Shaun the Sheep - Shape Up With Shaun - Region 2 DVD

The creation and work of Nick Park and his team at Aardman Animations (whose other delightful creations include, of course, Wallace & Gromit and the more recent Flushed Away), Shaun The Sheep follows its title character, who it’s fair to say isn’t one to go with the flock. And, with a strong backing collection of characters, including the memorable sheepdog Bitzer, the result is a collection of charming and very funny escapades with real, honest family appeal.

As you’d expect from Aardman, Shaun The Sheep is an exquisitely animated piece of work, painstakingly detailed and clearly a real labour of love. But it’s the writing too that underpins these eight instalments, and while you can’t help wondering if a few more of the episodes could be squeezed onto the disc, there’s little arguing with the rewatch value on offer here. Not least because of Shaun’s likely near-magnetic hold on the younger end of its broad audience.

A firm and refreshing riposte to those who claim children’s television is nowhere near as good as it used to be, Shaun The Sheep is simply terrific, wholesome entertainment. And it’ll happily give the vast majority of supposed-kids’ TV shows a run for their money… --Jon Foster