| The Beano Videostars | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Terry Ward |
| Written by | Richard Everett Terry Ward |
| Based on | The Beano |
| Produced by | Terry Ward Darren Kinnersley-Hill |
| Starring | Jonathan Kydd Gary Martin Alex Patterson Mark Pickard Enn Reitel Kate Robbins Susan Sheridan Jill Shilling Nicola Stapleton |
| Music by | Mark London Francis Haines |
Production companies | Flicks Films Ltd D.C. Thomson & Co. |
| Distributed by | PolyGram Video |
Release date |
|
Running time | 54 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
The Beano Videostars is a direct-to-video animated film based on The Beano, originally released on VHS on 17 October 1994 and also broadcast as a television special on ITV.[1][2] The video is a sequel to The Beano Video, and features an expanded cast of characters, including Dennis the Menace and Gnasher, Minnie the Minx, the Bash Street Kids, Billy Whizz, the Three Bears, and Ivy the Terrible.[3] It was produced and directed by Terry Ward at Flicks Films Ltd, with voices provided by Susan Sheridan, Kate Robbins, Enn Reitel, Gary Martin and Jonathan Kydd, along with newcomers Alex Patterson, Mark Pickard, Jill Shilling and Nicola Stapleton.
Both videos drew high enough ratings and video sales to kick off the 1996-98 TV series Dennis and Gnasher.[3][4] The video won an award for Best Special in 1995 and a British Animation Award for Children's Choice Special in 1996,[5][6] and was re-released on DVD 10 years later in 2004.
The Beano characters were also in colour – and in motion – in The Beano Video, which was released in 1993. It was an attempt to take the magic of The Beano and turn it into an animated video. It followed the format of The Beano, being an anthology of short, snappy stories, which brought Dennis and Gnasher, Minnie the Minx, The Bash Street Kids and The Three Bears to life. It was broadcast as a special on CITV and renamed The Beano All-Stars for its DVD re-release. A sequel, with an expanded cast of characters, was released in 1994. While these videos did not challenge the top of the year's best seller charts, they did mark the first time any DC Thomson characters had been animated since Bananaman a decade earlier, and showed that the company was eager to push forward with bringing their characters to life on screen.
Terry Ward won Best Special for The Beano Videostars and Simon Ward-Horner's The Legends of Treasure Island won Best Series in the Children's Choice awards.