³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Following the runaway success of the initial series, CBeebies has commissioned 26 new episodes of Grandpa In My Pocket from Adastra Creative.

From the moment the series appeared on screen last month it was a hit with the channel's young viewers, their parents and carers, with outstanding viewing figures, lively website activity and the regular top spot on the CBeebies iPlayer.

Over 2.5 million individuals have watched Grandpa In My Pocket since it began in February and the show has averaged 450,000 per episode – an increase of 46% on the slot average.

Announcing the recommission, Michael Carrington, Controller of CBeebies, said: "I'm so proud of Grandpa In My Pocket, a new series which has quickly established itself as one of our most successful programmes of recent times.

"The high ratings are proof that there is a fantastic appetite for high-quality, narrative-driven comedy amongst young children. What I find is unique about Grandpa In My Pocket is its ability to connect with boys and girls of a wide age range – no doubt because it is universally funny."

The series stars James Bolam as Jason Mason's mischievous Grandpa. Grandpa lives with his family in a beautiful seaside town called Sunnysands. Everyone thinks he spends all his time stuck in his armchair, but he has a magic shrinking cap which only his grandson, Jason, knows about.

When Grandpa puts his cap on, he becomes small enough to fit into Jason's pocket, not to mention his toy plane and car. He turns up in all sorts of unlikely places and creates comic mayhem which Jason has to sort out. Together, Grandpa and Jason make a great team and have a host of hilarious adventures.

James Bolam admits he'll be thrilled to be back playing Grandpa: "Grandpa is great fun to play and I'm pleased the series has proved to be such a hit as it deserves to be. Really good scripts attract a really good cast and it's all played for real, no talking down the children. So if series two is half as good as the first series it'll be a delight to do!"

From creators Mellie Buse and Jan Page, part of the writing team behind other hit CBeebies shows such as Charlie And Lola, Grandpa In My Pocket is directed by Richard Bradley, director of the BAFTA award winning live action series The Hoobs.

Made with participation from Finance Wales it is produced by Mellie Buse and Jan Page. Sarah Colclough is executive producer for the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ and Angus Fletcher is executive producer for Adastra Creative.

LG