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''The Basil Brush Show'' is a British children's television sitcom series, starring the glove puppet fox
Basil Brush Basil Brush is a fictional red fox, best known for his appearances on daytime British children's television. He is primarily portrayed by a glove puppet, but has also been depicted in animated cartoon shorts and comic strips. The character has f ...
. It was produced for six series by The Foundation, airing on
CBBC CBBC (initialised as Children's BBC and also known as the CBBC Channel) is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the bran ...
from 27 September 2002 to 25 December 2007. The show is a spin-off from the original 1960s–1970s BBC television series, but without any of the original cast.
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
later announced that the show was not going to have a seventh series.


Overview

The series is set in a colourful modern penthouse flat, which is jointly owned by Basil and his sidekick, Stephen (
Christopher Pizzey Christopher Pizzey (born 23 December 1976) is a British actor and comedian from London, best known for playing Mr. Stephen in the CBBC series ''The Basil Brush Show''. Early life Pizzey was born and raised in London and graduated from the Rose ...
). Living with them are Stephen's niece and nephew, Molly (
Georgina Leonidas Georgina Leonidas (born 28 February 1990) is a British actress best known for playing Molly in ''The Basil Brush Show'', and Katie Bell in ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' and ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2''. Early ...
), and Dave (Michael Hayes). They are left under the care of Stephen so that Molly & Dave's parents can go on a round the world trip. Other characters include Anil (
Ajay Chabra Ajay Chhabra (born 28 November 1970) is a British television and theatre actor, director, producer and comedian of Indo-Fijian heritage, who is best known for playing Anil in ''The Basil Brush Show'', The Vicar, Suresh Mattai in the BBC Radio s ...
), the owner of a greasy-spoon café under the name of 'Anil's', where the main characters would frequently be seen dining. Ella (
Tisha Martin Tisha Monique is a British singer and actress, best known for being a member of the R&B band The 411. As an actress, she is best known as Missy in ''Kerching!'', and Ella in '' The Basil Brush Show''. Early life Martin attended the Sylvia Yo ...
) is Basil & Stephen's neighbour who loves to sing. She is later replaced by Maddison (
Laura Evans Laura Evans (born 27 August) is a Welsh actress and singer from Aberdare, best known for her role as Madison Square-Gardens in the popular BBC television children's show ''The Basil Brush Show'' and more currently known as a country blues si ...
), an American fashion designer. Laurie Ventry also appeared in several episodes, playing a different character every time. Notably, the series takes a ''
laissez-faire ''Laissez-faire'' ( ; from french: laissez faire , ) is an economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies) deriving from special interest groups. ...
'' attitude towards the show's atmosphere, and the
fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...
is frequently broken; characters often reference the fact that they are on a studio set, and several episodes feature scenes and segments where the show's cameramen and crew become involved in the storyline. As the show was re-vamped in later years, two other characters were introduced. Liam ( Michael Byers) replaces Stephen as Basil's new sidekick, with Lucy (Janine Vieira - Series 5 & Madeline Castrey - Series 6) debuting as Anil's niece.


Key characters


Basil Brush

Basil Brush is a red fox, rendered as both a glove puppet and an animated character.


Stephen

Stephen is the uncle to Dave and Molly, and is left in charge of them when their parents go on a round-the-world tour. He was on the show from 2002 to 2006. He is often the main subject of Basil's or another character's jokes, much to his annoyance. He was also not very clever as he did not seem to know a very simple sum (as established in the episode "Bing Trouble", when Molly told him that 2 + 2 = 4 to which he said "Does it?"). He was played by
Christopher Pizzey Christopher Pizzey (born 23 December 1976) is a British actor and comedian from London, best known for playing Mr. Stephen in the CBBC series ''The Basil Brush Show''. Early life Pizzey was born and raised in London and graduated from the Rose ...
and left at the end of series 4. He appeared briefly in series 5 when Basil mentioned that he has been snapped up by
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
. But this later reveals he is working at a Hollywood burger van. His cousin Liam arrives shortly after to take his place. He is usually referred to by Basil as "Mr. Stephen".


