Abbey Home Media

Abbey Home Media Group Limited
Company typePrivate limited company
GenreDVD and video distributor
PredecessorMSD Video
Collins Video
Tempo Video
Abbey Home Entertainment Group Limited
Just Entertainment
Founded4 March 2002 (4 March 2002)
FounderIan Miles
Anne Miles
Defunct13 December 2022 (13 December 2022)
FateDissolved
Headquarters
London
,
UK
ProductsDVDs
DivisionsAbbey Kids
SubsidiariesBaby Bright Media Limited
Tolly Music Limited
Abbey Broadcast Communications PLC
Petalcraft Demonstrations Limited
Ashgarden Limited
WebsiteArchived website

Abbey Home Media was a British home media distributor that released content aimed at children. It was founded in March 2002, as the successor company to Abbey Home Entertainment (AHE), which was acquired by the Just Group in 2000.

Abbey Home Media released content from outside production companies, and also produced its own franchises, which included Bump the Elephant, Fun Song Factory, Wide-Eye and Baby Bright.

History and predecessors

Abbey Home Entertainment

Abbey Home Media's predecessor was Abbey Home Entertainment Group Limited (AHE), founded in 1989 by Ian and Anne Miles. AHE acquired the Tempo Video brand name from WM Collins Video in 1990 and introduced several brands:

  • Tempo Kids Club, used for re-releases of older Tempo Video releases which had been distributed by their previous owners, MSD Video and Collins Video.
  • Tempo Pre-School, used for releases aimed at very young children. The success of the releases made AHE the only video distributor whose releases were recommended and approved by the Pre-School Learning Alliance.[citation needed] The label remained after the Just Entertainment buyout (as a pre-school brand within Just) and was used in the Abbey Home Media era, before it was retired in favour of the regular Abbey Home Media brand in the mid-2000s.
  • Abbey Fitness, used for fitness releases.
  • Abbey Freetime, used for documentary releases.
  • Abbey Music, used for music and concert releases.

A subsidiary called Abbey Broadcast Communications produced original content for AHE on both VHS and audio cassette. This division became dormant in the early 2000s.

In 1995, PolyGram Filmed Entertainment acquired a 75% majority stake in the company. In 1998, the company was in talks to sell the stake back to Ian and Anne Miles and letting AHE trade independently again. In exchange, PolyGram would acquire the rights to distribute all future Fun Song Factory Videos.[1]

In early 2000, AHE was acquired by Just Group PLC.[2] Abbey's 'Tempo Pre-school' label was retained for pre-school products, while 'at school' video and audio products were released under the Just Entertainment label. Abbey itself retained its special focus on the 'pre-school' and 'at school' age groups.[3]

Just Group PLC

Just Group PLC was a British holding company that focused on incorporating the creation and development of character concepts, ownership of intellectual property rights, and international licensing and distribution of character and corporate brand merchandise. The company had its shares listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange and was based in the town of Bakewell, Derbyshire, England, with additional offices in London, New York, Hong Kong and Melbourne.

The company operated many subsidiaries:

  • Just Licensing – licence holders for Just Group's properties.
  • IPP – focused on licensed merchandise and based in the company's Hong Kong offices.
  • Monster Innovations Group (MIG) – owned 50% of the "In my Pocket" trademark, which was acquired by Just in 1995.
  • Wembley Sportsmaster Limited – acquired by Just in 1998; owned the "Wembley" football brand.

In the late 1990s, the company expanded into the entertainment industry and started producing animated television series. Its first series, Jellabies, proved sufficiently successful for CITV to commission a second series, which aired in 2000. The company expanded into the toy and print industries by forming Jusco Toys and acquiring book publisher Burghley Publishing, later renamed Just Publishing. Just also signed a deal with Warner Bros. Consumer Products to produce products based on their properties and renew an existing magazine publishing deal.[4]

In 1999, Just Group acquired Pinky & Perky for £500,000, with the intention of producing a new television series and expanding into the North American market.[5][6] The company later signed a deal with Carlton Television subsidiary Planet 24 in July 2001 to create a stage show and comedy series oriented at an adult audience and titled Pinky & Perky in Sex 'n' Drugs 'n' Bacon Roll.[7]

In 1999, the company acquired Abbey Home Entertainment for $2.1 million, with the aim of focusing on the pre-school market. By the end of the year, the company had three shows in development: Wiki's World, set for an autumn 2000 release; One Big Happy Family, set for release in 2001 as a co-production with Jellabies producer Optical Image; and Butt-Ugly Martians, a co-production with Mike Young Productions and DCDC, set for a September 2000 release.[8] With the purchase, Just expanded into home video in the United Kingdom and began releasing Abbey's content under their own brand, retaining the Tempo Pre-School label for pre-school content.

