Gullane Entertainment

Gullane Entertainment was the name of the company that replaced that of The Britt Allcroft Company in 2000, when Britt Allcroft herself left the company she had originally co-founded with her then-husband Angus Wright.

As Gullane Entertainment PLC, the company continued to own all the intellectual property rights to Ms Allcroft's award-winning creative body of work - Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends, Shining Time Station and Britt Allcroft's Magic Adventures of Mumfie.

Gullane was also well known for its acquisition of Art Attack, Fireman Sam, Sooty and Captain Pugwash.

• Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends -- First broadcast in the UK in 1984. TV series created by Britt Allcroft and based on the books The Railway Series by The Rev. Wilbert Awdry. Storytellers - Ringo Starr, Michael Angelis, George Carlin, Alec Baldwin, Michael Brandon and Pierce Brosnan.

• James the Cat -- First broadcast 1984. Spin-off of Flower Stories about a black and white cat who lives in an old house with his friends.

• Fireman Sam -- First broadcast 1985. About a plucky fireman in Pontypandy who has his fire engine Jupiter bright and clean.

• Shining Time Station -- First broadcast US 1989. Created by Britt Allcroft and Rick Siggelkow. A live-action situation comedy series about life in a train station called Shining Time and featuring a cast of characters such as Stacy Jones the Manager (Didi Conn), Schemer the Arcade Owner (Brian O'Connor), the Jukebox Band and the magical Mr. Conductor (Ringo Starr, George Carlin) who tells the stories about Thomas the Tank Engine and his friends.

• 'Tis a Gift -- First aired 1990. One of five 1-hour specials of the same series. As the adults bicker over who will play Santa's Helper, Matt and Tanya are left to play with Vicki, a girl unwilling to experience the joys of the season. Featuring Lloyd Bridges as Mr. Nicholas, this holiday special features Christmas Carols by The Juke Box Puppet Band and Ringo Starr as Mr. Conductor.

• Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales -- First aired 1996. A spinoff show of Shining Time Station. It stars George Carlin as Mr. Conductor. This series includes five Thomas stories and a song.

• Art Attack -- First broadcast 1989. An art and craft show hosted by Neil Buchanan

• Sooty & Co. -- First broadcast 1993. A new TV series featuring Sooty and his pals Sweep, Soo and Scampy.

• Britt Allcroft's Magic Adventures of Mumfie -- First broadcast 1994. Based on the works of artist Katharine Tozer. Featuring the voice of storyteller Patrick Breen and a score of 26 original songs.

• Captain Pugwash -- First aired 1957, later 1998. Captain Pugwash and his mates search for treasure on the Black Pig against the evil Cut Throat Jake. Originally based on characters by John Ryan.

• Eckhart -- First broadcast 2000. About a little mouse and his friends who has a lot of adventures traveling around the world.

• Thomas and the Magic Railroad -- First released July 2000. Gullane's only feature length movie. This movie features Thomas and his friends protecting a lost engine from the evil Diesel 10 and finding some magic. The film stars Alec Baldwin as Mr. Conductor, Peter Fonda as Burnett Stone, Mara Wilson as Lily, Russell Means as Billy Twofeathers, Didi Conn as Stacy Jones, and Edward Glen as the voice of Thomas.

Trivia

Gullane Entertainment owned the Guinness Book of World Records when it was sold by Diageo. Gullane was itself purchased by HiT Entertainment in 2003. In 2006, Apax Partners purchased HiT.

In 2008, Britt Allcroft re-acquired the whole of the Mumfie production library from Hit Entertainment.

Key people

• Britt Allcroft - Co Founder
• Angus Wright - Co Founder
• Adam Mills - Chairman of the Board
• William Harris - Chief Executive Officer, Director
• Charles Falzon - President, Director
• Tim Hilton - Finance Director, Director
• Helen Byme - Secretary

External links

• Britt Allcroft Productions
• Mills to join Britt Allcroft [Productions] The Guardian – 1 December 2000