Popular animated television series Bluey comes to Wakehurst

Wednesday 27 March - Sunday 14 April

Main trail included with entry: Adult: £14.95, Wakehurst and Kew Members: Free, Young person (17-25 years): £7.50, Children (0-16 years): Free
Members’ early opening from 9am and quiet sessions from 9.30am on selected dates
Plant Pals Mission (Nature Heroes badge): £3
Nature Crown drop-in session: £5 per crown
Member tickets are on sale on 13 February, and non-members on 20 February.
Book tickets now
Wakehurst, Sussex

Emmy award-winning Australian children’s television series brought to life for Easter 2024
Play zones, activities and trails at Wakehurst, Kew’s wild botanic garden in Sussex
Children earn a new Nature Heroes badge in the Plant Pals quest

The hit animated television series Bluey is coming to life at Wakehurst, as Bluey, Bingo and the gang take over the gardens in Sussex to create the ultimate Easter day out.

With fun-packed activity zones spread across the landscape, families and budding adventurers have the chance to design their dream day. Set amongst colourful springtime blooms, Bluey at Wakehurst is a must-do for the holidays.

Following the adventures of a lovable six-year-old Blue Heeler puppy and her family, Bluey has captured the hearts of children and adults alike, forming the perfect inspiration for festival-style family fun at Wakehurst. Families will kick off their adventures at the Welcome Zone, where photo opportunities accompanied by the Bluey theme tune set the scene for their day ahead. Nearby, in the Toddler Zone, children can enjoy colouring and imaginative play amongst the trees.

Each playful zone promises laughter and discovery, from a DIY ‘Barky Boats’ activity in the Water Zone to wildlife spotting in the Australia Zone. Tree Trunk Trek is transformed into a Bluey Play Zone, with obstacle courses and slack lines, whilst a Family Zone at the centre of the site will host storytelling and chill-out areas for all to take some time out from a jam-packed day.

The family-favourite Children’s & Community Garden plays host to the Dirt Zone where children can get hands-on, making mud pizzas in the Mud Kitchen, and enjoying nature-based play. On warmer spring days, there are plenty of shady spots and seating, providing a haven for families in the heart of the gardens. Dotted around the site, ‘Dance Mode’ stations will encourage the whole family to embrace the fun and dance in Bluey style.

Wakehurst Programmes Manager, Emily Jones commented:

“At its heart, Bluey is imaginative, adventurous and full of warmth, and we really wanted to evoke these core values through the trail at Wakehurst. We hope that by offering a range of different playful zones, families can enjoy the ultimate day out, where generations come together and leave with long-lasting memories.”

Senior Marketing Manager at BBC Studios Kids & Family (UK & EMEA), Katie Hibbs added:

“We are so excited for Bluey’s arrival at Wakehurst this Easter. They have cleverly taken inspiration from many beloved moments from the show and created fun outdoor play activities across the site. This offers families the opportunity to have the perfect day out, celebrating nature and the joy of play with Bluey!”

Throughout the gardens, spring brings the landscape to life, reflecting the colourful palette of the show itself, as striking magnolia arches over winding boardwalks, bright daffodils line the borders of Mansion Pond, and an array of bold rhododendron adorn the gardens. A dazzling carpet of bluebells greets visitors in Bethlehem Wood, as they embark on an adventure ‘down under’ into the Australia Zone at Coates Wood, home to a unique collection of Wollemi pines. Thought to be extinct until 30 years ago, Wollemi pines date back to the time of the dinosaurs, and Wakehurst is home to 15 of the first ever Wollemi pines introduced to the UK.

Elsewhere in the gardens, budding Nature Heroes will also have the chance to earn their second badge of the year in a special plant-saving mission Plant Pals, on a quest to understand what plants need to thrive. With inclusivity at the heart, the Family Zone will host BSL storytelling on selected dates and the gardens will be acknowledging World Autism Day on Tuesday 2 April, with reduced capacity along the trail.

Whether it’s young families looking for a jam-packed day, or grandparents seeking to make new memories in a beautiful botanical setting, Bluey at Wakehurst is guaranteed to deliver laughter, discovery and lots of fun this Easter.

Please note, the Bluey trail takes place in some dog-free areas of Wakehurst.

ENDS

For more information, images and interviews please contact Jessica Hayne, Communications & Content Executive: j.hayne@kew.org or WakehurstPR@Kew.org.

For tickets, please visit www.kew.org/wakehurst.

Notes to Editors

Ticket Information

Bluey at Wakehurst
10am to 5.30m
Main trail included with entry – pre-booking essential
Children 16 and under go FREE.

