The Aussie cartoon ‘Bluey’ launched in Australia in 2018 - and then proceeded to conquer the world. According to ratings agency Nielsen, ‘Bluey’ has been the most-watched series on streaming this year so far among total viewers in the US, with over 35 billion minutes watched, or 584 million hours. Recently the magisterial American Merriam-Webster Dictionary listed “Bluey” as a “word worth knowing”.
The authoritative dictionary explained that “bluey” has many meanings in Aussie English. It can mean a “blue heeler” cattle dog, or a swag (wrapped in a blue blanket), or a blue-tongue lizard, or a blue bottle washed up on the beach or a bunch of other things. It’s a great Aussie word to share with the world.
And it’s happening all because of a cartoon family created by writer and animator Joe Brumm. His animation production house, Ludo Studio, is based at Fortitude Valley in Brisbane, and Joe Brumm has said that when he launched “Bluey” he wanted to give the show “Brisbane values.” Which seems to mean - family values.
Have you seen the show? If you’re a real Aussie you owe it to yourself to have a look. Check out at least half a dozen episodes to catch the flavour. The stories revolve around a family of blue heeler cattle dogs: Dad named ‘Bandit’, Mum ‘Chilli’ and their two kids Bluey and Bingo.
They live in an old-fashioned “Queenslander” house. And each episode is built around the highly imaginative games Mum and Dad play with th.