Babaclub

Babaclub was a children's programme of Nou (TV channel) and Canal Nou Dos which includes cartoon series and performances with different characters, among which we can find Babalà, a spotted stuffed dog of human dimensions which is the symbol of the programme.

History[edit]

The programme started in 1990, named A la babalà. It was hosted by Diego Braguinsky and Fani Grande. That first period was set in a television studio where there was a contest with a live audience made of children. Later on, in 1992, the show changed the format and started to have three hosts: Xoni, Poti and Tiriti. Over time, the show changed the name to Babalà Club, later Babalà and since 2009, the current name, Babaclub. Between 1997 and 2004, the host was María Abradelo.

A la babalà[edit]

The project was thought by its first director José Ramón García Bertolín. A la babalà was the first own production children's programme of Radio Televisió Valenciana and the second children's programme that used the chroma-key in Spain (the first one was Club Super 3). A la babalà started to broadcast in the second season of Canal 9, from Monday to Friday at 18h. The first period was hosted by Diego Braguinsky and Fani Grande, and the format was a number of contests where different schools fought for a prize. It was broadcast before a telephone contest called Don Teledó and then a cartoon were broadcast. Afterwards, Diego Braguinsky was replaced by Robert Esteve.

The format of the programme and presenters were changed in autumn 1992. Ricardo Jordán, Carme Juan and José Vicente Baynat would be the new presenters, representing the characters of Xoni, Poti and Tiriti. The format would be the container of programmes, and a big promotion would be launched and A la babalà Club would be created, which would maintain direct contact with their associates and would make them gifts and special offers. Among the programmes, the most followed would be Dragon Ball Z, Defenders of the Earth and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The schedule changed to morning hours.

Xoni, Poti and Tiriti were the first presenters to sing in a children's programme, even performing at the festival of Cannes. They recorded a compact disc and published two video tapes of Dragon Ball that were given away for the birthdays of the children who were members of the club.

In 1994, it expanded its programming to include the Video xoc programme, dedicated to video games. Aimed at youth audiences, its audience was of 12,12% and 97.000 people. The space with the largest audience was Dragon Ball Z, with 133.000 viewers (23,26%) in 1993 and 92.000 (24,09%) in 1994. The first series, Dragon Ball, was broadcast until after the summer with 136.000 followers (23,60%).

Babalà Club[edit]

From 1996 the programme was renewed by eliminating the three hosts, who were replaced by Paqui Rodán first, and by María Abradelo later. It was in that period when the figure of the dog Babalà is created. While María Abradelo was the host, the programme took place in a spacecraft. By that time, Babalà was a virtual character, dubbed by César Lechiguero, which was accompanied by María Abradelo and a robot named Bolet, too. Abradelo hosted the programme until 2006, reaching very high ratings, although the pedagogical content of the programme decreased progressively.

In 2006, Babalà became a dressed up actor, accompanied by two new characters, Pau and Nina, respectively played by Toni Agustí and Carme Juan. Later, they were played by Paco Trenzano and another actress.

Babaclub[edit]

Between 2009 and 2013 the programme format changed and introduced puppets. The programme dealt with a group of animals which were friends and formed a music band. The programme was hosted by its characters, puppets moved and played by actors who handled and drove the puppets.

Characters[edit]

Babalà: He is a stuffed human sized Bull Terrier. He is the mascot and the symbol of the programme. He is a faithful friend of the Professor Sol. He likes to compose, play, rest and above all, eat. In the group, he plays the keyboard and he loves pop music. Dubbed by Enric Puig.
Professor Sol: He owns the studio where the characters live. He is a very wise man and he likes to invent and investigate new objects to make life simpler. He is in charge of composing the group's songs.
Babasí: She is the youngest member of the group of friends. She arrived at the studio when she was a few days old and Professor Sol and Babalà took her in. She is full of energy, she never stays still, she is always willing to play and have fun. She has an adventurous personality and she dreams of becoming a superhero who saves the world from evil and pollution. She plays the drums and loves rap music.
Babarré: He is a young anteater who lives in the forest near the studio. He is the naivest of the whole group. He hasn't got great aspirations in his life, just enjoy of nature and play with his friends. Although he is an anteater, he doesn't like ants: he's a vegetarian. He enjoys dancing and playing his trunk, which sounds like a clarinet. He makes melodic sounds in the group.
Babamí: She's a stray cat. She arrived to the workshop when she heard the music of the group of friends. She has lived many experiences, as she has spent her whole life travelling. Imaginative and artistic, she plays percussion instruments that she has collected during her travels around the world.
Babadó: He is playful and a joker and loves to tease people. His friends love him so much because he is jovial and extrovert. He plays the guitar and loves rock music.
Polpol: He is Professor Sol's neighbour. Dirt and mess are his passion. He has a machine which converts anything into smoke. As he has spent so much time in the laboratory producing polluting smoke, he has mutated and he loses body parts.
Penta and Grama: They are two nice rats who live in a hole in the wall of the studio. They talk about what they see on television from their sofa.
Mac Micro: He is the monkey reporter, talkative and funny. He likes to tell us things with his peculiar style, agile and witty. Sometimes he acts as he was the authentic protagonist of the news.
Silfa: She is the Nymph that lives in the forest. She is a friend of the other characters.

This article "Babaclub" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Babaclub. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.