Kids

Banijay Kids & Family has teamed up with iconic British comic Beano for a special four-issue collaboration featuring Mr Bean, bringing together two of the UK’s best-known comedy brands.Launching on 16 September, the crossover will see Mr Bean take over Beano as Guest Editor for the first issue, appointing Teddy as “Teditor” and even temporarily renaming the comic Mr Beano — a first in its long history.Across four consecutive issues, characters from the Mr Bean universe will enter the world of Beanotown in a series of original crossover stories. Among them, Mr Bean will find himself drafted in as a substitute teacher for the Bash Street Kids, while Gnasher and Gnipper will face Scrapper in another comic showdown.

The collaboration coincides with the UK launch of new episodes from season four of Mr Bean: The Animated Series, currently airing on Boomerang and ITVX, and will be supported across the digital platforms of both brands. A series of downloadable educational resources inspired by the partnership will also be made available.

Rowan Atkinson, who co-created Mr Bean with Richard Curtis, said he grew up reading Beano and had always loved its “anarchic style and tone”, describing Mr Bean himself as “a natural born anarchist and a child at heart”. He added that the creative connection between the two brands — including the obvious Bean/Beano wordplay — had been waiting to happen.Tom Beattie, Managing Director of Tiger Aspect Kids & Family, described the project as a natural fit between “two comedy greats”, while Mike Stirling, Director of Mischief at Beano, highlighted the shared focus on creativity, imagination and finding humour in everyday life.

The four-week initiative will be backed by a joint marketing and PR campaign.Mr Bean has entertained audiences for more than 35 years and is distributed across over 190 territories. Mr Bean: The Animated Series is produced by Tiger Aspect Kids & Family, part of Banijay Kids & Family, with Banijay Rights handling distribution deals and Banijay Kids & Family representing worldwide licensing and merchandising rights for the brand.Beano, meanwhile, remains the world’s longest-running weekly comic and is home to characters including Dennis the Menace, Minnie the Minx and Bananaman, with the brand extending across publishing, live experiences and licensed products.