Fireman Sam
Format	Children's
Created by	Dave Gingell, Dave Jones
Starring	John Alderton
Country of origin	UK
Production
Producer(s)	Ian Frampton, John Walker
Running time	10 minutes (one episode 20 minute Christmas special)
Broadcast
Original channel	S4C BBC1
Original run	1985 November 17, 1987 – 1994 November 17, 1994

Fireman Sam (Welsh: Sam Tân) is a Welsh stop-motion animation children's television series about a fireman called Sam, his fellow firefighters, and other townspeople in the Welsh town of Pontypandy (a hybrid of two actual places, Pontypridd and Tonypandy, in the South Wales valleys). The original idea for the show came from two ex-firemen from Kent. They took their idea to S4C who saw the potential in the series and commissioned it. Childrens television series are television programmes designed for and marketed to children, normally aired during the morning and afternoon hours, mainly before and after school. ... John Alderton (born November 27, 1940), is a popular British actor. ... John Walker is the name of: politicians John Walker (politician), (1744–1809), U.S. Senator and Continental Congressman from Virginia John Randall Walker (1874-1942), United States Representative from the state of Georgia John Walker (Missouri politician) (1770-1838), State Treasurer of Missouri John Williams Walker (1783-1823), a United... Image File history File links Flag_of_Wales_2. ... S4C (Sianel Pedwar Cymru, which is Welsh for Channel Four Wales) is a television channel in Wales. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... BBC One (or BBC1 as it was formerly styled) is the oldest United Kingdom, and indeed, the world. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Wales_2. ... This article is about the year. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... 17 November is also the name of a Marxist group in Greece, coinciding with the anniversary of the Athens Polytechnic uprising. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Wales_2. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... 17 November is also the name of a Marxist group in Greece, coinciding with the anniversary of the Athens Polytechnic uprising. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... This article is about the country. ... A stop motion animation of a moving coin. ... Childrens television series are television programmes designed for and marketed to children, normally aired during the morning and afternoon hours, mainly before and after school. ... , Pontypridd is a town in Glamorgan, Wales, in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf. ... Tonypandy is a town in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taff, traditional county of Glamorgan, south Wales, lying in the Rhondda Fawr Valley. ... The South Wales Valleys are a number of industrialised valleys in South Wales. ... For other uses, see Kent (disambiguation). ... S4C (Sianel Pedwar Cymru, which is Welsh for Channel Four Wales) is a television channel in Wales. ...

Fireman Sam first appeared in his native Welsh language on S4C in 1985 and later in English on BBC1 in 1987 and remains popular to this day. The series was also shown dubbed in Gaelic in Scotland, where it was known as Sam Smalaidh. The series has been sold to over 40 countries, from Australia to Norway and is used across the UK to promote fire safety. Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... S4C (Sianel Pedwar Cymru, which is Welsh for Channel Four Wales) is a television channel in Wales. ... This article is about the year. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... BBC One (or BBC1 as it was formerly styled) is the oldest United Kingdom, and indeed, the world. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig) is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. ... This article is about the country. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Original English language series

The series originally comprised 31 ten-minute episodes and a 20-minute Christmas special. The narration and character voices were done by John Alderton. John Alderton (born November 27, 1940), is a popular British actor. ...

Sam is the protagonist in the show, and interacts with both colleagues at the fire station and local townspeople.

In the original television series produced by Bumper Films between 1985 and 1994 the firefighters had yellow and black clothes, whereas in the new television series produced by HIT Entertainment in 2003 and 2005 they were yellow and blue. Bumper Films was a childrens stop-motion production company founded by John Walker and Ian Frampton in 1982. ... This article is about the year. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... The new HIT Entertainment logo, introduced in June 2006. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Characters

Firefighters

• Fireman Sam is referred to as the "hero next door". He is the archetypal fireman, who remains composed in an emergency and unfailingly offers assistance to all those in need. Sam is not married, but maintains a close relationship with his nephew, James, and niece, Sarah. Sam's tragic flaw is a penchant for invention, which rarely results in a productive outcome, and can undermine his emphasis on fire safety. His catchphrase is "Great fires of London!"
• Firefighter Elvis Cridlington provides a contrast to Sam in both competency and demeanour. Elvis is an exuberant rock 'n' roll fan and an appalling cook. He failed his 11+ exam at school. His cachphrase is "Great balls of fire!"
• Station Officer Basil Steele is the chief of Pontypandy Fire Station. As a former army officer, he insists upon a high standard of both hygiene and efficiency in the station. His cachphrase in the old series was "Now who need the fire service?" but in the new series it is "Action stations men!"
• Firefighter Penny Morris is the only female member of the Pontypandy fire brigade. In the original series, she only visited occasionally (hailing from Newtown fire station), although in the new series, she seems to work at Pontypandy full time. Penny doubles as a mechanic.
• Auxiliary fireman Trevor Evans is an auxiliary fireman with the brigade. His other job is the town's bus driver. He is known for his awkward manner and general bad luck streak, but nonetheless exhibits a great devotion to the welfare of others (especially Dilys). In the new series Trevor is no longer an auxiliary firefighter but he is still the bus driver, but still shows affection to Dilys.