Members early opening 9am
Quiet sessions 9.30am
Saturday 30 March, Wednesday 3 April, Saturday 6 April, Wednesday 10 April, Saturday 13 April

Plant Pals Mission (Nature Heroes badge trail)
10am to 4.30pm
£3 per child

Nature Crown drop-in session
Daily, Wednesday 27 March – Sunday 14 April
£5 per Nature Crown
Suitable for children ages 8+

Storytelling
Daily at 11am, 1pm and 3pm
Including BSL sessions on selected dates

About Wakehurst

Please note that Wakehurst is referred to just as Wakehurst, not Wakehurst Place. It is not a National Trust property.

The National Trust was bequeathed the Mansion and grounds of Wakehurst in 1963. It was then entrusted to us here at Kew in 1965, and we now work in partnership with the National Trust to care for our collections and heritage areas.

Wakehurst is Kew’s wild botanic garden in the Sussex High Weald. Its ancient and beautiful landscapes span 535 acres and are a place for escape, exploration, tranquillity, and wonder. Its diverse collection of plants from Britain and around the globe thrive within a tapestry of innovative gardens, temperate woodlands, meadows, and wetlands. Wakehurst is a centre for UK biodiversity and global conservation, seed research and ecosystem science. At its heart is Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank, the world’s largest store of seeds from wild plant species.

RBG Kew receives approximately one third of its funding from Government through the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and research councils. Further funding needed to support RBG Kew’s vital work comes from donors, membership and commercial activity including ticket sales. In the first six months since implementing a new accessibility scheme for those in receipt of Universal Credit, Pension Credit and Legacy Benefits, Kew has welcomed over 45,000 visitors with £1 tickets.

At the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, we’re dedicated to harnessing the power of plants and fungi to end the extinction crisis and secure a future for all life on Earth. With our world-leading research, global partnerships and beloved gardens – home to the world’s most diverse collections of plants and fungi – we’re using our trusted voice to shape policy and practice worldwide. As a charity we rely on the critical support of our visitors, not only to sustain the gardens, but to protect global plant and fungal biodiversity for the benefit of our planet and humanity.

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About Bluey

Bluey is created and written by Joe Brumm and produced by the multiple Emmy® Award-winning Ludo Studio for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and BBC Studios Kids & Family.

The series follows Bluey, a loveable, inexhaustible, Blue Heeler dog, who lives with her Mum, Dad and her little sister, Bingo. Bluey uses her limitless energy to play games that unfold in unpredictable and hilarious ways, bringing her family and the whole neighbourhood into her world of fun.

Bluey is produced by Emmy® Award-winning Ludo Studio for ABC KIDS (Australia) and co-commissioned by ABC Children’s and BBC Studios Kids & Family. Financed in association with Screen Australia, Bluey is proudly 100% created, written, animated, and post produced in Brisbane Queensland, Australia, with funding from the Queensland Government through Screen Queensland and the Australian Government.

About Ludo Studio

Ludo Studio is a BAFTA, multi-Emmy® and Logie award-winning Australian studio that creates and produces original scripted drama, animation and digital stories that are authored by incredible local talent, distributed globally and loved by audiences everywhere.

ludostudio.com.au

About BBC Studios Kids & Family

BBC Studios Kids & Family is an integral part of the BBC Studios content powerhouse – a global company with bold British creativity at its heart. Formed in 2022 with the move of BBC Children’s In-house Production into BBC Studios Productions, combines into one team, the exceptional talent and expertise of BBC Children’s In-House Production alongside the global insight, content sourcing, investment, customer and brand experience within BBC Studios, to seamlessly take content from conception, development and production to investment, franchise management and distribution.

BBC Studios Kids & Family identifies, secures and nurtures great projects and turns them into global and local hits suitable for the CBeebies branded services and other major broadcast platforms and markets. With specialist knowledge of what makes young audiences tick, BBC Studios Kids & Family understands the market opportunity and provides the conditions that allow ideas to develop and flourish.

The division’s multi-genre portfolio includes some of the most exciting and successful franchises in the world, with BAFTA and International Emmy winning craft and storytelling, including Blue Peter, Bluey, Get Even, Hey Duggee, JoJo & Gran Gran, My Mum Tracy Beaker, Sarah & Duck and Something Special. Its productions air on BBC Children’s in the UK, on the multi-territory CBeebies and BBC Kids branded services and on leading content platforms around the world.

About BBC Studios

BBC Studios is a commercial subsidiary of the BBC Group with sales of £2.1 billion (2021/22: £1,630 million). Able to take an idea seamlessly from thought to screen and beyond, the business is built on two operating areas: the global Content Studio, which produces, invests and distributes content globally and Channels & Streaming, with BBC branded channels, services and joint ventures in the UK and internationally. Around 2,500 hours of award-winning British programmes are made by the business every year, with over 80% of total BBC Studios revenues coming from non-BBC customers including Discovery, Apple and Netflix. Its content is internationally recognised across a broad range of genres and specialisms, with brands like Strictly Come Dancing/Dancing with the Stars, Top Gear, the Planet series, Bluey and Doctor Who. BBC.com is BBC Studios’ global digital news platform, offering up-to-the-minute international news, in-depth analysis and features.