Rastamouse
Encyclopedia
Rastamouse is a British animated
stop motion
entertainment series aimed at children under six years of age. It is animated by Dinamo Productions in Trefforest, near Cardiff, Wales. It features crime-fighting special agents Rastamouse, Scratchy and Zoomer, who solve mysteries and have adventures. There are 26 episodes in the first series featuring an all-mouse cast which was first shown on 31 January 2011 on CBeebies
, a UK BBC
channel in the afternoon. From 7 March 2011 it was also being repeated on BBC2 in the early morning. It is the first British animated series to feature Jamaican-Caribbean characters. New episodes are being shown from the second series starting 11 July 2011 on CBeebies.
swimming instructor). The books are written in rhyme
with a Caribbean
accent, and using some Jamaican Patois terms. A pop song, "Ice Popp", has also been released in 2011.
Lenny Henry
read two stories, 'The Crucial Plan' and 'Da Bag-a Bling', for BBC
's Jackanory Junior, first shown in January 2008.
band — "Rastamouse and Da Easy Crew" — who hang out at the Nuff Song recording studio (a possible reference to the Tuff Gong
studio) in the fictional Mouseland. Rastamouse wears a traditional Rasta tam (woolly hat), sports dreadlocks, and uses a skateboard
. Scratchy, who is dressed in a 1950s style balloon skirt and a ribbon bow on her head always wears roller skates
, and the contemporarily-styled male Zoomer always wears roller blades. "Da Easy Crew" originally featured Dave Fidler on kazoo, but he was dropped from the line-up after only a few episodes.
Other regular characters include the President Wensley Dale, who calls Rastamouse on a small radio to help solve a problem in Mouseland; Bandulu the Cook, who has a large bite out of his left ear; and Bagga-T, the hip-hop-styled mouse who runs the surprisingly populous orphanage.
Despite the title of the series, none of the characters are Rastafari and Jah is never mentioned in the programme. However, there are a number of subtle (and arguably stereotypical) references to cannabis
in most episodes.
Recurring occasional characters are several unnamed young orphan mice, Missy D, Fats the garage owner, Little Patch the female Radio DJ, Rubba and Dub the male sporty twins, Sol the trainer shop owner, Super the grocery shop owner, the President's nephew Frank C, Ron the barber and Shorty. Ice Popp, as featured in the Rastamouse pop video, makes an appearance in Episode 17.
The first ever episode features a cat attack on Mouseland - the reason for the islands numerous orphans, but this has never been screened due to the violent and disturbing scenes it contains.
and Tim Burton's Corpse Bride
.
to cannabis
, despite actual cheese being seen in the series. The Rastafarian poet Benjamin Zephaniah
had criticised the accuracy of the West Indian accents. There have been complaints to the BBC regarding the use of Jamaican slang, and alleged racist overtones.
The Voice
, a newspaper serving the British African-Caribbean community
, considered the show welcome, albeit as a stereotype of Jamaican life, although a website poll showed that over 60% considered it to be a positive programme.
The Sun Newspaper reports the creator, Michael de Souza, is saddened by the media reaction to Rastamouse; the paper later commented that the BBC claims that "Rastamouse is not racist", as more fully reported on Digital Spy
The Guardian
newspaper gives a differing view of Rastamouse, with the producer Greg Boardman stating no 'Cult TV' type references were deliberately put in as is being claimed.
.
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
stop motion
Stop motion
Stop motion is an animation technique to make a physically manipulated object appear to move on its own. The object is moved in small increments between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames is played as a continuous sequence...
entertainment series aimed at children under six years of age. It is animated by Dinamo Productions in Trefforest, near Cardiff, Wales. It features crime-fighting special agents Rastamouse, Scratchy and Zoomer, who solve mysteries and have adventures. There are 26 episodes in the first series featuring an all-mouse cast which was first shown on 31 January 2011 on CBeebies
CBeebies
CBeebies is the brand used by the BBC for programming aimed at children 6 years and under. It is used as a themed strand in the UK on terrestrial television, as a separate free-to-air domestic British channel and used for international varients supported by advertising, subscription or both...
, a UK BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
channel in the afternoon. From 7 March 2011 it was also being repeated on BBC2 in the early morning. It is the first British animated series to feature Jamaican-Caribbean characters. New episodes are being shown from the second series starting 11 July 2011 on CBeebies.
Origins
Rastamouse was introduced in 2005 with the children's book Rastamouse and the Crucial Plan. Rastamouse Da Bag-a Bling followed later in 2005 and Rastamouse and the Double-Crossin' Diva in 2006. All stories were written by the co-authors Genevieve Webster (an author and illustrator) and Michael De Souza (a RastafarianRastafari movement
The Rastafari movement or Rasta is a new religious movement that arose in the 1930s in Jamaica, which at the time was a country with a predominantly Christian culture where 98% of the people were the black descendants of slaves. Its adherents worship Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia , as God...
swimming instructor). The books are written in rhyme
Rhyme
A rhyme is a repetition of similar sounds in two or more words and is most often used in poetry and songs. The word "rhyme" may also refer to a short poem, such as a rhyming couplet or other brief rhyming poem such as nursery rhymes.-Etymology:...
with a Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
accent, and using some Jamaican Patois terms. A pop song, "Ice Popp", has also been released in 2011.
