Colourblocks

Lore & Background

Colourblocks debuted on CBeebies on 12 September 2022, created by Joe Elliot and David Bowman. The series is produced by Alphablocks Ltd. with Blue Zoo Animation Studio and is part of the 'Blocks Universe' alongside Alphablocks and Numberblocks. Two seasons have been produced as of 2024, with production scheduled up to 2027 per an agreement between Alphablocks Ltd., Blue Zoo, and the BBC.

The programme aims to teach children about colours. Colour mixing is represented by characters bumping into each other to produce a new character of the resulting colour. Each character is associated with a particular object representative of its colour. Characters also have different shapes so that colour blind children can distinguish between them.

The cast includes Claire Morgan as Red and Orange, Will Jennings as Yellow, Purple, and Magenta, Bayo Gbadamosi as Blue, Harriet Carmichael as Green, Indigo, Violet, Black, White, Brown, Grey, Light Grey, and Dark Grey, Kayi Ushe as Pink, Akiya Henry as Cyan, Beth Chalmers as Deep Blue, David Holt as Sky Blue, and Dominique Moore as Lime.

Reader's Guide

Colourblocks is significant as an educational tool for preschoolers, focusing on colour recognition and mixing through engaging animated characters. Its inclusion in the 'Blocks Universe' alongside Alphablocks and Numberblocks extends a successful franchise known for teaching foundational concepts. The series addresses inclusivity by using different shapes for characters to aid colour blind children. The show's premise of colour mixing through character interactions provides a simple, visual method for learning. With two seasons produced and production scheduled through 2027, Colourblocks has established a lasting presence on CBeebies. Its legacy lies in its accessible approach to early colour education, combining entertainment with pedagogical goals, and its commitment to representing a wide range of colours and shades across episodes.

Origins & Production

Colourblocks arrived on British preschool television on 12 September 2022, when its first episode aired on CBeebies. The series was commissioned by the BBC and developed by creators Joe Elliot and David Bowman, who brought the project to life through a production partnership between Alphablocks Ltd. and Blue Zoo Animation Studio. It occupies a place within the broader Blocks Universe, a shared animated world that also includes Alphablocks and Numberblocks, giving young viewers a connected family of educational characters.

As of 2024, two full seasons of the show had been completed. The long-term commitment to the series is reflected in a multi-year production agreement between Alphablocks Ltd., Blue Zoo, and the BBC, which extends scheduled output through 2027. This forward-looking deal signals that the BBC and its production partners view Colourblocks as a continuing fixture of early-years programming rather than a one-off commission. The show's target audience is preschoolers, and its format of short, character-driven episodes fits squarely into the CBeebies schedule designed for the youngest viewers in the household.

Educational Philosophy & Accessibility

At its core, Colourblocks is an educational programme designed to introduce preschoolers to the concept of colour. The show's central mechanic is elegant: when two colour characters physically bump into one another, a new character of the resulting mixed colour appears, giving children a tangible, visual demonstration of colour mixing. Each character is also paired with a specific object that represents its colour, reinforcing the association between the abstract idea and something concrete in the world.

A particularly thoughtful design choice underpins the entire cast: while the characters are themed around colours, they are each given distinct shapes. This means that children who are colour blind can still tell the characters apart by form rather than relying solely on hue. The result is a show that teaches colour theory—primary and secondary mixing, shades, complementary and analogous pairings, the CMYK printing model, and the full rainbow spectrum—while remaining accessible to every child in front of the screen, regardless of how they perceive colour.

Episode Arc & Curriculum Progression

Series 1, which ran from 12 September 2022 through 10 February 2023, comprises thirty episodes that build a colour curriculum from the ground up. The first handful of episodes introduce the primary colours—Red, Blue, and Yellow—before moving into secondary mixes: Green (blue plus yellow), Orange (red plus yellow), and Purple (red plus blue). The series then expands into black and white, shades, pink, brown, and the CMYK printing colours cyan and magenta, before tackling sorting, contrast, and multi-colour wheels.

Series 2, airing from 4 December 2023 to 29 February 2024, consists of fifteen episodes that dig deeper into specific hues and their shades. Episodes explore Deep Blue and Sky Blue, Orange's shades, Purple's shades, Red's shades, the colour Lime, and mixing with Grey. Recurring segments like the Sorting Express and the Printing Crew return, reinforcing earlier concepts while introducing new combinations. The two seasons together create a structured progression from basic identification to a more nuanced understanding of colour relationships.

Voice Cast & Character Assignments

The voice cast of Colourblocks assigns actors to multiple colour characters, creating a compact ensemble that brings the entire palette to life. Claire Morgan voices both Red and Orange, while Will Jennings takes on Yellow, Purple, and Magenta. Bayo Gbadamosi lends their voice to Blue.

Harriet Carmichael carries the largest workload, voicing Green, Indigo, Violet, Black, White, Brown, Grey, Light Grey, and Dark Grey—nine characters in total. Kayi Ushe speaks as Pink, Akiya Henry as Cyan, Beth Chalmers as Deep Blue, David Holt as Sky Blue, and Dominique Moore as Lime.

The distribution of roles mirrors the show's expanding palette: foundational colours like Red, Blue, and Yellow are anchored by dedicated performers, while the broader cast covers the secondary mixes, the black-and-white spectrum, the printing-model colours, and the shade-specific characters introduced across both seasons. Nine actors in total give voice to the full range of characters that populate Colourland, ensuring every hue—from the most basic primary to the most nuanced shade—has a distinct human presence behind it.