Disney Junior UK's #1 Series Jake and the Never Land Pirates Sets Sail for Success in 2012

Disney Junior UK's #1 Series Jake and the Never Land Pirates Sets Sail for Success in 2012

LONDON, March 19, 2012/PRNewswire/ --

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- Jake and the Never Land Pirates tops the ratings on Disney Junior UK
attracting more than 4 million viewers in the last quarter alone[1]
- Star-studded second season featuring celebrity guest voice artists Sharon
Osbourne and David Arquette, premieres on 16th April
- Special double episode entitled Peter Pan Returns airs on 30th March 2012 at
5:30pm, and released on DVD on 2nd April 2012
- Brand new toy line releasing in June across the UK
- Jake and the Never Land Pirates to take over Disney Store from 1st April 2012
with unique Pirate themed guest experience to celebrate the launch of season 2
- Third season green lit for 2013 on the back of global success of the series

Disney UK today announced that its preschool animation, Jake and the Never Land
Pirates is the #1 rating series on Disney Junior UK and is set to achieve new heights of
success in 2012 with the launch of season 2, a new product range and a high impact Disney
Store takeover in April.

The highly-anticipated second season is set to premiere on Disney Junior on 16th
April, and will feature a star-studded list of celebrity guest voice artists such as
Sharon Osbourne, who stars as the voice of "Mama Hook", mother of the infamous Captain
Hook. In advance of its TV premiere, classic character Peter Pan will make his first-ever
appearance on Jake and the Never Land Pirates in a double episode entitled Peter Pan
Returns on Friday, 30th March at 5:30pm[2] and later released on DVD on 2nd April.

To celebrate the launch, April is becoming Jake and the Never Land Pirates Month in
Disney Stores, which will be hosting free events inspired by the series and featuring
crafting activities and an interactive showtime experience.

As part of the celebrations, kids will be invited to take part in a Jake and the Never
Land Pirates themed in-store treasure hunt, learn to speak like real pirates and have
their best pirate impression filmed for Disney Junior UK. A new Fisher-Price product
range, which was recently unveiled at New York Toy Fair, featuring plush toys, role-play
and playsets, will also be launched in Disney Stores in April ahead of its nationwide
rollout to other retailers from June. The new exciting product complements the current
Jake and the Never Land Pirate range, and will see additional stationery, toys, apparel
and accessories, as well as homeware, follow later in the year.

Tricia Wilber, CMO, The Walt Disney Company EMEA and General Manager, Disney Channels
EMEA, comments: "Jake and the Never Land Pirates has built a huge global audience in less
than a year since launch and we're incredibly excited about its potential across The Walt
Disney Company. As with all Disney Junior series, its success is built on using great
characters and storytelling to create a real emotional connection with its audience.
Disney Store activity will deepen this connection by bringing to life the show's themes of
role-play, teamwork and adventure for kids around the country in a really fun, interactive
way."

Anna Hill, Chief Marketing Officer, The Walt Disney Company UK adds: "Creating and
nurturing popular franchises such as Jake and the Never Land Pirates is hugely important
for us at Disney. Its hit ratings success is really helping to maximise opportunities
across many lines of business and we are looking forward to supporting it with new product
and activity that really capture what fans love about the show."

Jake and the Never Land Pirates was the first animated series created for Disney
Junior and has achieved huge ratings success in the UK and across EMEA, reaching a total
of 4.2 million and 29.5 million individuals respectively in the last quarter alone. The
series is proving just as popular online at disneyjunior.co.uk, where kids can get
interact further with Jake and his pirate crew, play with brand new games, and take part
in other fun activities and swashbuckling adventures.

Jake and the Never Land Pirates features original "pirate rock" music performed by
Sharky and Bones of The Never Land Pirate Band. The standalone soundtrack album for the
series was released in the UK in October 2011 featuring songs by The Never Land Pirate
Band such as, "Never Land Pirates" and the "Jake and the Never Land Pirates Main Title".

1) Across EMEA, Jake and the Never Land Pirates was viewed by a total of
29.5 million individuals, of which 6.4 million were young kids, across 13 reported
markets between October-December 2011, an impressive 49% increase from the previous
quarter. In the UK, Jake and the Never Land Pirates was viewed by a total of 4.2
million Individuals 4+ (7%), of which 1.4 million were Kids 4-15 (17%) and 1.2m were
Kids 4-9 (27%), on Disney Junior.
2) Peter Pan Returns premiered on Disney Channel U.S. on 13th February 2012,
soaring to ratings success as the series' most-watched episode of all time in total
viewers, reaching 3.1 million people.

Notes to editors:

- The series is reaching more UK viewers at the same point in their
lifecycles than Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny, Special Agent OSO, Jungle
Junction and Art Attack!
- Jake and the Never Land Pirates ranks as the #2 ratings driver with kids 4-9,
only behind the much more established Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.
- The series attracted more unique viewers than key competitors such as Dora the
Explorer, Bob the Builder and Thomas & Friends.

About Disney Junior:

The newly branded, learning-focused Disney Junior reflects the emotional connection
generations of consumers have to Disney storytelling and Disney characters, both classic
and contemporary. Disney Junior is now available in 109 countries across EMEA, with 8
visual feeds, in 13 languages, representing a total of 35 million households.

Disney Junior's programming invites mum and dad to join their child in the Disney
experience of magical, musical and heartfelt stories and characters, while incorporating
specific learning and development themes designed for kids age 2-7. Disney Junior's
animated and live action series blend Disney's unparalleled storytelling and characters
kids love deeply with learning, including early math, language skills, healthy eating and
lifestyles, and social skills. Through its combination of animated and live-action
programming, Disney Junior inspires learning through play, from early maths and language
skills, to healthy lifestyles with an emphasis on social and emotional development. It
celebrates childhood by encouraging children to laugh, sing, dance, and above all - have
fun.

From the earliest phase of program development, Disney employs education and child
development experts who review every premise and script before the development phase.
Working closely alongside parents, the Disney Junior brand vision was created and ensures
all content is mum-approved.

About The Walt Disney Company EMEA:
The Walt Disney Company (TWDC), together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a
leading diversified international family entertainment and media enterprise with five
business segments: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment, consumer
products and interactive media. Disney is a Dow 30 company and had annual revenues of
around $40.9 billion in its last fiscal year (FY11).

TWDC Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) has operated in the region for more than 70
years and has a presence in over 25 countries and currently employees around 6,600 people.
Disneyland Paris opened in 1992 and is now Europe's #1 tourist destination. TWDC is a
major film distributor with recent successes including "Pirates of the Caribbean: On
Stranger Tides", ''Toy Story 3'' and ''Alice in Wonderland''. All three films set records
across the region contributing to a global box office for each film in excess of $1
billion. The company is also a major supplier of TV programming, distributing
Disney-branded and non-branded television shows including the hit series ''Desperate
Housewives'', which ranks in the top 10 US series on-air in France, Germany, Italy and the
UK. In EMEA, Disney Branded Channels (Disney Channel, Disney XD, Disney Junior and Disney
Cinemagic) are available in 118 countries, with 37 visual feeds, in 23 languages. This
represents a total of 59 channels and 92.1 million households. Disney's wide range of
consumer products, including toys, apparel, home decor, foods, books and magazines, are
sold at specialist and mass market retailers and at more than 100 Disney Stores in
Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Spain and the UK, as well as online. A new
concept store design, which offers a groundbreaking and magical retail experience that
families can enjoy together has launched in several markets across Europe.

Source: Disney EMEA

For further information, please contact: Charlotte Scott, Email: charlotte.scott@disney.com , Tel: +44(0)20-8636-2054

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