Lenny Henry
Lenny Henry
Lenworth George "Lenny" Henry, is a British actor, writer, comedian and occasional television presenter.- Early life :...
read two stories, 'The Crucial Plan' and 'Da Bag-a Bling', for BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Jackanory Junior, first shown in January 2008.
Characters
The series features an all-mouse reggaeReggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
band — "Rastamouse and Da Easy Crew" — who hang out at the Nuff Song recording studio (a possible reference to the Tuff Gong
Tuff Gong
Tuff Gong is a record label that was formed by the reggae group The Wailers in 1970 and named after Bob Marley's nickname, which was in turn an echo of that given to founder of the Rastafari movement, Leonard "The Gong" Howell. The first single on the label was "Run For Cover" by The Wailers...
studio) in the fictional Mouseland. Rastamouse wears a traditional Rasta tam (woolly hat), sports dreadlocks, and uses a skateboard
Skateboard
A skateboard is typically a specially designed plywood board combined with a polyurethane coating used for making smoother slides and stronger durability, used primarily for the activity of skateboarding. The first skateboards to reach public notice came out of the surfing craze of the early 1960s,...
. Scratchy, who is dressed in a 1950s style balloon skirt and a ribbon bow on her head always wears roller skates
Roller skates
Roller skates are devices worn on the feet to enable the wearer to roll along on wheels. A first basic type of roller skate consists of a boot with four wheels with ball bearings, arranged in the same configuration as the wheels of a typical car.-History:...
, and the contemporarily-styled male Zoomer always wears roller blades. "Da Easy Crew" originally featured Dave Fidler on kazoo, but he was dropped from the line-up after only a few episodes.
Other regular characters include the President Wensley Dale, who calls Rastamouse on a small radio to help solve a problem in Mouseland; Bandulu the Cook, who has a large bite out of his left ear; and Bagga-T, the hip-hop-styled mouse who runs the surprisingly populous orphanage.
Despite the title of the series, none of the characters are Rastafari and Jah is never mentioned in the programme. However, there are a number of subtle (and arguably stereotypical) references to cannabis
Cannabis
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...
in most episodes.
Recurring occasional characters are several unnamed young orphan mice, Missy D, Fats the garage owner, Little Patch the female Radio DJ, Rubba and Dub the male sporty twins, Sol the trainer shop owner, Super the grocery shop owner, the President's nephew Frank C, Ron the barber and Shorty. Ice Popp, as featured in the Rastamouse pop video, makes an appearance in Episode 17.
The first ever episode features a cat attack on Mouseland - the reason for the islands numerous orphans, but this has never been screened due to the violent and disturbing scenes it contains.
Cast
| Character | Voice Actor |
|---|---|
| Rastamouse | Reggie Yates Reggie Yates Reginald "Reggie" Yates is a British actor, television presenter and radio DJ of Ghanaian descent. He went to Central Foundation Boys' School.-Early career:... |
| Scratchy | Sharon Duncan-Brewster |
| Zoomer | William Vanderpuye William Vanderpuye William Vanderpuye , also known as Will Vanderpuye and Will Vanders, is an award-winning British actor and renowned voice-over artist. Vanderpuye has had a long career consisting of many leading theatrical roles and outstanding supporting characters in British films and television programmes... |
| President Wensley Dale | Cornell John |
The Ethos of Rastamouse
The stories show how people can get on and solve problems through understanding, love and respect, without resorting to punishment. Rastamouse's ethos is redemption not retribution — "make a bad ting good" — to teach right from wrong, and help wrong-doers redeem themselves from their mistakes.The Puppets
The puppets are made by Mackinnon and Saunders, who previously made the puppets for Bob the BuilderBob the Builder
Bob the Builder is a British children's animated television show created by Keith Chapman. In the original series Bob appears as a building contractor specialising in masonry in a stop motion animated programme with his colleague Wendy, various neighbours and friends, and their gang of...
and Tim Burton's Corpse Bride
Corpse Bride
Corpse Bride, often promoted as Tim Burton's Corpse Bride, is a 2005 stop-motion-animated fantasy musical film directed by Mike Johnson and Tim Burton. It is set in a fictional Victorian era village in Europe. Johnny Depp led an all-star cast as the voice of Victor, while Helena Bonham Carter ...
.
Media reactions
There was early speculation in the British media that the Rastamouse cheese was an allusionAllusion
An allusion is a figure of speech that makes a reference to, or representation of, people, places, events, literary work, myths, or works of art, either directly or by implication. M. H...
to cannabis
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
, despite actual cheese being seen in the series. The Rastafarian poet Benjamin Zephaniah
Benjamin Zephaniah
Benjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah is an English writer and dub poet. He is a well-known figure in contemporary English literature, and was included in The Times list of Britain's top 50 post-war writers in 2008....
had criticised the accuracy of the West Indian accents. There have been complaints to the BBC regarding the use of Jamaican slang, and alleged racist overtones.
