'I have this little sister Lola' - Charlie and Lola (Charlie and Lola)

Member Name: AmandaB123

Product:	Charlie and Lola
Date:	25/10/09 (39 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great series for children

Disadvantages: None

'I have this little sister Lola, she is small and very funny'

I absolutely adore Charlie and Lola, and lucky for me so do my two youngest children. It makes such a refreshing change from that awful cartoons my 8 year old would sit through endlessly if he was allowed. I am a little aggrieved that Charlie and Lola has been removed from the bedtime hour on Cbeebies, and can now be found at 7.30 am and 4pm (for now, they will probably change it again soon - they have a habit of doing that!)

Charlie and Lola is surprisingly enough, a cartoon series by Lauren Child, based on Charlie and Lola, who are a brother and sister. I dont actually know thier ages, but I would guess that Charlie is maybe 7 or 8, and Lola is 4. The other Characters that appear frequently are Marv, who is Charlies best friend, and Marv's brother Morton, and they live upstairs. There is also Lola's best friend Lotta, and her imaginary friend Soren Lorensen. Charlie and Lola have parents but they never seen. Infact there are no adult shown on the show, although they are mentioned. The only characters are Children and animals. The way the characters, especially Lola and Lotta speak are very much how you might expect a young child to speak, so not Queens English but in an authentic childlike way. Such as the episode 'I will not ever, never eat a tomato'. I think this help children to identify with the programme.

The animation is lovely - no classic is a Disney-like way, but lovely none the less. The episodes are all based on things that children do in everyday life, and problems they might encounter. They have addressed things such as Fussy eating, haircuts, dentist trips, seperation from Mum and Dad, falling out with friends and many more. Each of these is dealt with in a fun manner, and Charlie and Lola always manage to solve the problem. Its also great for teaching children about siblings, and how much help and fun they can be.

Each episode teaches the children something, but it may not be an obvious in-your-face way, which I think is great. There is nothing worse that being beaten over the head by a moral message, especially when it is coming from a childrens TV programme.

There are three series, with 6 DVD that have been released so far. There is also alot of other merchandise that has been released from Dolls and books to clothes and rucksacks, so any Charlie and Lola fan will be set for Birthday and Christmas presents.

The website is www.charlieandlola.com

Summary: Thumbs up from this Mum!