Peppa Pig

Founded in 2004 by three odd-jobbing friends from Middlesex Poly, Peppa Pig is now a global phenomenon, with the TV series on air in 180 countries and is the largest preschool brand toy licensor globally.

In 2015, Entertainment One acquired a majority stake in the franchise, and Peppa has been bringing home the bacon ever since. All of which made it an enticing acquisition for Hasbro, which bought the company in August 2019 for £3.3bn. (In the formal statement, the muddy pig was described rather more drily as "an evergreen property that has thrived for over a decade and extended itself to new profit streams that continue its success."

Peppa has become a huge hit in China, and has even achieved that pinnacle of success - censorship. #PeppaPig is no longer permitted in China, and it has been banned from many internet platforms (following the expropriation of the character for political purposes, it should be said.)

The are five season of Peppa Pig, each episode 5 minutes long, and a theme park in Hampshire. There appears no end to the formats for success; Peppa is due to tour the UK in Lego-brick form.

The series was created by three men who were unimpressed with the quality of children's animation and story telling. According to Phil Davies, the producer, 'a lot of it was completely incomprehensible and all the girls were either princesses or ballerinas."

Many of the story lines are inspired by Mr Davies own family life.

There have been three voices of Peppa Pig. The current voice, Harely Bird, began when she was five years old and is now 16.