Liam

Liam is a distant cousin of Stephen's and replaces him as Basil's sidekick. He took the place of Stephen in the fifth series of the show and was part of the show from 2006 to 2007. Liam is just trying to get a hand of these exciting things which are yet to happen to him but all of it is a mystery. While Liam is still dumb in some aspects, he is quite a smart person; several episodes revolve around some of his near-impossible inventions like a time machine and a shrink ray; he is also good at chemistry. A recurring joke is he will make mention to some odd or absurd night class he has been to, with the line "I knew those (whatever is relevant to the story) night classes would come in handy." In the episode ''Ballroom Basil'', it is stated that his surname is O'Dingleberry. He is played by Michael Byers.


Dave

Dave is one of the original characters that features in the old comeback. He is 10 years old in series 1 and 15 in series 6. He is regularly shown to have a flair for business, and has, throughout the course of the series, set up a media empire which was later destroyed by Basil and Stephen in the episode meeja mogul, imported stolen goods and even started his own television show; he is usually addressed as a 14-year-old multi-billionaire
entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...
. He is portrayed by Michael Hayes.


Molly

Molly is Dave's older sister and Stephen's niece. She is 12 years old in series 1 and 17 in series 6. She is portrayed as the sensible character, trying to reason with the characters whenever they make a bad decision and can sometimes be very violent. Molly is one of the most popular characters on the show. She is very clever and very witty. From Series 5, Molly appears in only a few episodes as a recurring character, with Lucy partially replacing her character-type. Molly only appears in two episodes in the final season, in ''Ballroom Basil'' where she says she is going to get some milk and she may be gone for some time, and in Basil Christmas Dinners where she returns and explains there was a worldwide milk shortage and she had to go all the way to
Timbuktu Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou; Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label=Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrativ ...
which is why she was so long. She is portrayed by
Georgina Leonidas Georgina Leonidas (born 28 February 1990) is a British actress best known for playing Molly in ''The Basil Brush Show'', and Katie Bell in ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' and ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2''. Early ...
.


Madison

An American who was introduced as 'Madison Square-Gardens', Madison is a fashion student living in the flat upstairs. She was on the show from 2004 to 2007. The character of Madison is played by
Laura Evans Laura Evans (born 27 August) is a Welsh actress and singer from Aberdare, best known for her role as Madison Square-Gardens in the popular BBC television children's show ''The Basil Brush Show'' and more currently known as a country blues si ...
, a singer/songwriter from Aberdare in South Wales. Her initial designs were thrown out by Basil, having mistaken them for rubbish. Madison is Stephen's third love interest in the show. She pronounces Basil's name in the southern US way, as ''Bay-zull''. When things start going wrong, she often protests that the only reason she is still in the UK is because she has lost her passport. Her name comes from
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
.


Anil

Appearing in every series of the show, Anil is the owner of Basil's local hangout, Anil's Caff. Like Mr Stephen, he is shown to have a less than average intelligence, and a running joke through the series is the terrible quality of his food. It is revealed that he is sexist in ''Bend it like Basil''. He is played by
Ajay Chabra Ajay Chhabra (born 28 November 1970) is a British television and theatre actor, director, producer and comedian of Indo-Fijian heritage, who is best known for playing Anil in ''The Basil Brush Show'', The Vicar, Suresh Mattai in the BBC Radio s ...
. In the episode ''Camping'' it is revealed that Anil wears a wig, has a glass eye, false teeth and a prosthetic wooden leg.


Lucy

Lucy is Anil's niece and currently lives in Basil's flat. Lucy was Anil's "slave" but was "rescued" by Madison. She can be quite stubborn at times but loves hanging out in the flat with Basil and the rest of the gang. She hates cousin Mortimer's pranks and Dave's cons. Lucy replaces Molly after she left the show after series 4, and aired on the show from 2006 to 2007. The character of Lucy is played by Janine Vieira in Season 5 and Madeline Castrey in Season 6.


