''Wilbur'' is a Canadian live-action/animated children's television series that premiered on the Ready Set Learn block on Discovery Kids (now Discovery Family) in the United States on April 16, 2007 and then moved to TLC on April 23, 2007. The series was produced by Mercury Filmworks, in association with Chilco Productions, EKA Distribution and Egmont Imagination. The series ended on March 18, 2008. Reruns aired on The Hub until June 25, 2012.

Plot

A key aim of the show was to get young children excited about reading, as its tagline is "Books are moo-ve-lous" and the phrase features in the show's theme song, as well. Each episode of ''Wilbur'' was split into two shorts. In each short Wilbur and his friends would encounter a problem. After this, Wilbur gets a wiggling sensation which prompts him to read a book that guides the group in solving their problem. The book in question is usually wholly made up for the purposes of the show and features Wilbur and his friends. After the group discusses their problem and its resolution, they read through the short book a second time, and clips show children reciting the line "Once upon a time" at the beginning and saying "The end" at the end of the story.

Characters

* Wilbur the Calf (voiced by

Julie Lemieux Julie Lemieux (born December 4, 1962) is a Canadian voice actress. Career Lemieux has provided the voice for characters such as Sammy Tsukino in ''Sailor Moon'', young Darien Shields in '' Sailor Moon R: The Movie'', and Peruru in '' Sailor Moon ...

) is a anthropomorphic calf protagonist. * Dasha the Duck (voiced by Emma Pustil) is one of Wilbur's friends. * Ray the Rooster (voiced by Ian Busher) is also one of Wilbur’s friends. * Libby the Lamb (voiced by Taylor Barber) is a cute, younger lamb who seeks the others’ help to look after. She speaks with a toddler's lisp.

Episodes

Production

The franchise existed as a series of videotapes produced in 1997. A pilot for ''Wilbur'' was produced by

Cuppa Coffee Studios Cuppa Coffee Studios (formerly known as Cuppa Coffee Animation) is a Canadian production company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Cuppa Coffee was founded by Adam Shaheen in 1992. It specializes in both stop-motion animation and 2D animation, ...

in 2001.

References

External links

* {{Discovery Kids 2007 Canadian television series debuts 2008 Canadian television series endings 2000s Canadian animated television series 2000s Canadian children's television series Canadian children's animated fantasy television series Canadian flash animated television series Canadian television shows featuring puppetry Canadian television series with live action and animation Canadian preschool education television series Animated preschool education television series 2000s preschool education television series English-language television shows Animated television series about children Television series about cattle Television series about ducks Television series about chickens Television series about sheep Reading and literacy television series TLC (TV network) original programming Discovery Kids original programming