Sunflower TV will launch in July with dubbed British and Ukrainian children’s shows
A YouTube channel dedicated to entertaining Ukrainian children displaced by the war is to launch on 1 July, featuring dubbed versions of Peppa Pig, Go Jetters, Thomas & Friends.
Sunflower TV is the result of a co-ordinated effort by Pact and the British TV industry to offer pre-school and primary school-aged refugee children across the UK and Europe entertainment in their own language and will also house shows from Ukrainian producers, including Brave Bunnies and Eskimo Girl.
The ad-free YouTube channel will launch with around 50 episodes initially, and will host up to 200 hours of content, including dubbed versions of Ben & Holly’s Little Kingdom, Mr Bean: The Animated Series, Jojo and Gran Gran, and Kit and Pup.
Further content, including Enjie Benjy, will continue to be added.
The project has received cross-industry backing in the UK and Ukraine, with Aardman, All3Media, Banijay, BBC, Channel 4, Milkshake!, S4C, Entertainment One, FILM.UA, Fremantle, Glowberry, ITV, Little Dot Studios, Mattel, Paramount and Nickelodeon, Sky, STV, YouTube and Starlight Media in Ukraine among those lending support.
Pact’s chief exec John McVay said that he hopes the channel will provide Ukrainian children with an element of comfort and familiarity as they adjust to their lives many miles from their home country.
“Hopefully Sunflower TV can go just a little way in providing them with some kind of light relief or distraction to take their minds off the terrible experiences they’ve been through, even if only momentarily,” he said.
“Everyone involved has given up their time and rights to their content for nothing and I’m hugely grateful to the support and enthusiasm all parties have shown in making this happen. It really shows that the creative industries can be a force for good.”
He encouraged more rightsholders to get in touch.
Dr Olesya Khromeychuk, director of the Ukrainian Institute London added: “Children who have lost their homes, friends, and relatives will certainly benefit from having at least some sense of familiarity by being able to access materials in their native language. It is important that children don’t feel their own language is being drowned out as they start rebuilding their lives away from home.”
Olga Korol, who was forced to flee the war and is focused on helping the children and women of Ukraine, called Sunflower TV a “wonderful gift” to Ukrainian children, with content carefully selected by media professionals in the UK with the help of child psychologists and Ukrainian mothers.
More content, such as Enjie Benjy, will continue to be added after the 1stJuly launch date, including additional shows aimed at six to 11-year-olds, increasing to around 200 hours, available for Ukrainian pre-teens in the UK and across Europe.
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