Screen Glue announces latest CBBC commission
April 21, 2021
Screen Glue, the independent producer of high-end factual and kids’ content, founded by the multi-award-winning Jasper James, has announced its latest commission for CBBC, Don’t Blame Me, Blame My Brain.
Don’t Blame Me, Blame My Brain is a 10 x 11’ series for children aged 7-11 that sets out to answer some of the burning – and often quite ridiculous – questions that our brains come up with, such as can we talk with dogs, what would happen if we never went to sleep, and could we catapult ourselves to the moon? The series is hosted by two young comedians, Ken Cheng (finalist in the 2015 BBC New Comedy Awards) and Leila Navabi, and demonstrates a similarly wicked combination of clever science, surreal fun and live action mixed with zany graphics and animation that Screen Glue deployed in its first popular CBBC series, Hey You, What If…?
In each episode, Ken is continuously hounded by his (talking, animated) brain, to answer one specific question such as ‘what if the floor really was lava?’ To help him answer each question he calls on his friend Leila, who throws herself into assisting him in her own very madcap way. He also calls on various experts and celebrity friends to help, such as TV medic Dr Ranj Singh, Paralympic champion Dame Sarah Storey, England footballer Leah Williamson and lava expert professor Chris Jackson. Animated sequences illustrate what Ken figures out each week, with every question answered with real science – but mostly silliness!
Jasper James, Screen Glue founder and the series’ executive producer comments: “Don’t Blame Me, Blame My Brain shows just what can happen when you don’t actually overthink things! Our brains quickly came up with the series concept when CBBC was looking for new ideas, and it was commissioned equally quickly. The result is a pacey, funny and alternative edutainment show, presented by exciting new talent. We are thrilled the BBC has once again supported our unique approach to delivering rigorous science in surprising packages.”
Don’t Blame Me, Blame My Brain is due to premiere on CBBC and BBC iPlayer on 28th April at 5.15pm and will be scheduled weekly thereafter. Screen Glue’s Matt White was the series producer, with Hugh Lawton executive producer for the BBC. The writers are Joanne Lau, Robin Morgan and Danny Robins.
In addition to its recent science-based kids’ series for CBBC, plus Quarx (26 x 11’) for Curiosity Stream and Discovery Asia, Screen Glue is known for its impactful factual series which include Size Matters (2 x 60’) for the BBC, ZDF/ZDFE and Arte, and A Day in the Life of Earth (1 x 90’/2 x 45’) for CBC, BBC, France 5 and ZDFE.