Gordon the Garden Gnome

Lore & Background

The series focuses on Gordon the Garden Gnome, who tries his best to help the environment and the animals living in his garden. He is joined by his gnome friends Percy (voiced by David Holt), Iain (voiced by Maria Darling), Rose (also voiced by Maria Darling), and Jerome (voiced by Dan Freedman). Other characters include a worm named Andrew (voiced by David Holt), slugs named Lez (voiced by Dan Freedman) and Dez (voiced by Rob Rackstraw), a squirrel named Daphne, a mole named Morris, and many others.

The series first started development in 2002. It was developed directly for CBeebies/BBC, resulting in the series airing on CBeebies, the newest channel in the UK at the time dedicated solely to preschool programming. The series was produced in the United Kingdom by Collingwood O'Hare and in Australia by Southern Star Entertainment, and animated by Suzhou Hong Ying Animation Company Limited in 2004 in China.

Reader's Guide

Gordon the Garden Gnome holds significance as a preschool television series that uniquely combined entertainment with environmental and gardening education. By featuring a cheerful garden gnome as the protagonist, the show aimed to spark young children's interest in nature and gardening. Its production history reflects a notable shift from an original commission by Collingwood O'Hare for CITV to eventual broadcast on CBeebies, the BBC's dedicated preschool channel. The series also achieved international reach, airing on ABC Kids in Australia, Cartoon Network's Tickle-U block in the USA, and KiKa in Germany. Its legacy is preserved through home media releases by Paramount Home Entertainment in the late 2000s and availability on streaming platforms such as YouTube (via the Puddle Jumper channel) and Tubi. The show remains a modest but distinctive example of early 2000s children's programming that sought to cultivate environmental awareness in its audience.

Did You Know?

• Gordon the Garden Gnome's voice was provided by British TV gardening presenter Alan Titchmarsh.
• The series was animated by Suzhou Hong Ying Animation Company Limited in China in 2004.
• The show aired in the USA on PBS Kids Sprout.
• Episodes are available on Tubi and on YouTube via the Puddle Jumper channel.

Educational Mission and Character Design

Gordon the Garden Gnome was conceived as an animated children's television series with a clear educational purpose: to spark young viewers' interest in gardening. The title character is a cheerful garden gnome who dedicates himself to caring for the environment and the various animals that inhabit his garden. What makes the casting particularly notable is that Gordon's voice was provided by Alan Titchmarsh, a well-known British television gardening presenter, lending the character an authentic connection to the real world of horticulture. The show ran for a single season, airing from 2005 to 2006, and was aimed squarely at a preschool audience. Rather than presenting gardening as a chore, the series framed it as a joyful adventure filled with friendly creatures and collaborative problem-solving, making the subject matter approachable and genuinely engaging for very young children who might otherwise have little exposure to outdoor nature.

A Transatlantic Production Journey

The journey from concept to screen for Gordon the Garden Gnome was anything but straightforward. Development on the series began back in 2002, with the programme originally commissioned by the production company Collingwood O'Hare for CITV. However, the project's trajectory shifted when the BBC stepped in and assumed development responsibilities. This change of direction ultimately placed the series on CBeebies, which at the time was the newest channel in the United Kingdom, dedicated exclusively to preschool programming. The production itself was a genuinely international affair: Collingwood O'Hare handled the UK side of production while Southern Star Entertainment in Australia took on the Australian production duties. The actual animation work was carried out in 2004 by Suzhou Hong Ying Animation Company Limited, based in China, making the finished show a product of three distinct countries working in creative tandem.

A Bustling Garden of Characters

Beyond Gordon himself, the series built a rich supporting cast of garden-dwelling characters that gave the show a lively, community feel. His gnome companions included Percy, voiced by David Holt; Ian and Rosie, both brought to life by Maria Darling; and Jerome, voiced by Dan Freedman. The garden was further populated by a worm named Andrew (also voiced by David Holt), two slugs called Lez and Dez (with Lez voiced by Dan Freedman and Dez by Rob Rackstraw), a squirrel named Daphne, and a mole named Morris, among many other creatures. The voice cast drew on a range of British performers, with several actors lending their voices to multiple characters across the ensemble. This variety of species and personalities helped reinforce the show's environmental message by presenting a diverse, interconnected natural world where every creature had a role to play alongside Gordon.

Broadcast Reach and Digital Afterlife

Despite its modest single-season run, Gordon the Garden Gnome achieved a surprisingly wide international broadcast footprint. The series premiered in 2005 on CBeebies in the UK and simultaneously on ABC Kids in Australia. It also found an audience in the United States, where it was programmed within Cartoon Network's Tickle-U block, a dedicated preschool-oriented strip. In Germany, the show was broadcast on the children's channel KiKa. Following its original telecast, the series continued to reach new viewers through home media: Paramount Home Entertainment released the DVDs in the late 2000s. In the streaming era, episodes became available on the Puddle Jumper YouTube channel, which features cartoons produced by Southern Star Entertainment, and the full series was also uploaded to Tubi. This multi-platform availability has kept the show accessible to new generations of young viewers well beyond its original two-year broadcast window.