Tugs (TV series)

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Tugs
Created by	Robert D. Cardona David Mitton
Written by	David Mitton Robert D. Cardona Chris Tulloch Tarquin Cardona Gloria Tors Roy Russell
Directed by	David Mitton Chris Tulloch
Voices of	Patrick Allen Simon Nash Chris Tulloch Timothy Bateson Shaun Prendergast Sean Barrett Lee Cornes John Baddeley Mike O'Malley Nigel Anthony JoAnne Good
Narrated by	Patrick Allen
Theme music composer	Junior Campbell Mike O'Donnell
Composers	Junior Campbell Mike O'Donnell
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	13
Production
Executive producer	J. Nigel Pickard
Producer	Robert D. Cardona
Production locations	Shepperton Studios, Surrey, England
Cinematography	Clearwater periscope lens system
Camera setup	Multi-camera
Running time	Approx. 15-20 minutes
Production companies	Tugs Limited Clearwater Features Television South
Original release
Network	ITV (CITV)
Release	4 April (1989-04-04) – 27 June 1989 (1989-06-27)
Related
Thomas & Friends Salty's Lighthouse Theodore Tugboat
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

Tugs (stylised as TUGS) is a British television series produced by Tugs Ltd., for Television South (TVS) and Clearwater Features Ltd.^[1] and first broadcast on ITV from 4 April to 27 June 1989. It was created by Robert D. Cardona and David Mitton,^[2] who had previously produced the first two series of Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends. Set in the Roaring Twenties, the series focuses on the adventures of two anthropomorphized tugboat fleets, the Star Fleet and the Z-Stacks, who compete against each other in the fictional Bigg City Port: "the biggest harbour in the world".

The theme tune and incidental music was composed by Junior Campbell and Mike O'Donnell,^[2] who also wrote the music for Thomas & Friends (from 1984 to 2003).^[3]

Despite a second series being planned in advance, when TVS Television lost its franchise to Meridian Broadcasting, the series did not continue production past 13 episodes. Following the initial airing of the series throughout 1989, television rights were sold to an unknown party, while some models and sets from the series were sold to Britt Allcroft. Modified set props and tugboat models were used in Thomas & Friends from 1991 onwards, with footage from the original programme being heavily dubbed and edited for use in the American children's series Salty's Lighthouse.

After Clearwater's liquidation in 1990, Mitton joined The Britt Allcroft Company to continue working on Thomas & Friends in 1991, while Cardona went on to direct Theodore Tugboat, a similarly natured series set in Canada.^[4] All thirteen episodes of the show were released on VHS between 1988 and 1990.