Ella

Ella is Stephen's second love interest, only appearing in the second series (2003). She is also good friends with Molly. It is revealed that she is a football prodigy in ''Bend it like Basil''. She is played by
Tisha Martin Tisha Monique is a British singer and actress, best known for being a member of the R&B band The 411. As an actress, she is best known as Missy in ''Kerching!'', and Ella in '' The Basil Brush Show''. Early life Martin attended the Sylvia Yo ...
.


Semi-regular and recurring characters


The Voice-over Man

The Voice Over Man was an unseen character who often voiced over at times when he annoys the gang but occasionally he undid some mistakes that Basil and his friends made. He was part of the regular cast from 2002 to 2005, quietly retiring from the show after Series 4. He was credited as Basil Soper.


Mortimer Brush

Mortimer is Basil's cousin and recurring antagonist. In the first series finale, he arrived and pretended to be kind and helpful to the local people but secretly he was stealing things and getting Basil into trouble. In the second series, he was released from prison and he was still causing havoc. His catchphrase is "Bang! Bang!", followed by the sound of two projectile
ricochet A ricochet ( ; ) is a rebound, bounce, or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. Most ricochets are caused by accident and while the force of the deflection decelerates the projectile, it can still be energetic and almost ...
s. In the third series he and Basil had to get along for 24 hours without fighting and arguing but they over-wound the wind-up clock and they fought one minute too early . He also appeared at Basil's wedding when he was marrying evil Kelly Foxwell but in the end, Kelly liked Mortimer more than Basil. He returned in the Christmas special. He appeared in the fourth series in prison. He is voiced by
Don Austen Don Austen (born 19 January 1958) is an English puppeteer. He began his career in 1981 at Cannon Hill Park's puppet theatre in his hometown of Birmingham. Austen joined the Jim Henson Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Creature Shop in 1986 for the m ...
. He appeared in the 2005 and 2006 Christmas specials. In the first series finale, his full name is revealed to be Mortimer Trouble Brush.


Bingo Brush

Basil's playful and hyperactive nephew fox cub. Often says "Bing bing!". Bingo has a twin brother called Bungo whom Basil says is "much, much worse", who only appeared at the end of Bingo's first story. Bingo appeared on the show multiple occasions, starting from 2003. Bingo is voiced by
Don Austen Don Austen (born 19 January 1958) is an English puppeteer. He began his career in 1981 at Cannon Hill Park's puppet theatre in his hometown of Birmingham. Austen joined the Jim Henson Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Creature Shop in 1986 for the m ...
.


Roxy

Roxy is Basil's girlfriend, but unlike the other foxes in the show she is an
Arctic fox The Arctic fox (''Vulpes lagopus''), also known as the white fox, polar fox, or snow fox, is a small fox native to the Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and common throughout the Arctic tundra biome. It is well adapted to living in co ...
. She has only been seen in four episodes of the fifth series (2006), including the 2006 Christmas Special. She pronounces Basil's name as Ba-Zeal.


Mr Rossiter

Mr Rossiter is the landlord who own the flats the main characters live in. He is named after
Leonard Rossiter Leonard Rossiter (21 October 1926 – 5 October 1984) was an English actor. He had a long career in the theatre but achieved his highest profile for his television comedy roles starring as Rupert Rigsby in the ITV series ''Rising Damp'' from ...
, who famously played the landlord Rupert Rigby in the sitcom
Rising Damp Structural dampness is the presence of unwanted moisture in the structure of a building, either the result of intrusion from outside or condensation from within the structure. A high proportion of damp problems in buildings are caused by ambient ...
. He is played by
Milton Johns John Robert Milton (born 13 March 1938), known professionally as Milton Johns, is an English character actor who has worked almost continuously throughout his career. A versatile talent, he specialises in sinister or obsequious roles and has f ...
.


India

India is a waitress who works at Anil's Cafe (Basil's local hangout). She is a terrible cook like her boss but has a beautiful singing voice, as shown to perform songs occasionally throughout the series. India was only mentioned for a brief portion of the final season (2007). She is played by
India de Beaufort India de Beaufort (born India Beaufort Lloyd; 27 June 1987) is a British actress and singer. Early life de Beaufort is of British and Indian background. Her maternal grandfather was born in Calcutta, where his family lived for around 350 years ...
.


