Hey Duggee is a British animated educational pre-school television series aimed at two to five-year-olds. Created by Grant Orchard, it is produced by Studio AKA, in association with BBC Studios (formerly BBC Worldwide). The show is narrated by Alexander Armstrong.
The programme's characters are talking anthropomorphic animals, with Duggee communicating in woofs. The episodes are based around The Squirrel Club, an activity club for children that Duggee leads. The childrenthe club's Squirrelstake part in all kinds of activities, have adventures and earn badges for their accomplishments. Each episode shows the Squirrels completing an activity or adventure relating to a badge that they earn at the end of each episode. There is no set formula for every episode, with many referencing or parodying pop culture.
Hey Duggee has four series. It was first shown in December 2014. BBC and Studio AKA produced a second series in early 2016, with the first episode airing in the United Kingdom on 26 September 2016. A third series was commissioned in October 2017, with the first episode due to be broadcast in Autumn 2018, but was pushed back to 4 March 2019. It aired until September 2021 with a Christmas episode shown in December 2020. The third series received increased acclaim and popularity amongst children and adults alike during the 2020 pandemic lockdowns. It was renewed for a fourth series on 5 September 2022.
On October 13, 2023, it was announced a spinoff series Hey Duggee’s Squirrel Club is currently in the works.
Production
The programme is animated using the computer program Flash, with a minimalist style using filled shapes with no outlines, and only effects that Flash is capable of, and only the Duggee character regularly uses gradients. For example, if there is a frog character, then it usually bears the appearance of a plain green triangle.
The production team consists of around 16 in-house animators, with six to eight scriptwriters.
Characters
Main
Narrator – the narrator of the show. Duggee – a friendly big brown male dog and the leader of the Squirrel club. Betty – a talkative and intelligent purple octopus. Norrie – a sweet-natured and curious brown mouse. Roly – an enthusiastic, loud and hyperactive grey hippo. Tag – a gentle, clumsy blue rhino. Happy – a tall, easy-going green crocodile, with a love of water and splashing in puddles.
Recurring
Sander Jones as: Enid – Duggee's pet cat. The Rabbits – live in the field near the clubhouse and all sound like hippies, apart from one who speaks French. Diesel – an angry bull who often chases Duggee and the Squirrels. Frog
Phillip Warner as: Naughty Monkey – a monkey who loves to cause chaos. King Tiger – local royalty whose favourite entertainment is the "jelly-belly dancers". The Chickens – live in the hen-house and enjoy watching episodes of a Spanish hospital-drama. Ladybird
Grant Orchard as: Naughty Mice – a gang of three trouble-making mice styled like a 1950s biker gang; they usually leave the scene with the phrase "Let's bounce". Whooooo – a shamanistic owl. Mole – a short-sighted animal who has dreams of being a stunt-mole. The Rabbits
Adam Longworth as: Lord Fingal of Skye Castle – a Scottish Terrier with a Scottish accent and a kilt. Tino the Artistic Mouse – a perfectionist mouse whom Roly describes as grumpy. Hedgley – a hedgehog who has an African-American accent. Mr. (John) Crab – a dramatic orange crab, married to a non-speaking crab named Nigel. Eugene – an anxious chipmunk involved in leading various theatrical events. Wilburt the Delivery Chipmunk – a postman who has difficulty pronouncing names. Thora and Agnes, the two old deer. Penguins Sgt. Ant
Lucy Montgomery as: Hennie – a tall, sports-loving ostrich. Chew Chew the Panda – a confectionery-loving panda. Fox
Morgana Robinson as: Katarina the Flamingo – the lead swimmer of a synchronised swimming team. Buggee – a small insect who feels useless due to her small size until the Squirrels show her otherwise. Peggee – a wildebeest who leads the Hummingbirds Club. Masami Eagar as:
Hatsu
Anelisa Lamola as:
Mrs. Weaver
Tim Digby-Bell as:
Mr. (Nigel) Crab – Mr. Crab's husband.