Mention a certain cartoon pig to anyone under six and it will elicit squeals of delight, perhaps even an oinking impersonation. Mention the same animated porker to their parents and expect a pained groan. Therein lies the paradox of Peppa Pig – a TV series adored by children but loathed by grown-ups.
This generational divide hasn’t stopped it becoming a multi-billion pound global phenomenon and transforming the TV landscape. Today marks the perky piglet’s 20th birthday. The debut episode aired in Channel 5’s Milkshake morning slot to little fanfare on 31 May 2004.
Over the two decades since, Peppa has become such a part of our cultural fabric that the Royal Mail has released a set of postage stamps to celebrate the anniversary. The show has clocked up 400 episodes, won four BAFTAs and been broadcast in 180 countries. It’s currently the world’s second most in-demand children’s cartoon (after SpongeBob SquarePants ).
Small wonder Hasbro bought the franchise in a £3.3bn deal . Meanwhile, a special wedding episode sees pop star Katy Perry and her Hollywood fiancé Orlando Bloom lend their voices to new characters (a leopard and a raccoon respectively).
Who needs Disney’s House of Mouse when we’ve got the Palace Of Pig? Created by friends Neville Astley, Mark Baker and Phil Davies, who met while working in the animation department of Middlesex Polytechnic in the mid-80s, the series follows anthropomorphic four-year-old piglet Peppa. In a world almost entirely p.
