Roary the Racing Car

*Roary the Racing Car*
Roary the Racing Car
	Season 1 characters (from left to right): Zippee, Tin Top, F.B, Dinkie, and Mr. Carburettor (behind Tin Top), Hellie, Maxi, Big Chris, Rusty (behind Big Chris), Roary, Marsha, Flash, Cicci, Drifter, Plugger, and Farmer Green.
Genre	Comedy; Children's Television show
Created by	David Jenkins
Directed by	Tim Harper
Voices of	Maria Darling; Tim Whitnall; Marc Silk; Peter Kay (UK); Dominic Frisby; Kerry Shale (US)
Narrated by	Sir Stirling Moss (UK); Sam Hornish Jr. (US)
Theme music composer	Alan Coates and Kim Goody
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	5
No. of episodes	108 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer	Greg Lynn
Producer	Keith Chapman
Running time	10 episodes per episode (approx.)
Production companies	Chapman Entertainment; Cosgrove Hall Films
Original release
Network	Five; Nick Jr.
Release	7 May 2007 –; 29 September 2010
Related
	Fifi and the Flowertots

Roary the Racing Car is a British stop-motion children's television series created by David Jenkins and produced by Chapman Entertainment and Cosgrove Hall Films. It follows the adventures of Roary and his racing car friends at Silver Hatch race track.

Overview

Plot

The series follows the lives and adventures of racing vehicles Roary, Maxi, Cici, Drifter, Tin Top, and the people they work for, Big Chris the mechanic and Marsha the race marshall and the owner of the race track, Mr. Carburettor. Also there's Officer Pete, Farmer Green, Molecolm, Flash and many more. The plot sometimes revolves around other vehicle characters, such as Rusty, F.B, Nick, Plugger, Zippee, Hellie, Breeze, Conrod, James, and Loada.

Setting

Roary the Racing Car is set around a fictional motor racing circuit called Silver Hatch (a portmanteau of the names of the two British Grand Prix racing circuits, Silverstone and Brands Hatch). The majority of the action takes place at the track's pits and workshop, although we often follow the cars on their laps around the track. Occasionally, the characters venture to external locations such as the nearby beach.

Narration

Every story begins and ends with a brief narration from racing car driver Sir Stirling Moss. He is also used as a voice-over. The US version is narrated by American stock car driver Sam Hornish Jr.

