BBC Studios on the growth of Bluey

2021 was a stand out year for preschool brand Bluey in the UK, culminating in it being named the number one new toy brand according to NPD data. LSB catches up with BBC Studios’ Mandy Thwaites to find out how the company is planning to continue the upward trajectory for the property from Down Under. True Blue

If you’ve yet to come across Bluey, the six year old Blue Heeler pup, her younger sister, Bingo, and her parents Bandit and Chilli, it certainly seems like you’re in the minority. Smashing viewing records in its home nation of Australia, it is also the number one Disney Junior show in America while, in the UK, Bluey was the most watched programme on CBeebies in January 2022 and is also available on Disney+. This success is also being repeated in the consumer products space, as Mandy Thwaites, director, magazines and consumer products, UK division at BBC Studios, explains. “It’s been fantastic so far and we had some great results last year – capped by Bluey being 2021’s number one new toy brand according to NPD data. The UK is covered by global deals with master toy partner Moose Toys and master publisher Penguin Random House as well as multiterritory deals with Crayola, VTech and Hasbro. “Other UK deals include Character Options, Danilo, Blues, Aykroyd & Sons and TDP Textiles, William Lamb, Roy Lowe & Sons, Amscan, H&A, MV Sports, Stor and others. It’s a strong and rapidly growing programme in the UK and other territories.” Mandy says that perhaps while the speed at which Bluey’s success has grown has been unexpected, the team has always had complete belief in the quality of the show. “We’ve worked very closely with Ludo Studio who produce Bluey, and it’s been amazing to see fans around the world fall in love with the show as we did when we first saw it. “Bluey really is something special.” The aim now is to continue building on the existing success. Bluey is now airing in over 60 territories with top tier partners including Disney and free to air broadcasters. This has enabled BBC Studios to bring on board licensees in multiple territories and appoint licensing agents to serve local markets. In EMEA, the focus is currently on core markets including France, Italy, Spain, Nordics and others, but Mandy says there should be a full scale partnership programme in place across EMEA, US and LATAM by the end of the year. “We want to build on the success we had in 2021 - it was such a good year for Bluey in the UK and we want to sustain that growth to make it the must-have brand for licensees and retailers,” Mandy continues. “I think it’s clear to see that we’re very excited by Bluey. We don’t want to get carried away in that excitement though and there’s a lot of hard work that we’re putting in behind the scenes to build a very solid foundation for the long-term growth of the brand globally. From the team that we’ve put together here at BBC Studios, to our selection of partners who share our goals and values, we have a clear strategy for Bluey that we’d like to deliver on for years to come.”

Right: Bluey ended 2021 as the number one new toy brand according to NPD data. Left: Mandy Thwaites, director, magazines and consumer products, UK division at BBC Studios. Below: BBC Studios is looking to further build on the success Bluey enjoyed in 2021.