Busy Buses
 |
| Busy Buses | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Terry Ward |
| Voices of | Brian Conley (series One) Gary Martin David Holt Maria Darling Alistair McGowan (series Two) |
| Narrated by | Brian Conley |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 39 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 5-25 mins |
| Production company | tv4c |
| Original release | |
| Release | 2002 – 2005 |
| Related | |
| Thomas & Friends | |
Busy Buses is an animated children's program about the lives of a group of friendly talking buses. It was originally shown on Tiny Living. It also aired on ABC in Australia and ran for two series between 2002 and 2005.
History
Busy Buses is a 3D CGI animated TV series made for 'children' aged 3–6. Set in a fictional town of Chumley, it features a bus garage and eight colourful bus characters. Brian Conley narrates the stories for the first series and he has also created the voices for all the Busy Buses along with its theme tune. The series was created by tv4c (a joint venture between TV4, HTV and Gnome Productions) and directed and produced by Terry Ward.
Characters
Colin - a green country bus who loves getting dirty and hates taking baths.
Sammy - a yellow school bus is the youngest bus who is mischievous and sometimes he can get into trouble. He is friends with Tommy and is often see with the other buses. He also likes riding on Colin's roof.
Susan - a pink shopping bus who is shy and cunning.
Roger - a white and blue airport bus. Roger is the second oldest and has a combat pilot voice.
Harry - a red holiday bus who is very kind and he has a fear the dark. He is a good friend of Sammy's.
Stephanie - a white and yellow station bus. She can be very bossy at times and a bit stupid, like driving onto railway lines and the queen.
Penny - a blue and yellow bus. In "Sammy Wins the Day", there is a bus modeled after her, but is male and yellow. She refers her friends as "pet".
Arnold - a red double-decker bus. He is the oldest of the buses. Arnold can never remember and he can go the wrong way and crash into things.
Rick - an orange racing bus. He goes really fast and makes the children feel sick.
Frank - a silver American tour bus. He has a cowboy accent and takes people sightseeing.
Prudence - a white and purple private bus. She is bossier than Stephanie.
Archie - Arnold's younger brother from London who is painted beige and red.
Tommy - a blue school bus who is friends with Sammy. He only appeared in Season 2.
DVD and VHS
Both series have been release on DVD. Series Two and a collection of other DVDs have been released on ABC Video in Australia and Metrodome Enitertainment in the UK.
DVD:
- Busy Buses - UK release - 17 Feb 2003
- The Series: 26 Episodes. - 2 May 2003
- Sammy's midnight adventure - 11 July 2005
- Sammy in the snow - 17 October 2005
- Sammy wins the day - 7 November 2005
International releases
- Series Two - 7 October 2005 (Australia only)
VHS
- Busy Buses - UK release - 17 Feb 2003
International releases
- Colin Needs a Bath (Australia release)
- Sammy's New Friend (Australia release)
- Sammy the Acrobatic Bus (Australia release)
Episodes
| No. | Title | Written by |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Sammy Meets A Monster" | Richard Everett |
| 2 | "Stephanie & The Queen" | Richard Everett |
| 3 | "Harry Gets Spooked" | Richard Everett |
| 4 | "Colin Needs a Bath" | Julie Middleton Steve Middleton |
| 5 | "Sammy Nearly Takes Off" | Richard Everett |
| 6 | "Arnold Gets Lost" | Richard Everett |
| 7 | "Stephanie's Bumpy Day" | Richard Everett |
| 8 | "Sammy's First Day at School" | Richard Everett |
| 9 | "Stephanie Gets Soaked" | Malcolm Doney |
| 10 | "Susan Runs Away" | Camilla McGibbon |
| 11 | "Arnold In A Tight Spot" | Julie Middleton Steve Middleton |
| 12 | "Arnold's Special Passenger" | Malcolm Doney |
| 13 | "Sammy In The Snow" | Richard Everett |
| 14 | "Roger Slips Up" | Richard Everett |
| 15 | "Susan Goes Pink" | Richard Everett |
| 16 | "Arnold's Brother Archie" | Richard Everett |
| 17 | "Sammy Has a Paddle" | Malcolm Doney |
| 18 | "Roger Meets his Chums" | Malcolm Doney |
| 19 | "Arnold Gets A New Coat" | Malcolm Doney |
| 20 | "Frank Comes To Visit" | Julie Middleton Steve Middleton |
| 21 | "Stephanie's Bossy Day" | Richard Everett |
| 22 | "Sammy Wins The Day" | Malcolm Doney |
| 23 | "Arnold Gets Sick" | Julie Middleton Steve Middleton |
| 24 | "Mr. Spector's Flowers" | Richard Everett |
| 25 | "Sammy & The Wrong Day" | Julie Middleton Steve Middleton |
| 26 | "Sammy the Acrobatic Bus" | Richard Everett |
Episodes in Series Two:
1. Sammy's New Friend - Tommy, another school bus, comes for a visit and he and Sammy make friends.
2. The Football Match - There is a football match between the Chumley buses and some other buses. Sammy badly wants to play and eventually gets his chance.
3. Busy Bangers - Mr Spector mistakenly gives the buses the wrong fuel causing all sorts of problems.
4. Sammy the Stunt Bus - Sammy goes to the airport with Roger and gets himself into trouble.
5. A Day on the Farm - All the buses help out with an emergency at Farmer Waggle's.
6. Sammy becomes a Scout - Sammy goes camping with a scout troop.
7. Stephanie Loses her Nerve - Stephanie is too scared to leave the bus shed and so the other buses try a plan to help.
8. A Muddy Day - A very wet and muddy day in Chumley which only Colin enjoys.
9. Sammy Gets Taller - Sammy is upset that he is shorter than the other buses, and comes up with some odd ways to make himself taller.
10. Sammy's Midnight Adventure - Tommy comes to visit again and stays over in the bus shed. He and Sammy sneak out during the night.
11. One Eyed Roger - Roger has had a busy day but needs to make a late trip to the airport. When one of his headlights goes out, he gets into trouble.
12. Rick the Racing Bus - Sammy is going in for a full service and Rick comes to stand in for him, however Rick drives too fast and makes everyone sick.
13.The Big Parade - The buses have a big parade to choose 'Bus of the Year'.