Characters and voice cast

Roary (from the United Kingdom, voiced by Maria Darling) is a young and excitable racing car who is the series' protagonist. He wears a white baseball cap with a checkered pattern at the bottom and a red star emblazoned with the number 1 at the top. He is based on a Formula Ford race car.
Trucksy/FB (voiced by Dominic Frisby), Roary's other best friend, is Farmer Green's pickup truck. He is usually seen with Farmer Green or playing with two of his best friends, Roary and Cici. He has a West Country accent. He is loosely based on a Chevrolet 3100.
Zizzy/Cici (from France, voiced by Maria Darling), is a bright pink and purple stunt car with the number 3 painted in a purple circle on her front and doors. She is an electric Rally Car, carrying solar panels on her roof and she speaks with a French accent. She is loosely based on a Citroën C1 rally car.
Maxi (from Italy, voiced by Marc Silk) is a yellow Formula 1 type racing car who was the star of Silver Hatch before Roary arrived. He wears sunglasses and a blue cap and sports the number 5. Maxi has an Italian accent, although this is de-emphasized in the US voiceover. There is a healthy sibling rivalry between Maxi and Roary. He is based on a Formule One racing car. He has a tendency to act spoiled, and often bullies the other cars.
Tin Top (from the United States of America, voiced by Kerry Shale) is a stock car. He sports the number 88 and, in the UK dub, he speaks in a mock-American accent, voiced by Peter Kay. In the US version, Tin Top speaks in a stereotypical "urban" accent. He is based on a NASCAR stock car. He has musophobia (fear of mice).
Dragga/Drifter (from Japan, voiced by Marc Silk) is a Drift racing car. In line with his name, he can be observed to exhibit extreme oversteer handling characteristics, with his tail end swinging out wide on every corner. He has an on-board computer with a head-up display in his windscreen. He sports a dragon design on his sides with neon undertray lighting. He wears the number 6 on the top of his front windshield and back windshield. He speaks in a mock Japanese accent. His character loosely takes design cues from the Nissan Silvia S15 and Nissan R-34 Skyline. He has a very calm, serene personality, and rarely gets angry or upset.
Rusty the Caravan (voiced by Dominic Frisby) is Big Chris' home on wheels who lives at Silver Hatch. He is often found to be sleeping, but rarely minds being woken up by the other characters and he enjoys reminiscing about his time as a mobile caravan. He can give useful advice, but often entirely by accident. Big Chris lives in Rusty.
Lugga (voiced by Marc Silk) is a 4x4 off-road vehicle or "mud-plugger". In the UK version, he speaks with a soft Caribbean accent; in the US version, he speaks in a mild Southern drawl. He often uses his telescopic winch to rescue Roary and Maxi from mud, gravel, or sand. Lugga can often be heard uttering his catchphrase, "No need to race, Lugga's on the case!" He is based on a fourth generation Mitsubishi L200.
Zippee is Marsha's motor scooter. She is of indeterminate gender as the only vocalizations made by Zippee are a beeping sound, similar to a small car horn, which is her catchphrase, "Beep-beep!" (She's the only vehicle character on Roary The Racing Car who does not talk.) She is based on a Vespa motor scooter.
Hellie is a bright red and purple helicopter, who transports Mr. Carburettor around the track. He has a large headset which he uses to communicate with the ground-crew, usually broadcasting a booming "Hellie is go!" Marc Silk voices him.
James is a silver British classic sports car who takes Mamma Mia wherever she needs to go. He has several gizmos and gadgets including an ejector seat, an umbrella, water cannons, and a towel. He speaks in an English accent. He is named after James Bond and Dominic Frisby voices him. He is loosely based off an Aston Martin DB5.
Nick is the Silver Hatch police car who works with Officer Pete to keep the cars safe. Marc Silk voices him. He is based on a Lamborghini Gallardo.
Breeze (from Australia) is a turquoise beach buggy who lives at the beach at Silver Hatch. Maria Darling voices her. She is based off a Meyers Manx dune buggy.
Loada is a transport truck who takes the cars to special occasions. He has lots of different stories from the road and he enjoys telling them to his friends. His catchphrase is "Lock n' Loada!" and he has an Eastern European accent. Dominic Frisby voices him. He is a European Style Cab over type Lorry.
Conrod (from Australia) is a V8 touring car who is named after the stretch of the racetrack at the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales. In the UK version, Australian V8 Supercar champion Craig Lowndes voices him. In the US version, Marc Silk voices him. He is based off a Team Vodafone FG Ford Falcon of the V8 supercars touring car race series.
Big Chris is Silver Hatch race track's mechanic. He occasionally commentates and starts races. He lives in Rusty the caravan and looks after the race track and cars. Big Chris has a typically northern catchphrase, "If you bend it, you mend it!" (The US version, much less mellifluous, is "If you bend it, you fix it!") Big Chris is portrayed as being very messy and absent-minded, often "losing" objects directly in his line of sight, and eternally surprised by his own walkie-talkie. While working on the cars, he often practices his karaoke with an out-of-tune version of a song called "Motor Man". Comedian Peter Kay voices him in the UK dub, while in the US dub, Kerry Shale voices him.
Marsha is a race Marshall and the unofficial administrator of the Silver Hatch race track. She speaks with a thick British accent. Maria Darling voices her.
Mr. "Antonio" Carburettor is the flamboyant owner of Silver Hatch race track. In the UK version, he has with a pronounced Italian accent, while in the US version, he has a New York accent. His favourite car is Maxi, who he considers to be the greatest car in all the world. He also has a gold tooth. Tim Whitnall voices him.
Farmer Green owns the farm located just to the side of the Silver Hatch race track. He owns Dinkie the Donkey and likes to invent bio-fuels. Tim Whitnall voices him.
Mamma Mia is of Mr. Carburettor's mother and the owner of James. She speaks with an Italian accent. Maria Darling voices her.
Officer Pete is the Silver Hatch policeman and Marsha's younger brother, accompanying Nick the police car. Dominic Frisby voices him.
The Track Inspector is the inspector who sometimes comes to the track to be shown around the track. Dominic Frisby voices him.
Hugo Amarillo is a racing car designer who once came to the track to be shown around. Dominic Frisby voices him.
The Pizza Boy is a boy who delivers pizza to Big Chris as seen in "Silver Hatch Fun Run". Dominic Frisby voices him.
Murray Walker is the world's class commentator, He is voiced by Murray Walker OBE.
Furz/Flash is an anthropomorphic rabbit, who lives under a tree on the edge of the track at "Hare-Pin Bend" (a play on 'hairpin turn'). He regularly tries to cause mischief. Marc Silk voices him.
Molecolm, Flash's best friend, is a bespectacled mole who is often found clearing up the mess left behind after Flash has tried to cause havoc. Being a mole, he lives underground, and often digs out, causing molehills to appear when he comes up. Dominic Frisby voices him.
Dinkie the Donkey is an old, grey donkey who is often seen at the side of the race track (and occasionally on it), with his ears flapping after the cars race past him. Tim Whitnall performs his vocal effects.

