''The Large Family'' (

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

: ''La Famille Trompette'') is a British-French animated

children's television series Children's television series (or children's television shows) are television programs designed for children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run during the early evenin ...

based on the book series of the same name written by

Jill Murphy Jill Murphy (5 July 1949 – 18 August 2021) was a British author and illustrator of children's books. First published in 1974 at the age of 24, she was best known for the ''Worst Witch'' novels and ''Large Family'' picture books, with sales amo ...

and published by

Walker Books Walker Books is a British publisher of children's books, founded in 1978 by Sebastian Walker, Amelia Edwards, and Wendy Boase. In 1991, the success of Walker Books' ''Where's Wally?'' series enabled the company to expand into the American ma ...

in the United Kingdom. The series was produced by Indie Kids (later acquired by Coolabi, who produced later episodes), GO-N Productions,

LuxAnimation LuxAnimation was a Luxembourgish animation studio based in Doncols, Luxembourg. The company was founded in 2000 by Lilian Eche and Ariane Payen. The company works with many companies to produce animated programs and movies. Since 2006, LuxAnimati ...

(Season 1) and DQ Entertainment with the participation of

TF1 TF1 (; standing for ''Télévision Française 1'') is a French commercial television network owned by TF1 Group, controlled by the Bouygues conglomerate. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network. TF1 is par ...

Playhouse Disney France Disney Junior is an American pay television network owned by the Walt Disney Television (part of Disney General Entertainment Content) unit of The Walt Disney Company through Disney Branded Television. Aimed mainly at children two to seven yea ...

and

CBeebies CBeebies 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 6 years and under. Its sister channel CBBC is aimed at older childr ...

(Season 2). It aired on

in the UK (and on other countries with a version of

) and TF1 in France. The series focuses on a family of anthropomorphic

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...

s, the Larges. It consists of two seasons with 26 episodes of up to 12 minutes each. The first season started on 15 October 2007, and the second season aired in 2010. Surviving original ''The Large Family'' episodes are still available on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

Characters

The Large Family

*Mr Larry Large/M. Trompette: (voiced by

Jeff Rawle Jeffrey Alan Rawle (born 20 July 1951) is an English actor. He is known for portraying George Dent in the news-gathering sitcom ''Drop the Dead Donkey''. He also portrayed Silas Blissett in ''Hollyoaks'' from December 2010 until 2012. Rawle retu ...

in the English version, and Bruno Magne in the French version) The kind-hearted patriarch of the family. *Mrs Linda Large/Mme Trompette: (voiced by

Paula Wilcox Paula Wilcox (born 13 December 1949) is an English actress. With a career spanning over 50 years, she is best known for her role as Chrissy in the popular ITV sitcom ''Man About The House'' from 1973 to 1976. She has also had roles in TV shows ...

in the English version, and Simone Herault (Season 1) and Emmanuelle Bondeville (Season 2) in the French version) The sometimes forgetful matriarch of the family. *Lester Large/Lester Trompette: (voiced by

Oliver Bee Oliver may refer to: Arts, entertainment and literature Books * ''Oliver the Western Engine'', volume 24 in ''The Railway Series'' by Rev. W. Awdry * '' Oliver Twist'', a novel by Charles Dickens Fictional characters * Ariadne Oliver ...

(Season 1) and

Tyger Drew-Honey Lindzi James Tyger Drew-Honey (born 26 January 1996) is an English actor and television presenter. He is best known for his role as Jake Brockman in the British sitcom '' Outnumbered'', Citizen Khan as Richard Scab before later appearing in '' H ...

(Season 2) in the English version, and Florentin Crouzet (Season 1) and Antoine Buchez (Season 2) in the French version) The oldest Large child in the family who can occasionally be seen riding an orange and black

skateboard A skateboard is a type of sports equipment used for skateboarding. They are usually made of a specially designed 7-8 ply maple plywood deck and polyurethane wheels attached to the underside by a pair of skateboarding trucks. The skateboarde ...

. Lester normally acts "cool". He mostly wears an orange hoodie and brown trousers. *Laura Large/Laura Trompette: (voiced by

Rosie Day Rosie Jane Day is an English actress, director and writer. She is known for her roles as Mary Hawkins in the Starz series '' Outlander'' and Sarah Jessica Parker's daughter in the comedy film '' All Roads Lead to Rome''. She starred as Tina Pem ...

in the English version, and Emmylou Homs in the French version) The second-oldest Large child who is pretty much in charge of the other three Large children. She is the most sensible and level-headed of the Larges and enjoys

paint Paint is any pigmented liquid, liquefiable, or solid mastic composition that, after application to a substrate in a thin layer, converts to a solid film. It is most commonly used to protect, color, or provide texture. Paint can be made in many ...

ing pictures. *Luke Large/Luke Trompette: (voiced by

Thomas Mole Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

in the English version, and Valentin Maupin in the French version) The second-youngest Large child who mostly wears a green shirt and light blue trousers. Excitable and eager, Luke usually goes along with whatever his older siblings are doing. *Lucy Large/Lucy Trompette: (voice actor unknown) The youngest of the Large children who can only say a few words like "Me" and "Too". *Grandma/Grand Mère: (voiced by

Eve Karpf Eve Karpf (born 2 August 1947) is a British actress. Among her roles was the voice of Weed for the 2001 ''Bill and Ben'' reboot. She was a voice of Dennis' mum, Matilda in the 1996 '' Dennis the Menace'' television series, Mrs. Bird in ''The ...

in the English version, and Coco Noël in the French version) Grandma is Lester, Laura, Luke and Lucy's maternal grandmother, Linda and Susan's mother and Larry and Harry's mother-in-law. *Grandpa/Grand Père: (voiced by

Robbie Stevens Robbie or Robby is a surname. It is usually encountered as a nickname or a shortened form of Robert, Rob or Robin. The name experienced a significant rise in popularity in Northern Ireland in 2003. People Given name Robbie *Robbie Amell (born ...

in the English version, and

Benoît Allemane Benoît Allemane (born 28 December 1942) is a French actor who specializes in dubbing. He is the official French dub-over voice of Morgan Freeman. According to IMDb, he also provided the voice of King Harkinian in '' Link: The Faces of Evil''. ...

in the French version) Grandpa is Lester, Laura, Luke and Lucy's maternal grandfather, Linda and Susan's father and Larry and Harry's father-in-law.