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Townspeople

• Dilys Price runs the town grocery store. She is a well known gossip, and has great affection for Trevor, the bus driver. Dilys is the mother of town mischief-maker Norman Price, but is frequently blind to her son's troublesome ways. She dotes on her only child, or 'Mummy's Little Darling' as she sometimes calls him
• "Naughty" Norman Price is a seven year old with a love of practical jokes and skateboarding. Unfortunately, Norman regularly fails to set appropriate limits on his own behaviour, and has been known to cause mischief and sometimes causes havoc at the fire station, for many of Pontypandy's residents.
• Sarah and James are the relatively well behaved niece and nephew of Fireman Sam. They are often more sensible in an emergency than Norman. When they grow up they want to be firefighters like their uncle Sam.
• Bella Lasagne is the absent-minded town cafe owner, originally from Italy.
• Mandy Flood, Norman's best friend. She is sort of a bridge between naughty Norman and the well behaved Sarah and James. (2005 season)
• Helen Flood, Caribbean born nurse and mother of Mandy Flood. (2005 season)
• Mike Flood, handyman husband of Helen and father of Mandy. (2005 season)
• Tom Thomas, a mountain rescue worker who hails from Australia. Tom is most often seen flying to the rescue in his helicopter (2005 season)

Vehicles

• Jupiter is a bright red fire engine driven by Fireman Sam and based on a 1974 Bedford TK and is also based on a 1990 Bedford 6x4 (2005 season).
• Venus is a rescue tender driven by Penny Morris based on a 1982 Range Rover.
• Nurse Flood's car is driven by Nurse Helen Flood, but has an unknown base. (2005 season)
• Wallaby One is a helicopter flown by Tom Thomas and based on a 1980 Bell 222. (2005 season)
• Rescue Jeep is also driven and owned by Tom Thomas, based on a 1976 Range Rover jeep. (2005 season)
• The Bus is driven by Trevor Evans, and based on a 1975 Ford Transit Dormobile.

Fire Engine in South Bend, Indiana. ... Bedford was the first to use the Griffin logo Bedford Six WLG 2. ... A fire engine of the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, England. ... The Land Rover Range Rover, usually shortened to just Range Rover, is a four-wheel drive luxury SUV produced by Land Rover in the United Kingdom. ... A Bell 222 Bell 222U The Bell 222 is a helicopter built by Bell Helicopter Textron. ... The Land Rover Range Rover, usually shortened to just Range Rover, is a four-wheel drive luxury SUV produced by Land Rover in the United Kingdom. ... Ford may mean a number of things: A ford is a river crossing. ... The Bedford Dormobile is a 1960s-era campervan (motorcaravan, motorhome) of the Bedford marque. ...

Animals

• Rosa is Bella's temperamental cat.
• Dusty is a stray dog, usually found hanging around the fire station. (2005 season)
• Wooley is a lamb who Norman Price adopts after they were rescued from a mountainside. Rather bouncy and playful (2005 season)

Species See text. ...

Commercial Availability

The entire classic series was released on DVD in April 2007. Prior to that, only two other DVDs were available: Action Stations, containing what are believed to be some of the better episodes, and Snow Business, containing the Christmas special (which was noticeably absent in the classic series boxset) and two other episodes, "Safe with Sam" that includes fire safety and has not been shown by the BBC since November 1990, and "Rich and Famous". A further DVD of original episodes was available from the newspaper The Sunday Mirror in 2006, but only contained two episodes. The majority of the 2005 season has been released over various DVD releases. DVD (also known as Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc) is a popular optical disc storage media format. ... This article or section needs additional references or sources to improve its verifiability. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... For other uses, see November (disambiguation). ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... The Daily Mirror is a British tabloid daily newspaper. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Most of the original episodes have been made available on VHS previously (in the United Kingdom by BBC Video and in the United States and Canada by Family Home Entertainment), but apart from a VHS version of Action Stations these are all now out of print. Here is a list of the UK releases. BBC Video is a video company of the United Kingdom and United States. ... Family Home Entertainment (FHE) is an American home video company, founded in 1982, which releases childrens and family-oriented programming, most notably the popular 1980s Marvel/Sunbow television series The Transformers, G.I. Joe, Jem, as well as ThunderCats, the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series,Gumby, and...

Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the 1991 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ...

