TVSquad

I'm a fan of British TV, so I can say with a huge degree of pleasure that Wallace and Gromit are returning to TV after a break of over ten years. The new episode will be called "Trouble at Mill" at involves the disappearance of twelve of the local bakers.

I enjoy Nick Park's animation. Like the South Park creators, he cleverly combines crudity with the sophisticated but takes it in a totally different direction. The beautiful thing about his work is that, since his work is G-rated, he can speak ot children. However, it never feels like he's talking down to them.

Jamie Oliver is getting Wallace & Gromit-ized.

Aardman Animations, which produces the Wallace & Gromit cartoons, and Fresh One Productions, Oliver's company, are making a cartoon which will feature the young chef. The series will be titled Little J and will feature the adventures of a 10 year-old Jamie Oliver and how he started to love food and cooking and became a chef.

The show is described as "comically surreal and exciting," and from the picture in the article it certainly looks like it will be heavy on the surreal part. What is that he's holding, a giant broccoli with a face? And I know they don't have the best dental system in Britain, but look at that mouth. Very A Nightmare Before Christmas, mixed with a little Yellow Submarine. Should be fun though.

[via TV Tattle]

If you lamented the early cancellation of CBS' Creature Comforts as I did, don't shoot yourself just yet: all seven episodes will be available on DVD October 9. The set will also include interviews not shown on television.

Creature Comforts began as a UK series, based on the Oscar-winning short by Nick Park (Wallace and Gromit). The American version, like the British version, features real-life interviews filtered through animated animals, resulting in what I thought was a funny and often poignant new way of experiencing everyday conversation among normal people. Apparently not too many viewers felt the same way, because the series didn't last long.

Ah, you Brits are so lucky. Ricky Gervais, creator of The Office and Extras, is bringing his imaginary characters to life on ITV. The 'Flanimals', about which Gervais has now written two books, are ugly, little monster-like creatures with goofy names such as Clunge Ambler, Grundit, Puddloflaj... although it's much funnier to hear Gervais say the names in his accent. The Flanimals will be the subject of six 30-minute episodes that will air during primetime. Making the deal even better is the news that former Aardman Animations pioneers Charles Mills and Terry Brain are also on board. Aardman, by the way, is the brilliant claymation studio that created Wallace and Gromit.

I am totally getting a kick out of the claymation Creature Comforts on BBC America, so it's nice to see that we're getting our own version in America. The show pairs real-life interviews with claymation animals. So, you get some pretty funny audio about everything from relationships to movies, placed in the mouths of everything from pigs to birds. Just like the British version, the American show will be produced by Wallace and Gromit creators Aardman Animations. CBS ordered 7 half-hour episodes for midseason 2006-2007.

I wonder if they will change the look of the characters for the American version? Specifically, the toothy overbite. For some reason, that works really well with the British accent. Hopefully they'll find a way to make these characters distinctly American.