According to his promoter, HIT Entertainment, Bob the Builder
is "television's most popular construction worker."
Bob the Builder is the star of an eponymous animated TV
series designed for pre-schoolers. The character of Bob is voiced by the actor Neil Morrissey. The series premiered on the
BBC in 1999. The series was developed by Kate Fawkes from the idea of a former colleague at Jim Henson studios. The show is animated using a technique known as stop-frame animation.
Bob's primary shortcoming is his absent-mindedness, yet with help from
his friends and a can-do attitude, he invariably triumphs over
adversity. His friends include Bob's business partner, Wendy, whose
organizational skills compensate for Bob's shortcomings, a blue cat
named Pilchard, and a variety of anthropomorphic construction
equipment.
Bob the Builder's catchy, danceable theme song gained widespread
popularity beyond the show itself. The song was the biggest-selling
single in the UK for the year 2000. Its refrain, "Can we fix it?
Yes, we can!" became the anthem for positive-thinkers everywhere.
In addition to entertaining its viewers, Bob the Builder teaches them how to count, identify sounds, and understand emotions.
As of October, 2003, Bob the Builder still provided 30% of HIT
Entertainment's revenues.
http://hitentertainment.com/html/classicChar/bob.asp
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,748-844878,00.html
http://uk.news.launch.yahoo.com/dyna/article.html?a=/dotmusic_news/17145.html&e=l_news
http://www.hitentertainment.com/bobthebuilder/usa/characters.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/uk_news/1059806.stm