Art Attack
| Company type | Television series |
|---|---|
| Industry | Children's television |
| Founded | June 15, 1990 |
| Founder | Neil Buchanan, Tim Edmunds |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
Area served | United Kingdom; international (Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Latin America, Brazil, Australia, Canada, USA, South Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong, Kenya, UAE, Middle East, Brunei) |
Key people | Neil Buchanan (creator, presenter, writer, producer), Lloyd Warbey (presenter), Jassa Ahluwalia (presenter) |
| Products | Television series episodes and specials |
| Parent | The Media Merchants (originally), The Britt Allcroft Company (from 2000), HIT Entertainment (from 2002), Disney (from 2011) |
| Website | www |
Art Attack is a UK-based children's TV series centered on art, initially hosted by Neil Buchanan on CITV from 1990 until 2007, and later presented by Lloyd Warbey on Disney Junior between 2012 and 2015.
The original run was broadcast on CITV from 15 June 1990 through 19 May 2007, with Buchanan—who co-created the show—acting as presenter, writer, and producer, responsible for the majority of the creative ideas.
A reboot premiered on Disney Junior starting 6 June 2011, first hosted by Jassa Ahluwalia, who guided viewers through the process of creating three artworks per episode. Lloyd Warbey took over hosting duties at the beginning of the British second revival.
History
Art Attack began as a production by TVS, developed by TVS staff Neil Buchanan and Tim Edmunds, who had previously worked together on No. 73 and Do It!. The Art Attacks segments featured within No. 73 gained significant attention, leading Nigel Pickard, TVS's executive producer for children's programming, to approve a pilot in 1989. This pilot was filmed at a former swimming pool located in Gillingham, Kent. The full series launched the following year.
The theme tune was created by Mr Miller & Mr Porter and drew inspiration from Kenny Loggins’ Danger Zone from the film Top Gun. Following TVS’s loss of its broadcasting franchise, Edmunds and Buchanan purchased the rights and continued producing the show under their company, The Media Merchants. They collaborated with STV Studios (then known as "SMG Productions") to air the programme on ITV, utilizing contacts such as Nigel Pickard from their TVS days. Production oversight and co-writing were managed by Television Support Services, founded in 1993 by former TVS employee Peter Urie.
The majority of episodes were recorded at The Maidstone Studios, located in Maidstone, Kent. In 1998, The Media Merchants secured an agreement with Disney's Buena Vista Productions to produce 104 episodes for Germany, France, Italy, and Spain (26 episodes each), branded under Disney. These international versions combined UK footage with local hosts providing narration. The partnership expanded in 2000 to include 40 episodes for Latin America and Brazil, with further episodes produced in 2002.
In March 2000, The Britt Allcroft Company acquired The Media Merchants for £14 million, marking the first time the show was owned by a corporation. Gullane itself was later bought by HIT Entertainment in 2002. Despite these ownership transitions, production continued under The Media Merchants banner.
When ITV shut down its children's production division in June 2006, commissioning was halted; as a result, Art Attack was cancelled in July 2007 although reruns continued until May 2011. HIT Entertainment subsequently closed The Media Merchants; members of the original production team moved to The Foundation where they worked on programmes such as Finger Tips and Mister Maker, also filmed at Maidstone Studios.
In November 2008, HIT collaborated with The Walt Disney Company Latin America to revive the Latin American edition of the series, which was produced at Non Stop Digital S.A. studios in Buenos Aires. By May 2011, Disney had acquired the property from HIT and announced global relaunches including a UK version. These new editions featured local presenters narrating over footage of artists creating works; Jassa Ahluwalia served as narrator for the UK revival’s initial season. Artist Alexiev Gandman designed the Big Art Attacks segments. The original character The Head was replaced by Vincent Van Coconut—a talking palm tree. Aimed at preschool audiences on Disney Junior, this revival incorporated artwork inspired by Disney franchises.
In December 2012, Buchanan appeared in a documentary special commemorating CITV’s history; shortly thereafter, a 1992 episode of Art Attack was rebroadcast during CITV’s "Old Skool Weekend" event.
Characters
The Head was a puppet crafted as a stone bust, modeled after Constantine the Great, which humorously summarized the process of making the featured artwork. He frequently offered his own humorous reinterpretations of the prior Art Attack project, often resulting in amusing blunders. Occasionally, these errors produced distinctive effects that he proudly displayed. The Head also provided jokes and puns, particularly following Big Art Attacks. This character was portrayed by Jim Sweeney in the first series, Andrew O'Connor in the second, and from series 3 through 5, a revamped puppet version was voiced and puppeteered by Francis Wright. In series 6 and 7, producer Tim Edmunds assumed both voice and puppetry duties. The character was absent from series 12, 13, 18, and 19.
In the revived incarnation of the show, The Head was replaced by "Vincent van Coconut," a talking palm tree voiced by Tim Hibber that parodied the Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh.