Production

The series uses a combination of computer-generated imagery and stop-motion animation; the stop frame animation was initially provided by Cosgrove Hall Films, the producer of Noddy's Toyland Adventures, the 2004 Postman Pat series, and many other shows produced by said company, and latterly by Chapman Entertainment's own in-house studio. The series was originated by David Jenkins, who spent four years working in senior management at Brands Hatch Race Circuit. The idea was conceived while watching the Grand Prix on television with his then-18-month-old son, Tom. It was designed and developed by Keith Chapman, creative director of Chapman Entertainment and the creator of Bob the Builder (both 1998 and 2015 series), Fifi and the Flowertots, and PAW Patrol, and the series executive producer is Greg Lynn.

Episodes

Season 1 (2007)

Overall	Episode	Title	Description	Airdate
01	01	Roary's First Day	Roary feels nervous as he waits to take part in a big race and Big Chris reminds him of his first day at Silver Hatch.	7 May 2007
02	02	Roary Slips Up	Roary feels foolish and very oily when he forgets to clean up a mess before a big race occurs.	8 May 2007
03	03	Big Chris Flags It Up	When Marsha comes down with a cold and gets sent home, Big Chris mistakes the flags for oil rags.	9 May 2007
04	04	Express Delivery	Roary fetches a box of eggs, together with a bottle of milk from the farm for Big Chris, but somehow, he ends up breaking the eggs and spilling the milk over and over again.	10 May 2007
05	05	Roary's Day at the Seaside	Roary spends a day at the beach with Big Chris, Tin Top, and Plugger.	11 May 2007
06	06	Roary Takes Off	Big Chris discovers a new way of cleaning Roary's fuel intake.	12 May 2007
07	07	Cici Takes the Blame	Marsha's picnic blanket is damaged and she believes that Cici is to blame!	13 May 2007
08	08	Big Chris' Big Workout	Big Chris tries to probe Marsha that he is in good shape after she rescues Roary before he can.	16 May 2007
09	09	Flash Flips Out	Flash causes a problem when Roary and the other cars test out a new turbo charger.	17 May 2007
10	10	Rusty Remembers	Rusty the caravan needs Roary to cheer him up, despite Big Chris being repeatedly told by Marsha to find a certificate before an inspector comes to the race track.	18 May 2007
11	11	Easy on the Fuel	Roary tries to include Maxi in the big race even after he runs out of fuel.	21 May 2007
12	12	Communication Breakdown	Roary has a crash and is overheating at Hairpin bend and Marsha and Zippee the Scooter must find a way to get him back to be fixed when the walkie talkies break down.	22 May 2007
13	13	Blue Light Job	Big Chris tries to fix Drifter's neon light.	23 May 2007
14	14	Make Your Mind Up, Roary	The gang prepare for a special trip, but Roary cannot decide whether they should go to the countryside or the beach.	24 May 2007
15	15	Workshop Roary	Roary and Tin Top offer to run the workshop while Big Chris has a nap.	25 May 2007
16	16	Tip Top Tin Top	Tin Top impresses a visiting car designer.	26 May 2007
17	17	Tunnel Vision	Roary helps Maxi get over a fear of the dark.	27 May 2007
18	18	Molecolm Makes Music	Molecolm wants to be more musical like Big Chris.	29 May 2007
19	19	Roary Goes Missing	Roary gets stuck at the beach, but no one knows where he is.	2 June 2007
20	20	Mamma Mia	Mr. Carburettor learns that his mother is coming to visit.	3 June 2007
21	21	Surround Sound	Big Chris is annoyed when his karaoke machine breaks down just when he needs to rehearse for an important competition.	4 June 2007
22	22	Plugger's on the Case	Plugger realises he cannot do everything by himself - sometimes he needs his friends.	6 June 2007
23	23	Big Chris Learns To Fly	Big Chris has problems while flying a helicopter.	8 June 2007
24	24	Musical Mayhem	Hellie breaks down and is unable to take Mr. Carburettor to the opera.	10 June 2007
25	25	Braking Promises	Maxi is angry when Roary is offered his spare tyre warmers overnight.	11 June 2007
26	26	Secret Treasures	Roary, Tin Top and Drifter head to the beach to find buried treasure.	14 June 2007
27	27	Roary on Thin Ice	On a cold day at Silver Hatch race track, Roary must find a way to warm everyone up in time for an important race.	21 June 2007
28	28	Motormouth	A commentator (Murray Walker) is invited to report on a stunt display by the cars, but he has other ideas, and confesses he has always dreamed of racing himself.	23 June 2007
29	29	Demolition Derby	Tin Top keeps crashing into things, and Big Chris tries to help him focus his energy into something productive.	25 June 2007
30	30	Manners, Please	Farmer Green and FB are nervous about going to Mama Mia's garden party, so James and the other cars teach them how to behave at the event.	27 June 2007
31	31	Crash Landing	Hellie has trouble getting airborne again after making an emergency landing.	1 July 2007
32	32	Plugger's New Job	James breaks down, causing Mamma Mia to ask Plugger to drive her around, but when the pair have fun together, the out-of-action chauffeur begins to get jealous.	4 July 2007
33	33	Silver Hatch Fun Run	Big Chris is undecided about taking part in a fun run, so Roary and Plugger try to make sure he trains for it without realising.	5 July 2007
34	34	Silver Hatch Heroes	A film director visits Silver Hatch to record his new movie.	6 July 2007