Amanda

Amanda first appeared in the first episode in Season 1. She is a restaurant critic and Stephen's first love interest. In the series 1 finale, Amanda sides with Mortimer when he takes over the show and turning it into a seedy backdrop. She dresses up as a club harlot and breaks the fourth wall, claiming she "can't afford to be out of work". When Stephen orders her to "get those cloths off!", she indignantly leaves and is never seen again. She is played by Jodie Scott.


Episodes


Locations

* Stephen's Flat (2002–07): This is the place where the gang live and spend most of their time. It is made up of a living room, kitchen, bathroom, and three bedrooms. The bathroom is seen on many occasions, and Basil and Stephen's bedroom is seen at the end of every episode from Series 1–4. Molly's room is only seen in one episode in Series One, and Dave's room is only seen in an episode from Series 4. Liam moves into the flat for Series 5 and 6. * Anil's Café (2002–07): The gang spend most of their time here, although it apparently serves bad food (the reason for this is given by Basil, when asked by Anil once, as "it's the only other set we've got", to which Anil responds "good point"). This is the place where the group meets Amanda (1.1), India (Series 2 – 4), and Lucy (5.1). We also see Anil's Kitchen in one episode from Series 2. It is later refurbished in Series 5 in the episode toothache. In Series 6, it is seen again in the episode fox on the run. * Ella's Flat (2003): Only featured twice in the 2003 series. The first appearance in "Ella" after Stephen and Basil end up falling through an air vent and a second time in "Molly in Love", when Molly visits and tells Ella about her crush. It is seen as mostly light brown and beige in colour. * Madison's Flat (2004–07): This is the place where Madison lives. It is exceptionally smaller than both Ella's and Stephen's flat. * The ally (2005–07): The first episode where this set was used was in Basil's angels.


Spin-offs


''Basil's Swap Shop/Basil's Game Show''

Basil's Swap Shop is a remake of the cult-classic children's Saturday morning show, ''
Multicoloured Swap Shop ''Multi-Coloured Swap Shop'', more commonly known simply as ''Swap Shop'', is a British children's television series that aired on BBC1 from 2 October 1976 to 27 March 1982. It was ground-breaking in many ways: by broadcasting on Saturday mornin ...
''. The show was presented by Basil Brush and
Barney Harwood Barnaby John "Barney" Harwood (born 7 November 1979) is a British actor and television presenter. He is known for his work with CBBC beginning in 2002. Career Television For CBBC, Harwood presented '' Prank Patrol'' and was a voice-over comment ...
and was produced for three series by the Foundation (the same production company that produced the Basil Brush Show) and aired live from 5 January 2008 to 25 September 2010 on
BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...
and the
CBBC Channel CBBC (initialised as Children's BBC and also known as the CBBC Channel) is a British free-to-air public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 7– ...
. ''Basil's Game Show'' was the cut-down version of the show that featured just the games, as well as some of the comedy segments.


Media releases


Region 2 DVDs


Main Series


Region 4

The BBC, decided to release a Region 4 DVD ONLY In the Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands, Central America, Mexico, South America, and the Caribbean, there is 1 DVD with 4 episodes from season one, in which they are called: Episode Ella, Bend It Like Basil, Soap-a-Dope And a Bonus Episode! Cousin Mortimer. The Only Basil Brush DVD in Region 4 subtitled ''The Basil Brush Show: Volume 2' which was released in 2022.


Region 4 DVD


=Main Series

=


See also

*
List of BBC children's television programmes This is a list of CBBC programmes that are currently and formerly being broadcast on the children's television strand of the BBC in the United Kingdom. Current programming Live action * ''4 O'Clock Club'' (2012–2020) * '' All Over the Pla ...


References


External links

* * * Comedy Guide {{DEFAULTSORT:Basil Brush Show (2002), The BBC children's television shows British children's comedy television series British comedy television shows British television shows featuring puppetry 2000s British children's television series 2002 British television series debuts 2007 British television series endings English-language television shows Television series about foxes BBC television sitcoms Television shows set in London