Bob the Builder

Bob the Builder, the titular character, in his design used for the original series.

Voice actors who have contributed to the original British version include Neil Morrissey, Rob Rackstraw, Kate Harbour, Rupert Degas, Colin McFarlane, Maria Darling, Emma Tate, Richard Briers, June Whitfield and Wayne Forester.

Celebrities who have provided voices for the series (usually for one-off specials) include John Motson, Sue Barker, Kerry Fox, Ulrika Jonsson, Alison Steadman, Stephen Tompkinson, Elton John, Noddy Holder, and Chris Evans (Bobsville's resident rock star Lennie Lazenby).

Bob the Builder is shown in more than thirty countries, and versions are available in English, French, Spanish, Serbian, Slovenian, German, Italian, Dutch, Hebrew, Hindi and Croatian, among other languages. It was shown on CBeebies on BBC television in the UK. It has also aired on Nick Jr. in the UK.[6]

The North American version of the show uses the original British footage and script, but dubs the voices in American accents and slang; for example, the word "soccer" is used instead of "football" to avoid confusion with the gridiron forms of the game. The original North American voice of Bob (and Farmer Pickles/Mr. Beasley/Mr. Sabatini) was William Dufris, however, he was replaced with comedian Greg Proops. More recently, Bob's US voice has been provided by Marc Silk, an English voice actor from Birmingham.[7][8]

When being exported to Japan, it was reported that characters of Bob the Builder would be doctored to have five fingers instead of the original four. This was because of a practice among the Yakuza, the famed Japanese mafia, where members would "cut off their little fingers as a sign they can be trusted and have strength of character, and will stay through."[9] In fact, Bob the Builder aired in Japan without such edits,[10] as did other series including Postman Pat and The Simpsons.

Bob the Builder was nominated in the BAFTA "Pre-school animation" category from 1999 to 2009, and won the "Children's Animation" category in 2003 for the special episode "A Christmas to Remember".[19] Of the show's success, Sarah Ball said:

I think diggers and dumpers fascinate kids in the same way that they are drawn to dinosaurs. They both have a timeless appeal. The technique of stop motion is very tangible - the characters look like you can just pick them up and play with them. It’s a safe, lovely, bright, colourful world, which is very appealing. Curtis Jobling did a fantastic job designing the show - it’s very simple and stylized but has such charm.

— Interview with Sarah Ball, Gurgle.com[20]

Bob the Builder has been parodied by Robot Chicken in the episode "More Blood, More Chocolate", and by Comedy Inc. as Bodgy Builder.

Bob has also been parodied on Cartoon Network's MAD on several occasions. In the episode "S'UP / Mouse M.D.", Bob is seen with a smashed thumb and asks "Can we fix it?" In another episode, Bob encounters the title character of Handy Manny, whom he tells to "Stop copying my show!"

A New Yorker cartoon shows a parent in a toy store asking for toys depicting Alex the Architect, supposedly a white-collar equivalent to Bob the Builder.

Some have complained about technical errors and lack of proper safety practices in the programme, especially the absence of protective eyewear.[21] However, in later episodes, Bob is seen using safety glasses.

In May 2005, a sort of spin-off series was released titled Bob the Builder: Project Build It. Bob hears of a contest to build a new community in a remote area called Sunflower Valley, outside of Bobsville. He moves from Bobsville (supposedly temporarily) with Wendy and the machines and builds a new Yard there. Bob convinces his father, Robert, to come out of retirement and take over the Bobsville building business. It is unknown whether Bob returned to Bobsville in the stop-motion series or not after this spin-off series was finished.

For the US version of the Project Build It series, different actors were found to do the voices for many of the human characters, including casting Greg Proops as the new voice of Bob, and Rob Rackstraw, who played the original Scoop, to be the voices of Spud the Scarecrow and Mr. Bentley for both the UK and the US. The show also added recycling and being environmentally friendly to its lessons, emphasising the phrase "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle."

This series premiered on 3 September 2005 in the United States.

The third spin-off was titled Bob the Builder: Ready, Steady, Build! It was created by Keith Chapman and Mallory Lewis. The group, now joined by newcomer Scratch are now residing in the town of Fixham Harbour (which is very similar to Bobsville, and is even implied to be Bobsville in several episodes), deal with construction and other building tasks around the area. Unlike previous series, Ready, Steady, Build! is animated in full CGI animation, which allows for larger and more elaborate construction projects that would be too large or expensive for the model sets of the stop-motion series, though it still retains the theme song.[22]

Various companies manufacture licensed Bob the Builder merchandise (e.g.: Brio, Lego Duplo, Hasbro, Learning Curve, etc.) since about 1999 to present. Sometimes some fans make fan-made merchandise for the television show, such as racing games that are not related to the show.

Kiddie rides

Bob the Builder video-optioned Scoop kiddie ride

Jolly Roger (Amusement Rides) Ltd. released two kiddie rides based on the series, a Scoop in January 2000, and a Roley in March 2003. In March 2003, Scoop was re-released with a new dashboard and a Stamar soundboard. Then, in 2004, versions of both rides were released with video screens.

• Bob the Builder at BBC Programmes

Channels

• Bob The Builder on ABC 4 Kids
• Bob The Builder on CBeebies
• Bob The Builder On Česká Televize
• Bob The Builder on Nick Jr. UK
• Bob The Builder on Sprout
• Bob The Builder on Télé-Québec
• Bob The Builder on TOGOLINGO
• Bob The Builder on Treehouse TV
• Official website on pbskids.org

Others

• Official website
• Bob the Builder at IMDb

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bob the Builder.