Season 2 (2008)

Overall	Episode	Title	Description	Airdate
35	01	Nick Solves the Case	Nick solves the case of the missing biofuel.	10 July 2007
36	02	Drifter's Last Day	The cars worry that Drifter is to be taken to the scrapheap!	11 July 2007
37	03	Out of Juice	Big Chris takes delivery of special rainwater to make the cars run more smoothly.	12 July 2007
38	04	Roary's Wake Up Call	Farmer Green has problems getting up in the morning, so Roary finds a way to help.	14 July 2007
39	05	Big Chris Says Sorry	Big Chris thinks Marsha is cross with him after he corrects a mistake made by Mrs. Carburettor.	17 July 2007
40	06	Maxi's New Engine	Maxi's engine needs to be rebuilt, so he has to use a tractor engine, much to his horror.	19 July 2007
41	07	A Busy Day for Big Chris	Big Chris struggles to find time to relax, because every time he sits down, someone at Silver Hatch race track wants his help.	20 July 2007
42	08	Tin Top Gets Scared	Flash the rabbit decides to play a mischievous trick on Tin Top.	21 July 2007
43	09	Roary Loses A Friend	Big Chris accidentally throws away Roary's lucky teddy, and sets out to retrieve it before it reaches the rubbish dump.	22 July 2007
44	10	Spooky Forest	Maxi tricks the friends into thinking the forest is haunted.	24 July 2007
45	11	FB in the Fast Lane	FB the flatbed truck competes against Maxi at the racetrack - with disastrous results!	25 July 2007
46	12	Roary Goes Back to School	Roary heads back to school to brush up on his safety skills.	26 July 2007
47	13	The Rabbit That Yelled Stop	Flash challenges Roary to take part in a race.	28 July 2007
48	14	Cici Gets Fired Up	Silver Hatch suffers a fuel crisis, so everyone relies on solar-powered Cici!	29 July 2007
49	15	Stars 'n' Cars	Big Chris is invited to sing karaoke on TV.	30 July 2007
50	16	Crash Test Roary	Roary is nervous about racing after crashing into a tree while racing against Maxi.	31 July 2007
51	17	Roary Sees Red	Cici gets stuck in the mud during a rainstorm while helping Farmer Green and FB with their annual hay harvest.	1 September 2007
52	18	Rusty Takes a Trip	The cheerful racing car and his friends plan a surprise for Rusty.	3 September 2007
53	19	Roary Cleans Up His Act	The colourful racing car tackles a water shortage at Silver Hatch race track to make sure the gang are ready for an important photo shoot!	5 September 2007
54	20	Green-Eyed Roary	Maxi chooses Cici as his training partner, making Roary jealous.	7 September 2007
55	21	Big Chris Forgets	Marsha celebrates her birthday, but Big Chris forgets all about the occasion!	9 September 2007
56	22	Big Chris Babysits	The mechanic looks after Roary and Cici, but it seems he's the one who needs babysitting!	10 September 2007
57	23	Roary and Nigel	Roary makes friends with Nigel the crab.	14 September 2007
58	24	Roary Gets It Wrong	Farmer Green asks Roary the little car to deliver parcels around the track!	15 September 2007
59	25	A Computer Calamity	Mr. Carburettor announces he wants to move with the times and be more modern.	16 September 2007
60	26	Roary Digs Deep	Roary faces his demons when he races against Maxi.	17 September 2007

