PRH & BBC Studios Ink Multi-Year Global Renewal for Bestseller License BLUEY
Bluey publishing products BBC Studios, Penguin Random House
Penguin Random House and BBC Studios are delighted to announce the continuation of their hugely successful book publishing deal for the TV sensation Bluey. The renewed partnership sees Penguin Random House secure rights for all languages in the UK, US and Rest of World excluding Australia, New Zealand and China, each of which have their own Penguin Random House contracts with BBC Studios.
TV show ‘Bluey’: global success
Jan Paterson, Director of Book and Audio Publishing at BBC Studios, said: “We are thrilled to extend our highly successful collaboration with Penguin Random House. As Bluey fandom continues to soar, we look forward to bringing even more Bluey stories inspired by the beloved TV show to families, inspiring cherished reading moments for children and their parents around the world.“
Jennifer Loja, President of Penguin Young Readers, added: “Bluey’s exceptional storytelling and focus on big emotions has certainly made it stand out, and it’s been thrilling to see fans young and old loving the Heelers as much as we do. Penguin is delighted to continue bringing these stories to an even wider audience through our publishing program with a variety of books for all ages and interests.”
Penguin Young Readers is excited to celebrate their new BLUEY releases for the 2024 holiday season, which include: BLUEY: Bartlebee’s First Christmas by Joe Brumm and Emily Baulch, a unique new format filled with five holiday surprises including a jigsaw puzzle, board game, holiday ornaments, and more; BLUEY: Awesome Advent Book Bundle, an interactive advent calendar filled with 24 BLUEY mini-books; episode tie-in board books; lift-the-flap books; and more.
In the UK, Ladybird, an imprint of Penguin Random House Children’s UK, has been publishing BLUEY since 2021 and has sold over 2 million books through TCM. BLUEY made the top 20 children’s chart 15 times in 2023 and the top 20 preschool chart 105 times and featured every single week of 2023.
In EMEA, Penguin Random House Children’s UK-based Rights team has sub-contracted 22 foreign language translation deals for BLUEY books on behalf of BBC Studios. In Spain, BLUEY is the #1 book publishing license. Over 200,000 copies of BLUEY titles in Spanish have sold since April 2023. In France, Hachette have sold over 100,000 copies since launch in April 2023, leading to the publisher ramping up their output this year by launching a further 32 BLUEY books in market in 2024. BLUEY books are flying off the shelves in Germany too, with the first two books WHERE’S BLUEY? and GOODNIGHT FRUIT BAT launched in November 2023 selling out within four weeks of hitting retail. And, it’s not just Europe where we’re seeing success, with sales from Korea to Colombia.
The landmark extension with Penguin Random House follows hot on the heels of BBC Studios renewal with master toy licensee Moose Toys in May, and precedes the international debut of the second batch of ‘Bluey Minisodes’ on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) for audiences in Australia, and on Disney Jr. and Disney+ for the rest of the world in October. Following its debut in Australia in 2018, BLUEY has gained millions of fans around the world. The Emmy and BAFTA Award-winning animated TV phenomenon airs in over 140 countries and is a global-ratings hit. According to Nielsen, BLUEY is the No. 1 most-watched series on streaming this year (2024) to-date among total viewers in the U.S., with over 35 billion minutes watched (584M hours)1. BLUEY is also the #1 kids show on CBeebies and Disney+ in the UK.2