TVOKIDS RINGS IN THE HOLIDAY SEASON WITH A PAIR OF HEARTWARMING LITERARY
ADAPTATIONS

• Featuring the Canadian premiere of The Gruffalo, Wednesday December 15 at 6:30 pm ET
  
  
• Also: Christmas Carol - The Movie, an animated version of the Dickens classic with voices by Simon Callow, Kate Winslet and Nicolas Cage, Sunday December 19 at 2:30 pm ET

TORONTO, Nov. 17 /CNW/ -Two literary adaptations are the marquee offerings in TVOKids' spirited holiday programming lineup that's sure to delight the young and young at heart. With a host of animated specials running Wednesday December 15 through Boxing Day, TVOKids is the place where kids and parents can come together as a family throughout the festive season.

It all kicks off on Wednesday December 15 at 6:30 pm with the Canadian premiere of The Gruffalo, based on the best-selling children's picture book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. Featuring the voices of Robbie Coltrane, Helena Bonham Carter, Tom Wilkinson and John Hurt, The Gruffalo tells the story of a mouse who navigates a deep forest in search of a nut. Along the way he meets three predators - a fox, an owl and a snake - who all want to eat him. But the mouse manages to scare them off with a tale of an imaginary monster whose favourite food happens to be each of the three predators. As the mouse continues his walk, the fictional creature turns out to be all too real, and the clever rodent must once again use his cunning to outwit the giant beast.

The Gruffalo will be repeated on Sunday December 19 at 2 pm, Wednesday December 22 at 6:30 pm and Saturday December 25 at 2 pm.

Next, TVOKids' family movie block presents Christmas Carol - The Movie on Sunday December 19 at 2:30 pm ET (repeated Friday December 24 at 5:35 pm ET). With voices by Simon Callow, Kate Winslet, Nicolas Cage, Jane Horrocks and Michael Gambon, this animated re-telling of the classic Dickens tale sees the wealthy miser Scrooge learning the true meaning of Christmas through visits by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future.

Rounding out the holiday lineup are a wide range of animated viewer favourites, including:

- The Little Reindeer (December 18 at 2 pm and December 20 at 6:30 pm)
- Little Princess: A Merry Little Christmas (December 19 at 7:30 am and December 24 at 10 am)
- Arthur's Perfect Christmas (December 19 at 8:30 am and December 25 at 8:30 am)
- Peppa Pig Christmas Special (December 19 at 9:30 am and December 24 at 9:50 am)
- Charlie & Lola: How Many Minutes until Christmas? (December 19 at 10 am, December 24 at 3:30 pm and December 25 at 1:30 pm)
- Lost and Found (December 23 at 6:30 pm and December 26 at 2 pm)
- The Last Polar Bears (December 25 at 3:30 pm)
- Mama Mirabelle: Kwanza (December 26 at 10:15 am)

About TVO 

TVO is Ontario's public educational media organization and a trusted source of interactive educational content that informs, inspires and stimulates curiosity and thought. Celebrating 40 years in 2010, TVO's vision is to empower people to be engaged citizens of Ontario through educational media. TVO is funded primarily by the Province of Ontario and supported by thousands of donors. For more information, visit tvo.org.  

Where to find TVO 

Cable channel 2 (channel may vary in some areas), Rogers HD channel 580, Bell TV channel 265, Shaw Direct channel 353.  

For further information:

Media contact: 

Angela Garde
TVO Communications
416.484.2600 x 2305
[email protected]