The Smart Family

*Mr Seymour Smart/M. Smart: (voiced by

Struan Rodger Struan Rodger (born 18 September 1946) is a British actor who has appeared widely in a range of supporting roles. He appeared briefly in ''Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?'' in 1978 but his first major film role was as Eric Liddell's ...

in the English version, and Paul Borne in the French version) The Larges' next-door neighbour. His job is unspecified, but he seems to be reasonably well-off, providing his family with expensive things and

holiday A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or tra ...

s. *Mrs Sheena Smart/Mme Smart: (voiced by

Josie Lawrence Josie Lawrence (born Wendy Lawrence; 6 June 1959) is an English actress and comedian. She is best known for her work with the Comedy Store Players improvisational troupe, the television series ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' and as Manda Best in '' ...

in the English version, and Nathalie Homs in the French version) Mr Smart's snobbish, stuck-up wife. She is a full-time busybody who feels the need to interfere in the business of others (particularly the Larges), whether they want her help or not. *Sebastian Smart/Sébastien Smart: (voiced by

Theo Smith Theodore Smith may refer to: * Teddy Smith Theodore "Teddy" Smith (January 22, 1932, in Washington, D.C.—August 24, 1979, in Washington, D.C.) was an American jazz double-bassist. Smith played with Betty Carter in 1960, and with Clifford ...

in the English version, and Léo Caruso in the French version) Mr. and Mrs Smart's slightly mollycoddled son. He is friends with the Large children (something his parents are not very happy with), and plays the

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

. *Sarah Smart: (voiced by

Mae Wright Mae is an American rock band that formed in Norfolk, Virginia in 2001. The band's name is an acronym for "Multi-sensory Aesthetic Experience", based on a course taken by drummer Jacob Marshall while a student at Old Dominion University. Histor ...

in the English version, voice actor unknown in the French version) Sebastian's cousin, and the object of Lester's affections, which she clearly returns.

Others

*Miss Lovely: The teacher at the Large children's school. *Simon Short: The owner of the local store. *Peter Perfect: (voiced by

) The boy at school who's good at everything. *Simon Strong: He is only mentioned in the episode "Dino Disaster". *Micky Muddle: He is only mentioned in the episode "The Wrong End of the Stick". *Susan Special: (voiced by

) The girl at school who's in fashion. *Mrs. Gray: One of the Large Family's elderly neighbours. She once took on teaching Lester's class when Miss Lovely was ill in "The Old New Teacher". *Mr. Grand: Another of the Larges' elderly neighbours. *Julie: One of Laura's friends. *Lola: A girl who appears in the episode "Mr Short's Christmas", who also has a crush on Lester Large (apparently before Lester Large met Sarah).

Episodes

Season One

*1. "Flour Power" *2. "Girls' Stuff" *3. "Good as Gold" *4. "Sports Day" *5. "Elephants Never Forget" *6. "Sniffles and Snuffles" *7. "The Great Explorer" *8. "Easy Peasy" *9. "Under the Stars" *10. "The Wrong End of the Stick" *11. "Fancy That" *12. "Queen of the Castle" *13. "The Mystery of the Missing Elephant" *14. "You Can Do It" *15. "Sebastian's Sleepover" *16. "Spring Clean" *17. "X Marks the Spot" *18. "Picture Perfect" *19. "Six Go to the Seaside" *20. "Baby Chilly" *21. "Sebastian's Cousin Sarah" *22. "Mr Short Takes a Holiday" *23. "Super Elly" *24. "Me Too" *25. "The Big Race" *26. "Not Again"

Season Two

*1. "The Babysitter" *2. "Mrs Large's Birthday Boogie" *3. "The School Fete" *4. "Roto-whizzers" *5. "No Place Like Home" *6. "While the Cat's Away" *7. "The Blackout" *8. "The Play's the Thing" *9. "What a Load of Rubbish" *10. "Pachyderm Park" *11. "Father's Day" *12. "A Dino Disaster" *13. "Rock Star" *14. "Don't Do It Yourself" *15. "Trendy Trouble" *16. "You Are What You Eat" *17. "The E-Factor" *18. "Girl Power" *19. "Happy Birthday, Luke" *20. "Four Go Away Together" *21. "Mrs Large's Big Night" *22. "A Walk in the Woods" *23. "A Relaxing Day" *24. "Mr Short's Christmas" *25. "The Old New Teacher" *26. "My Cousin, Little Luke"

References

External links

* *
Official CBeebies site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Large Family 2000s British animated television series 2000s French animated television series 2007 British television series debuts 2007 French television series debuts 2010s British animated television series 2010s French animated television series 2010 British television series endings 2010 French television series endings Animated television series about children Animated television series about elephants Animated television series about families British children's animated comedy television series British preschool education television series French children's animated comedy television series French preschool education television series Animated preschool education television series 2000s preschool education television series 2010s preschool education television series CBeebies