Junior DreamWorks Channel

Tinga Tinga Tales is a British–Kenyan children's television series, based on African folk tales and aimed at 4 to 6-year-olds. It was commissioned by the BBC for its CBeebies channel, and by Disney Channel for its Disney Junior block. Named after Tingatinga art from Tanzania,^[2] Tinga Tinga Tales was produced in Nairobi, Kenya by Homeboyz Animation,^[3] a studio of approximately 50 people.^[2] The music is produced by Kenyan singer-songwriter Eric Wainaina.^[4] The series comprises 52 episodes.

The series was first conceived by Claudia Lloyd, head of animation at the London-based Tiger Aspect Productions, while travelling through Africa. The first three episodes premiered on the BBC website in early February 2010. The distribution rights have been bought by Entertainment Rights (which in 2009 merged with Classic Media, then in 2012 it was acquired by DreamWorks Animation and renamed into DreamWorks Classics, and ultimately became the property of Universal Television in 2016).^[5]

Synopsis

Tinga Tinga Tales is centered on various animated animals and employs music, dialogue, and colorful imagery to tell African folk tales about the origins of animals, and to answer questions such as, "why do monkeys swing in the trees and flamingos stand on one leg?"^[6]

Characters

Episodes

• 1. Why Elephant Has a Trunk: Red Monkey tells the story of why Elephant has a trunk, and how he got the trunk.
• 2. Why Snake Has No Legs: Red Monkey tells you the story of why Snake has no legs, and why he did before.
• 3. Why Hippo Has No Hair: Red Monkey tells the story about Hippo and why she has no hair, and why she had hair before.
• 4. Why Tortoise Has a Broken Shell: Red Monkey tells a story about how Tortoise is slow because of his broken shell.
• 5. Why Hen Pecks at the Ground: Red Monkey tells the story about Hen and why she pecks at the ground.
• 6. Why Bat Hangs Upside Down: Red Monkey tells a story about Bat and why he hangs upside-down.
• 7. Why Warthog is So Ugly: Red Monkey tells the story about ugly Warthog.
• 8. Why Owl's Head Turns All the Way Round: Red Monkey tells an exciting story about why Owl's head can turn all the way around because of her big eyes.
• 9. Why Monkeys Swing in the Trees: The monkeys tell their story about why they love to swing in trees.
• 10. Why Tickbird Sits on Hippo's Back: Red Monkey tells a story about why Tickbird loves to sit on Hippo's back.
• 11. Why Frog Croaks: Red Monkey tells an exciting story about why Frog can croak.
• 12. Why Spider Has a Tiny Waist: Red Monkey tells a story about the reason Spider has a tiny waist.
• 13. Why Vulture is Bald: Red Monkey tells a story about bald Vulture.
• 14. Why Giraffe Has a Long Neck: Red Monkey tells the rough-and-tough story about why Giraffe's neck is really long.
• 15. Why Porcupine Has Quills: Red Monkey tells a funny story about the reason Porcupine has quills in her body.
• 16. Why Lizard Always Hides Under Rocks: Red Monkey tells Lizard's story about why he loves to hide under rocks.
• 17. Why Crocodile Has a Bumpy Back: Red Monkey tells a silly story about Crocodile's back.
• 18. Why Jackal Howls at the Moon: Red Monkey tells Jackal's story about why he loves to howl at the moon. Aooooooooooo!
• 19. Why Hare Hops: Red Monkey tells the reasons why Hare is so fast.
• 20. Why Mosquito Buzzes: Red Monkey tells the story about why Mosquito always alerts with a buzz.
• 21. Why Rhino Charges: Red Monkey tells a story about why Rhino always has to charge.
• 22. Why Caterpillar is Never in a Hurry: Red Monkey tells the story about why Caterpillar is never quick.
• 23. Why Lion Roars: Red Monkey tells the story about how Lion became King of Tinga Tinga.
• 24. Why Zebra Has Stripes: Red Monkey tells a story about Zebra's colorful stripes.
• 25. Why Flamingo Stands on One Leg: Red Monkey tells the hardest story ever about Flamingo standing on one leg.
• 26. Why Woodpecker Pecks: Red Monkey tells a funny story about Woodpecker's best pecking skills.
• 27. Why Ostrich Sticks Her Head in the Ground: Red Monkey and Elephant tell a story about how Ostrich can always bury her head into the ground.
• 28. Why Camel Has a Hump: Red Monkey tells a story about how Camel can grow humps.
• 29. Why Wildebeest Stampede: Red Monkey tells the story about how the wildebeest can stampede so everyone can easily count how many are they.
• 30. Why Chameleon Changes Color: Red Monkey tells a silly story about why Chameleon can change color.
• 31. Why Leopard Has Spots: Red Monkey tells a story about Leopard's spots.
• 32. Why Hyena Has Short Back Legs: Red Monkey tells a silly story about nocturnal Hyena's legs.
• 33. Why Ants Work Together: Red Monkey tells the Ants' story about how they can work together.
• 34. Why Flea Jumps: Red Monkey tells a story about Flea's jumping skills.
• 35. Why Hummingbird Hums: Red Monkey tells a story about how Hummingbird can hum many Tinga Tinga songs.
• 36. Why Baboon Has a Bare Bottom: Red Monkey tells a funny story about how naughty Baboon got his bare bottom from.
• 37. Why Bees Sting: Red Monkey tells a story about the Bees' stinging skills.
• 38. Why Peacock Struts: Red Monkey loves strutting, so he tells a story about Peacock's silly strutting.
• 39. Why Aardvark Has a Sticky Tongue: Red Monkey tells a funny story about Aardvark's sticky tongue.
• 40. Why Whale Spouts: Red Monkey tells a thrilling story about Whale spouting.
• 41. Why Parrot Can't Keep a Secret: Red Monkey tells a silly story about Parrot's not-so secret keeping.
• 42. Why Bushbaby Has Big Eyes: Red Monkey tells a story about the eyes of the cutest animal in Tinga Tinga.
• 43. Why Guinea Fowl Has Dots: Red Monkey tells a story about the snow-loving Guineafowl.
• 44. Why Buffalo Has Horns: Red Monkey tells a story about Buffalo's horns.
• 45. Why Puffadder Sheds His Skin: Red Monkey tells a story about Puffadder the snake.
• 46. Why Eagle Rules the Skies: Red Monkey tells the story about the strongest bird in Tinga Tinga.
• 47. Why Skunk Smells: Red Monkey tells the story about why Skunk is really smelly.
• 48. Why Cricket Chirrups: Red Monkey tells a funny story about Cricket.
• 49. Why Mole Lives Underground: Red Monkey tells a story about Mole's home.
• 50. Why Squirrel Gathers Nuts: Red Monkey tells a story about Squirrel and why she braided her tail when there was no food in Tinga Tinga.
• 51. Why Meerkat is Always on the Lookout: Red Monkey tells a silly story about the fastest looker in Tinga Tinga, Meerkat.
• 52. Why Cheetah has Tears: Red Monkey tells a final story about Mama Cheetah, the fastest runner and hunter in the world.

References

External links

• Official site
• Tinga Tinga Tales at the Big Cartoon DataBase
• Miscellaneous Crew