Video releases
| VHS title | Year | Company | Video specials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 'Art Attack: Over 30 Great Art and Craft Ideas' | 1992 | Future Vision | Neil presents his favourite crafts from the debut series. |
| 'Art Attack with Neil Buchanan' | 1993 | Video Class | Neil showcases his top sixteen Art Attacks. |
| 'Art Attack: Most Wanted' | 26 February 1996 | Contender Entertainment Group | A compilation of fan-favourite Art Attacks. |
| 'Art Attack: Crazy Cartoons and Dazzling Drawings' | 29 July 1996 | Tips on creating cartoons and illustrations. | |
| 'Art Attack Let's Party!' | 28 October 1996 | Features projects themed around parties, birthdays, and Christmas. | |
| 'Art Attack: Top 20' | 10 February 1997 | Neil's personal selection of twenty favourite Art Attacks. | |
| 'Art Attack: Scrapbook' | 3 November 1997 | A curated collection highlighting standout projects. | |
| 'Art Attack: 10 of the Best' | 16 February 1998 | Celebrates ten exceptional episodes from the first ten series. | |
| 'Art Attack: Christmas Cracker' | 26 October 1998 | Contains five festive-themed projects alongside two Big Art Attacks from Christmas Specials. | |
| 'Art Attack: Greatest Tips and Tricks' | 20 September 1999 | Features Neil’s top art techniques. | |
| 'Art Attack: How to Draw' | 5 June 2000 | Instructional content focusing on drawing skills. | |
| 'Art Attack: How to Paint' | 11 September 2000 | Demonstrations of various painting techniques. | |
| 'Art Attack: Make 'n' Do' | 4 June 2001 | Projects utilizing recycled materials. | |
| 'Art Attack Monsters and other Scary Stuff' | 19 August 2002 | Video Collection International | Art projects with monster themes. |
No official DVD releases for the UK market exist except those included as extras with books or newspapers. In India, Disney distributed Art Attack across three DVD volumes in 2010. Numerous Art Attack books have been published by Dorling Kindersley.
International broadcast
Since the late 1990s, Art Attack has reached audiences worldwide through Disney Channel and its regional variants. In Australia, the show was initially broadcast on ABC from 1995 to 1999, followed by airings on Disney Channel, Disney Junior, and the Seven Network. Canadian viewers accessed the program via TVOKids, Family Jr., and Knowledge Kids, while in the United States, it was featured on WAM! during the 1990s. Additional territories where it was shown include South Africa on SABC2, Singapore through StarHub and Disney Channel, Hong Kong via TVB, Kenya on KTN, the UAE’s Channel 33, as well as the Middle East with Fun Channel and Disney Channel broadcasts, and Brunei’s RTB.
The original UK production hosted by Neil Buchanan was adapted for non-English speaking regions through dubbing or subtitling. It aired on Dragon Club in China, ET1 in Greece, Disney Channel Taiwan, and TRT in Turkey. The revived Turkish edition also received Arabic subtitles for Jeem TV across Middle Eastern countries. In Latin America during the 1990s, Discovery Kids presented dubbed versions in both Spanish and Portuguese; between 2000 and 2002, Disney produced region-specific Spanish and Portuguese editions hosted by Rui Torres for Disney Channel Latin America and Brazil. Subsequently, the British version was dubbed for these audiences.
The Portuguese-language Disney Channel adaptation featured Pedro Penim as host from 2002 until 2011, followed by Salvador Nery from 2011 to 2014. India developed a Hindi-language version with Gaurav Juyal hosting from 2011 to 2014; prior to this, the UK series had been dubbed into Hindi for Indian viewers. The Scandinavian edition, presented by Leon Jilber and produced in Swedish with Danish and Norwegian voice-overs, transitioned from Disney Junior Scandinavia to Disney Channel Scandinavia. Italy’s localized version aired from 1998 to 2005 and resumed from 2011 to 2014 with Giovanni Muciaccia as host.
Moreover, Art Attack was part of children’s programming blocks broadcast by British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) and its predecessor SSVC Television across various locations including Germany, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Gibraltar, Belize, and the Falkland Islands.
See also
- SMart – children’s art television series (1994–2009)
- Art Ninja – children’s art television series airing since 2015
External links
- Articles with short description
- 1990 British television series debuts
- 2015 British television series endings
- 1990s British children's television series
- 1990s preschool education television series
- 2000s British children's television series
- 2000s preschool education television series
- 2010s British children's television series
- 2010s preschool education television series
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming
- BAFTA winners (television series)
- British preschool education television series
- British television series revived after cancellation
- British television shows featuring puppetry
- Disney Channel original programming
- Disney Channel international original programming
- British English-language television shows
- Gullane Entertainment
- ITV children's television shows
- Television series about art
- Television series by ITV Studios
- Television series by Mattel Television
- Television series by Disney
- Television series by STV Studios
- Television shows produced by Scottish Television
- Television shows produced by Television South (TVS)