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Cbeebies! *Duh duh duh!*

CBeebies is a channel created by The BBC for kids aged 1-6, a younger children's version of CBBC, the channel for 6-12-year-olds. There are shows ranging from science, art, to learning about vegetables and fruits to learning British Sign Language to cooking for children. It was launched on 11th February 2002.

The channel shares bandwidth with BBC Four, which used to take over after CBeebies signs off for the day, and ran until morning when they would sign off to give way to CBeebies again.

The channel is compared to ITV's CITV and Channel 5's Milkshake! slot a lot.

The BBC's Worldwide arm also transmits an international feed of CBeebies, of which there are several notable differences. Firstly, the channel runs 24 hours and does not shut down for the night, mainly because it has to cater to many different countries and it doesn't need to share bandwidth with other channels, being funded by subscription. Secondly, it has licenses to shows that otherwise belong to other networks in the UK (e.g. Humf) and also does not carry several shows that are broadcast by the UK version because the rights of those went to different provider (e.g. Postman Pat, which in Asia was snapped up by Cartoon Network for its Boomerang network, and Chuggington, whose rights in Asia remained with Disney and is seen on Disney Junior instead). And lastly, it is also often transmitted in multiple languages; some cable TV providers carry up to three different language audio feeds for its shows. The Scottish Gaelic channel, BBC Alba, has a CBeebies block that airs on weekdays featuring Gaelic presenters.

For the American equivalent, see PBS Kids.

Programmes that have aired on CBeebies's UK feed (as of February 2024) include:

Tropes that apply to CBeebies:

  • Animesque: The bugs from the 2023 rebrand have a noticeably more chibi appearance.
  • Bathroom Control: The Bobinogs: In "Wash, Soap, Rinse and Dry", the band makes plans to go on a hot air balloon for Nib's birthday. Nib says she needs to use the bathroom before they leave, but the other two are too excited to pay attention to her statement and tell her to go later.
  • Excited Kids' Show Host: Type 1 for the live-action hosts and the presenters. Some of the more informative shows (eg, Nina and the Neurons and Maddie's Do You Know?) have their presenters/hosts border more on the Type 3 category despite the difference in an age range.
  • Go-to-Sleep Ending: The channel closes down every night with a montage of the channel's characters going to sleep with a goodnight song playing in the background.
  • Long-Runners: The channel's original branding. While some bumpers were retired over the years, the overall theme of the channel lasted 21 years before being refreshed.
  • "Sesame Street" Cred: The bedtime stories often have celebrities reading out stories.


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