The Shiny Show

The Shiny Show is a British educational children's television quiz show that aired on CBeebies in 2002. Produced by Open Mind Productions, the programme was aimed at preschool children aged 3 to 6 years old and combined real-world educational films with light-hearted puppet sketches and a simple interactive quiz format.

The Shiny Show
Voices of	Sue Monroe Wim Booth Sally Preisig Sam Mason
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
Production
Running time	20 minutes
Original release
Release	30 July 2003 (2003-07-30)

Format

Each episode of The Shiny Show features a quiz consisting of three rounds with two questions per round. Between the rounds, the show’s three puppet characters — Dogsby, Mukka, and Tigs — perform short comedy sketches or themed plays loosely related to the episode’s subject.

The quiz questions are based on short filmed segments exploring a variety of everyday topics such as farms, swimming pools, hairdressers, or food preparation. For every correct answer, the players award themselves a “shiny,” and at the end of the game, the contestant with the most shinies wins the Super Shiny. If the result is a draw, both players win. Viewers at home are encouraged to join in and award themselves shinies for correct answers as well.

The machine Alarmorama controls the flow of the show — starting rounds, playing jingles, and distributing the shinies — while also providing non-verbal comic reactions.

Alarmorama

A brightly coloured toy machine mounted on the wall of the set, Alarmorama is the only male character. He communicates through mechanical noises and flashing lights rather than speech.

His main duties include:

• Starting and ending the show

• Selecting the quizzer for each episode

• Playing music and starting quiz rounds

• Distributing the shinies and Super Shiny

• Waving goodbye at the end of the episode

In several early episodes, Dogsby can be heard saying, “Thank you, Alarmorama,” or “Saved by Alarmorama,” in relief when the next round begins.

Mukka

Mukka is a hyperactive purple monkey and one of the three female animal characters. She owns a lucky object called Fluffy Stuff and has a pet lump named Lumpy. Mukka is excitable, enthusiastic, and often provides comic relief. She is voiced by Wim Booth.

Dogsby

A brown dog and the most sensible member of the group, Dogsby often tries to keep order when the others get carried away. Her lucky object is a purple and yellow Lucky Hat, which she refuses to wear in case she “gets too lucky.” Dogsby loves cabbages and often muddles up colours. She is voiced by Sally Preisig (Series 1), Sam Mason (Series 2) and Liz Fost (Christmas CBeebies appearance).

Tigs

A confident and somewhat big-headed orange tiger, Tigs enjoys being the star of the sketches and quizzes. She owns a squeaky plastic lump of cheese called Mr. Cheese as her lucky object. Her puppet was redesigned for Series 2, though the original puppet still appears in the opening titles. She is voiced by Sue Monroe.

Series 1 (2002)

The first series aired from 11 February to 22 March 2002, with 40 episodes written primarily by Chris Ellis. Each episode focused on a particular location or theme such as The Beach, The Circus, Pets, Farm Animals, or Aeroplanes.

Series 2 (2002)

The second series aired between 25 March and 30 July 2003, consisting of 51 episodes written by a team including Philip Hawthorn, Chris Ellis, Alison Stewart, and Alan MacDonald. Subjects included Camping, Cheese Making, Weather, Diwali, Cake Making, and Space.

International Broadcasts

• Albania: A dubbed version titled Shfaqja vezulluese aired on TV Klan from 2008, with reruns until 2013.

• Poland: A Polish version titled Błyśnij-błyskula aired in 2008 on CBeebies Polska.

• Spain: A Spanish-language version, A Jugar y Adivinar, was also produced for broadcast.

Legacy

Although The Shiny Show ran for only one year, it became known for its distinctive blend of education and playfulness, appealing to both children and their parents. Its brightly coloured puppets, upbeat music, and interactive quiz format made it one of the more memorable early CBeebies shows of the 2000s.

The show was hosted by three puppet animals: Tigs the tiger, Dogsby the dog and Mukka the monkey. In each episode one of them was chosen to host the quiz. Then they would show a film about something and ask questions about it later. If a player anwsers right, they earn a shiny object. Each quiz had three rounds. The winner (the one who got more shinies) would earn a super-shiny at the end as a prize.

Most episodes can be viewed on The Shiny Show – Official Channel on YouTube.