In September 2000, Just fully acquired Optical Image for £1.5 million.[9] In December, Just Group acquired MediaKey plc for £7.2 million.[10]

In April 2001 it was confirmed that the company had failed to file accounts for the year. In August that year, the company laid off their CEO Wilf Shorrocks and commercial director Paula Shorrock and issued a shock profit warning. In the same month, the company showcased new projects at MIPCOM, including Wide-Eye, which was pre-sold to the BBC for delivery in autumn 2002, and several television specials.[11] On October 16, Just closed their head office in Bakewell with the loss of 38 jobs, and was in talks on the sale of some non-core operations. The company also signed a deal with Universal Studios and subsidiary PolyGram Television to help manage Butt-Ugly Martians and allowing Universal to gain exclusive movie, home video (excluding Germany and the United Kingdom) and theme park rights to the property, as well as funding to produce more episodes.[12][13] In November, the company's shares were suspended, due to lower-than-expected revenue from Butt-Ugly Martians and the failed purchase of MediaKey.

Just Group filed for administration on 9 January 2002[14][15] and the shares were delisted from Aim. On 12 June 2002, it was announced that format distributor Target was in talks to acquire and merge with the Just Group.[16][17] However, nothing came from this after the initial announcement, with the JustAction Group instead putting together a company voluntary arrangement, which allowed the Just Group to exit administration in August 2002, rebranding as Newscreen Media Group PLC.[18] The rescue plan eventually collapsed and Newscreen Media Group filed for administration again in 2004.[19] The company soon folded, with its assets being shared between its management and newly formed business Think Entertainment PLC.[20] The ownership of Jellikins and Butt-Ugly Martians is currently held by the Indian-based YoBoHo New Media Pvt. Ltd., the owners of the HooplaKidz YouTube media network.

Tempo Video

Another predecessor of Abbey Home Media was Tempo Video, which was originally launched by video distributor MSD Video in 1987 as a kids-focused video label. After two years, MSD transitioned the distribution of Tempo to Collins Video and then transitioned the label to Abbey Home Entertainment in 1990, a year after the company was founded. Tempo Video was the mainstream video label for Abbey Home Entertainment and continued to be used until 2000, when the label was discontinued by AHE's new owner, Just Group.

The Tempo label was also used within Abbey-distributed audio cassettes, under labels including Tempo Audio, Tempo Twins, Tempo Reed and Tempo Children's Classics.

Tempo DIC Video

Tempo Video was a joint venture with animation company DIC Enterprises. The label released DIC Entertainment programmes on VHS.

Abbey Home Media

After Just Group filed for administration in 2002, Ian Miles formed a new company under the Abbey name called Abbey Home Media on 4 March 2002,[21] re-acquiring former assets once owned by AHE. Abbey Home Media retained the Tempo Pre-School brand that Just Group kept during their ownership of the Abbey brands and would later introduce the Tempo and Tempo TV Classics (Previously Tempo Classics) brands. During the 2010s, products were released under the regular Abbey Home Media brand name.

In March 2017, the company signed a deal with DHX Media to release DVDs for Bob the Builder and Fireman Sam. [22]

On 4 May 2020 it was confirmed that Anne Miles, the co-founder of Abbey, had died,[23] a short while afterward, the company's website was shut down and their Facebook page confirmed that the company had ceased operations due to "uncertain circumstances",[24] despite this, the company was still listed as "active" on Companies House until 13 December 2022 when Abbey was officially dissolved.[25]

Content

Television Shows

Title Year(s) Network Co-production with Notes
Bump the Elephant 1990-1994 BBC1 (Children's BBC) Queensgate Productions
Teddy Trucks 1994 BBC1 (Children's BBC)
Fun Song Factory 1998 ITV (GMTV) Tell-Tale Productions
MacDonald's Farm 2000-2001 ITV (GMTV) Jo Pullen Programming Ltd. Under Just Entertainment
Wide-Eye 2003 CBeebies King Rollo Films

