Maddie’s Do You Know programme on CBeebies has been a huge hit with children across the country, as she explores the world and learns about how things work. From hot air balloons to dishwashers, kaleidoscopes to clouds, Maddie takes children on an exciting journey.
The team here at Neon Creations were contacted in April 2019 by 7 Wonder, the production company that makes Maddie’s Do You Know. They were very interested in spending a day in our workshop to learn more about how neon signs are made, and making it in a way that would appeal to kids (and adults!).
It was such an exciting experience and so fascinating for us to see the process of a programme being filmed.
Maddie’s Do You Know wanted to follow us completing a neon sign from start to finish. We chose one that we had in our production schedule at the time; a blue arrow.
We sent the production team photos of the workshop, and they sent us a script to fact-check, making sure that everything was in place before filming began! We also made sure we moved any signs that weren’t suitable for the viewing audience, such as our neon bar signs.
The crew were with us for the whole day, creating some great footage of our neon signs for CBeebies, lasting approximately 15 minutes. This just proved to us how much work goes into making a TV programme!
The crew enjoyed it just as much as us; one said: “Thank you so much for your time when we came to film with you. We had a brilliant time, your workshop and team are all lovely! What a brilliant place to work. Thanks especially to Tony and Sam who put up with us all day long and to Catherine for arranging everything.”
They even had a go at glass bending themselves, once filming our neon signs for CBeebies was finished, and really appreciated the skill and craftsmanship that goes into making a neon sign.
In fact, the cameraman loved the neon signs so much that he later ordered a custom made neon sign as a present for his girlfriend!
If you missed Maddie’s Do You Know episode all about neon signs, you can re-watch it on BBC iPlayer now!