Children's TV - City of Friends on Milkshake Channel 5

I don't let my children watch television all day, but it can be useful at times, like in the morning when I am trying to get them organised to get out the door - its easier for me to run around them whilst they are sat contained!

I was alerted to a children's TV programme called City of Friends.  It is on Channel 5 at 6.20am, which is a little early for us 7am risers, but it's also on an hour later at Channel 5+1!

Max, Elphie and Ted, the main characters :)

Its a lovely programme created by Carl Christian, who worked for the Norway State Police, and was also recruited into the Special Forces (S.W.A.T.) team, handling serious cases of crime!   It was whilst working here he realised how much all the rescue services worked together and over time they "built friendships and realised that this special teamwork made their jobs and lives more rewarding, and we began to appreciate the work each other was doing."

Wanting to pass on important life lessons to his son, he began creating stories, and his son devoured them, then his nursery school asked if Carl would go in and read the stories to the other children.   Realising how popular the characters were becoming, and having watched a children's TV programme, Carl's dream was to get his stories broadcast, and through private sector funding his dream was realised in 2007, with the first programmes broadcast in 2008.

Four years on and City of Friends is now broadcast in over 150 countries, and I can see why it is so popular.   It is aimed at the pre-school age group, Scarlett 4 loves it, but my 8yo Jasper also enjoyed it, but then he's also pretty obsessed by rescue vehicles!


City of Friends airs weekdays on Channel Five’s Milkshake! at 6.20am every day (and an hour later at Channel 5+!). To see the rest of the characters and some clips head over to the City of Friends website and the Facebook page to find out more information.

Enjoy x