Direct-to-Video Programs

Title Year(s) Co-production with Notes
Postman Pat's ABC Story 1990 Woodland Animations
Postman Pat's 123 Story 1990 Woodland Animations
Tell Me A Story: Volume 1 1990 N/A
Tell Me A Story: Volume 2 1990 N/A
Spot's Alphabet 1990 Salspot Ltd.
Spot's Busy Year 1990 Salspot Ltd.
Spot Learns to Count 1990 Salspot Ltd.
Spot Tells the Time 1990 Salspot Ltd.
The Enormous Crocodile 1990 N/A Based on the Roald Dahl story of the same name
Revolting Rhymes 1990 N/A Based on the Roald Dahl story of the same name
Dirty Beasts 1990 N/A Based on the Roald Dahl story of the same name
The Magic Finger 1990 N/A Based on the Roald Dahl story of the same name
A Golden Treasury of Nursery Rhymes 1991 N/A
One, Two, Buckle My Shoe and Other Favourite Rhymes 1991 N/A
Anytime Tales - Not Now, Bernard and Other Stories by David McKee 1991 King Rollo Films
Anytime Tales - I Want a Cat and Other Stories by Tony Ross 1991 King Rollo Films
One, Two, Buckle My Shoe And Other Favourite Rhymes 1992 Living Doll Known as The Wheels on the Bus on DVD
Mr Men in the Great Alphabet Hunt 1992 Mister Films Ltd.
A Day Full of Songs 1993 Music Box
Paddington's Alphabet Treasure Hunt 1993 Living Doll
Spot Looks at Colours 1994 King Rollo Films
Spot Looks at Shapes 1994 King Rollo Films
Spot Looks at Opposites 1994 King Rollo Films
Spot's First Words 1994 King Rollo Films
A Day Full of Fun 1994 Music Box
First Fun with French 1994 Osbourne Publishing
First Fun with Spanish 1994 Osbourne Publishing
Read Along with Postman Pat 1994 Woodland Animations Contains two stories: "Postman Pat's Sleepy Days" and "Postman Pat's Three Wishes"
Fun Song Factory 1994 Tell-Tale Productions
A Day Full of Surprises and Songs 1995 Music Box
A Day Full of Animals and Songs 1995 Music Box
Fun Song Factory 2 1996 Tell-Tale Productions
The Wonderful World of Nursery Rhymes 1996 Jo Pullen Productions Limited
Party Time at the Fun Song Factory 1996 Tell-Tale Productions
The Happy Birthday Video 1996 King Rollo Films Under PolyGram
Good Night, Sleep Tight 1996 King Rollo Films Under PolyGram
The Fun Song Factory at Old MacDonald's Farm 1994 Tell-Tale Productions
Christmas at the Fun Song Factory 1996 Tell-Tale Productions
Fun Song Factory: Fun and Games 1997 Tell-Tale Productions
Fun Song Factory: Nursery Rhyme Land 1997 Tell-Tale Productions
Wow! That's What I Call Nursery Rhymes 1999 Tell-Tale Productions
Baby Bright 2000 N/A
Wow! That's What I Call Christmas 2000 Tell-Tale Productions
Baby Bright 2 2001 N/A Under Just Entertainment

Other

References

  1. ^ "P'Gram Video Making Moves In U.K. Market". 18 July 1998.
  2. ^ "Investegate |Just Group PLC Announcements | Just Group PLC: Final Results". www.investegate.co.uk.
  3. ^ "Just Entertainment". 10 April 2001. Archived from the original on 10 April 2001.
  4. ^ "Investegate |Just Group PLC Announcements | Just Group PLC: Sub's. Publishing Agreement with Warner Bros, etc".
  5. ^ Jonathan Share (31 January 2000). "Just Group launches Pinky & Perky". Citywire. Retrieved 21 March 2023.
  6. ^ "Just Group PLC | Pinky & Perky Launched for a New Generation | InvestEgate".
  7. ^ "Pinky & Perky transformed into adult comedy".
  8. ^ "Just Group beefs up its kids production".
  9. ^ "Investegate |Just Group PLC Announcements | Just Group PLC: Acquisition".
  10. ^ "Investegate |Just Group PLC Announcements | Just Group PLC: Placing&Open Offer -Part 1".
  11. ^ "Just Entertainment unveils new toons for MIPCOM".
  12. ^ Rodney Hobson (16 October 2001). "Tuesday Trading Post: it's still Butt Ugly at Just Group". Citywire. Retrieved 21 March 2023.
  13. ^ "Universal Studios gets Butt Ugly". C21Media.
  14. ^ "Butt Ugly Martians fall to earth as Just calls administrators". The Independent. 10 January 2002. Archived from the original on 20 February 2019.
  15. ^ "Just Group goes into administration".
  16. ^ Johnson, Debra (12 June 2002). "Target weds Just like that". Variety. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  17. ^ "Just Group Merges With Rights Management Company Target". Animation World Network. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  18. ^ "Butt-Ugly bust-up". The Independent. 30 November 2003. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  19. ^ "'Butt-Ugly' company Just got a lot uglier". The Independent. 5 February 2006. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  20. ^ "Online abuse marks Butt Ugly Martians fallout". 30 May 2007.
  21. ^ "Abbey Home Media Group Limited - Company Profile - Endole". suite.endole.co.uk.
  22. ^ "Abbey Home Media boosted by DHX Media deal".
  23. ^ "Anne Miles, 1939-2020". Retrieved 21 March 2023.
  24. ^ "Log in or sign up to view". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 21 March 2023.
  25. ^ "ABBEY HOME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED - Overview (free company information from Companies House)". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk.

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