Season 3 (2008–09)

Overall	Episode	Title	Description	Airdate
61	01	Cici Spectacular	Roary tries to ease Cici's nerves when Farmer Green asks her to perform one of her stunts in front of a big crowd.	19 September 2007
62	02	Dodgems	Marsha tries her best to be the mechanic for the day while Big Chris takes a nap.	20 September 2007
63	03	Flash The Marshall	Mr. Carburettor wants Flash to get out of Silver Hatch forever, but Flash is given a second chance to stay by becoming a race marshall.	21 September 2007
64	04	Tall Story Roary	The Silver Hatch team must find a way to bring Roary back to the race track after the loud-speakers break and he has an accident.
65	05	Hot Stuff	The cars go on a day trip to the beach.	24 September 2007
66	06	Car Boot Sale	Big Chris tries to get rid of his junk at Farmer Green's car boot sale!	25 September 2007
67	07	Testing Time for Maxi	PC Pete and Nick visit Silver Hatch to give the cars their road tests, but Maxi fails every single one! Oh no!	26 September 2007
68	08	Horse Powered Dinkie	Maxi and Drifter have an accident and they become stuck in a ditch.	27 September 2007
69	09	Flash's Tea Party	Flash invites everyone for afternoon tea, but forgets to tell them to bring a dish.	29 September 2007
70	10	FB's Sleepover	FB is invited to a sleepover at the garage with the cars.	3 October 2007
71	11	Hellie's a Winner	Hellie is accused of cheating when he joins the cars on the track!	4 October 2007
72	12	Cry Cold	Big Chris catches a cold, and enjoys being fussed over so much that he decides not to tell everyone when he starts to feel better!	5 October 2007

Season 4 (2009)

Overall	Episode	Title	Description	Airdate
73	01	Hi-Tech Overload	Drifter's computer has overloaded and he became stranded in the countryside. Meanwhile, he starts to enjoy the peace and quiet.	7 October 2007
74	02	The Silver Hatch Stars	Conrod and Roary rescue Breeze when she gets stuck on a cliff edge.	8 October 2007
75	03	New Juice	Conrod and Maxi have a race to test out some biofuel.	9 October 2007
76	04	Simply The Best	Plugger rescues Molecolm, and Roary tries to beat his best lap time.	10 October 2007
77	05	Heavy Loada	Loada gets stuck in the sand on the beach and released that sand and lorries don't mix!	11 October 2007
78	06	Marsha's Wonderful Life	Marsha overhears her friends and she believes that she is bossy.	13 October 2007
79	07	Silver Hatch Shapes Up	Conrod is having trouble with his engine and Loada has a rattling sound in his engine.	15 October 2007
80	08	Silver Hatch Pizza	Mr Carburettor demands pizza for lunch, but what's he going to do when the pizzeria is closed?	18 October 2007
81	09	How the Hatch Was Won	Big Chris tries to cheer up a homesick Tin Top, but someone is causing trouble on the track!	19 October 2007

Season 5 (2010)

{{class="wikitable" |- ! Overall !! Episode !! Title !!Description !! Airdate | 82 || 01 || FB for Football || Big Chris and his friends decide to play Football on the beach. ||20 October 2007 |}

External links