New series

The gang from the 2003-2005 version of Fireman Sam

A new series of Fireman Sam was produced between 2003 and 2005 by Siriol Productions (now known as Calon TV), comprising 26x10 min episodes, using up to date puppet-making, mouth movement and stop-motion animation techniques. It features all the original characters, but also adds some new characters such as Tom Thomas, the Australian pilot of Wallaby One, the rescue helicopter. Image File history File links Firemansam. ... Image File history File links Firemansam. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Instead of having all of the characters voiced by one person, there were three principal voice artists but John Alderton was not one of them. The voice of Sam was provided by John Sparkes. John Sparkes is a Welsh comedian, commonly known on Welsh television as Barry Welsh, in the award-winning (Best Light Entertainment, Welsh Baftas, 1999) series Barry Welsh is Coming. ...

The new series alienated many fans as many of the Welsh accents of the original, especially that of Sam himself, had been heavily watered down.^{[citation needed]}

The new series has been broadcast and translated into several different languages, and is available on DVD.

In 2007, HIT entertainment announced that a new series is in production, with them having a greater input in the series this time around, following S4c's sale of the rights to the show. HIT are aiming for a release date around Spring 2008, and are making a 60 minute special episode to be released directly to DVD. The new series also introduces the sights of the coastline of Pontypandy, as well as a new vehicle; Neptune, a lifeboat.

Theme Tune

The series had a theme tune composed by Ben Heneghan and Ian Lawson. The lyrics were written by Robin Lyons, and sung by Maldwyn Pope. A full-length version was also released on BBC Records.

The verse of the song alternates between notes a fifth apart - the intention being to suggest the sound of a fire engine siren.

The same composers wrote a new arrangement of the theme tune for the 2003 remake. (This time in straight quavers rather than the 'swung' twelve-eight of the original) Robin Lyons also updated the lyrics. This version was sung by Cameron Stewart, singer and lead guitarist with the Cardiff-based band Session.^[1]

Ben Heneghan and Ian Lawson also wrote a number of other Fireman Sam-related songs that were released on a cassette by BBC Records. These songs were later used in the touring stage show.

Episode List

Series 1 (1987-1988)

1. Kite (November 17, 1987)
2. Barn Fire (November 24, 1987)
3. Trevor's Training (December 1, 1987)
4. Flat Tyre (December 8, 1987)
5. Camping (December 15, 1987)
6. Norman's Tricky Day (December 22, 1987)
7. Safe with Sam (October 25, 1988)
8. Telly Trouble (November 1, 1988)
9. Treasure Hunt (November 8, 1988)
10. Sam's Day Off (November 15, 1988)
11. Chemistry Set (November 22, 1988)
12. Wishing Well (November 29, 1988)
13. Lost Cat (December 6, 1988)
14. The Great Inventor (December 13, 1988)
15. Thief in Pontypandy (December 19, 1988)
16. Snow Business (December 22, 1988)

Series 2 (1990) 17 November is also the name of a Marxist group in Greece, coinciding with the anniversary of the Athens Polytechnic uprising. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 328th day of the year (329th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 342nd day of the year (343rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 349th day of the year (350th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 356th day of the year (357th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 312th day of the year (313th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 319th day of the year (320th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 326th day of the year (327th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 333rd day of the year (334th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 340th day of the year (341st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 347th day of the year (348th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 356th day of the year (357th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

1. Dilys's Forgetful Day (October 15, 1990)
2. Spot of Bother (October 22, 1990)
3. Halloween (October 29, 1990)
4. Norman's Pitfall (November 12, 1990)
5. Lost Ring (November 19, 1990)
6. All in a Good Cause (November 26, 1990)
7. Brass Band (December 3, 1990)
8. Lost in the Fog (December 10, 1990)
9. Bentley the Robot (December 17, 1990)

Series 3 (1994) is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 302nd day of the year (303rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 316th day of the year (317th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 323rd day of the year (324th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 330th day of the year (331st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 337th day of the year (338th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 344th day of the year (345th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... December 17 is the 351st day of the year (352nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

1. Home from Rome (October 25, 1994)
2. Rich and Famous (October 27, 1994)
3. Quarry Rescue (November 1, 1994)
4. Deep Trouble for Sam (November 3, 1994)
5. Trevor's Bus Boot Sale (November 8, 1994)
6. What Goes Up (November 10, 1994)
7. Steele Under Par (November 15, 1994)
8. Disaster for Dinner (November 17, 1994)

is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... is the 300th day of the year (301st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 312th day of the year (313th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 314th day of the year (315th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 319th day of the year (320th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 17 November is also the name of a Marxist group in Greece, coinciding with the anniversary of the Athens Polytechnic uprising. ...

References

Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 167th day of the year (168th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Official Fireman Sam website
• Fireman Sam on CBeebies
• Fireman Sam at the Internet Movie Database
• Fireman Sam at ClassicKidsTV.co.uk
• Fireman Sam on Toonhound