The Voice
The Voice (newspaper)
The Voice is a British national weekly tabloid newspaper owned by the Jamaican publisher, GV Media Group, aimed at the British Afro-Caribbean community. The paper is based in the London Docklands and is published every Monday.-History:...
, a newspaper serving the British African-Caribbean community
British African-Caribbean community
The British African Caribbean communities are residents of the United Kingdom who are of West Indian background and whose ancestors were primarily indigenous to Africa...
, considered the show welcome, albeit as a stereotype of Jamaican life, although a website poll showed that over 60% considered it to be a positive programme.
The Sun Newspaper reports the creator, Michael de Souza, is saddened by the media reaction to Rastamouse; the paper later commented that the BBC claims that "Rastamouse is not racist", as more fully reported on Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
newspaper gives a differing view of Rastamouse, with the producer Greg Boardman stating no 'Cult TV' type references were deliberately put in as is being claimed.
Episodes
| Title | Original UK airdate | Plot | Rastamouse.com running order |
|---|---|---|---|
| Da Crucial Plan | The Easy Crew devise a clever plan to discover who has stolen all the cheese in Mouseland. | 1 | |
| Bakin' and Breakin | Rastamouse teaches some tasty dance moves to solve a problem at the orphanage. | 3 | |
| Da Missin Masterpiece | The Easy Crew must come up with a plan to track down a missing masterpiece. | 4 | |
| For Real FM | The Easy Crew track down a mystery pirate who's taken all the music in mouseland. | 5 | |
| Mice Camera Action | Director Spike Cheez arrives in town making every mouse go crazy for his new pirate movie. | 6 | |
| Hot Hot Hot | The Easy Crew must arrange a surprise party to track down a very selfish mouse. | 7 | |
| President's Pie | A thief has taken a special pie Bandulu baked for Wensley Dale. | 8 | |
| Wicked Threads | Somebody steals Wensley Dale's presidential tie during the island fashion competition. | 13 | |
| Da Marathon Mystery | Rastamouse wonders if Rubba is cheating to win Da Big Cheese Marathon. | 14 | |
| Da Cool Cruiser | Rastamouse must apprehend a motorised thief who's determined to win at all costs. | 15 | |
| Da Monstrous Fib | Scary sounds have been spooking the orphan mice during their camping trip. | 16 | |
| Cheesy Rumbles | The Easy Crew investigate strange rumbling sounds in the Buff Bay Caves. | 17 | |
| Boom Bada Boom | Rastamouse and Scratchy to investigate why everyone in Grove Town is so keen to snooze. | 11 | |
| Da Ice Cold Criminal | Rastamouse tracks down a thief with an icy ambition. | 19 | |
| Sole Rebel | Zoomer, Rubba and Dub are devastated when their brand new trainers fall apart. | 22 | |
| Double Crossin' Diva | A missing minibus and a talent show trip. Rastamouse must judge who's breaking the rules. | 2 | |
| Toots Re-routes | Someone prevents a musical legend from performing at Gladstone Brie's music festival. | 9 | |
| Da Bag A Bling | Rastamouse instigates an ingenious plan to catch a person who has borrowed the orphans. | Not mentioned. | |
| Pie Without Cheese | Wensley Dale's bossy sister, Sasha, takes over when he goes on holiday. | 18 | |
| Hot Sauce | The Easy Crew have a hot plan to bring about order and save the food festival. | 23 | |
| Rollin' Ragga Twins | The crew stage a roller disco skatin' competition to trick a copycat thief. | 12 | |
| Shorty Shapes Up | It's sports day and there are blingy medals to be won, but some mouse spoils all the fun. | 10 | |
| Master of Disguise | The Easy Crew comes up with a watertight plan to fix a leaky roof. | 20 | |
| Lady Uptown | Old school music star Lady Uptown is distressed by the disappearance of her lucky brooch. | 21 | |
| Sugacube | Somebody has stolen an Easy Crew record and is now pretending the music is their own. | 24 | |
| Da Rhyming Teef | The Easy Crew put aside their music-making to track down the President's stolen stereo. | 25 | |
| Missing Da Prez | Flat tyres, abandoned limos and a missing Wensley Dale. Rastamouse prepares a premier plan to fix a presidential favour. | 26 | |
| Da Swinging Suspect" | There's a mystery mouse leaving a nutty trail of mayhem in his wake. | Not mentioned. | |
| Swap Til Ya Drop" | Rastamouse comes up with a crafty plan to catch a card cravin' criminal. | Not mentioned. |
Live performances
In June 2011 Rastamouse performed a series of shows in the Kidz Field at Glastonbury FestivalGlastonbury Festival
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...
.