Nina and the Neurons


Nina and the Neurons is a British-Scottish programme shown on the CBeebies channel aimed at four to six-year-olds to help them understand basic science. Nina is a neuroscientist who enlists the help of five Neurons in her brain to answer a scientific question.
The show is produced by Lucille McLaughlin, who has also produced the children's programmes Balamory, Me Too! and Bits and Bobs. The series is commissioned by CBeebies Controller, Michael Carrington.

Synopsis/plot

Most of the show is based at Glasgow Science Centre, with a small part taking place outdoors. At the start of the show, Nina conducts experiments in front of an unseen audience of children. At one point of the show, Nina is 'contacted' by children, who appears on a computer screen asking a science-related question Nina then chooses one of the five Neurons inside her brain based upon which of the senses is most appropriate to answer the question. Once the Neuron has been selected, the children then visit Nina, using fun experiments and games.
Afterwards, Nina takes the children out to find out more about the answer to the question, sometimes with the help of their friends and family. After they have found out the answer to the question, they travel back to the Glasgow Science Centre to do another experiment. Then, the ‘experimenters’ leave.
At the end of each show, a song is sung, which changes from series to series depending on the theme of the series. Then, the Neurons discuss what they have done and the individual role they have played. The show ends with Nina and the Neurons bidding farewell to the viewers.

Characters and cast

The main character of Nina is played by Scottish actress Katrina Bryan. She is a scientist who works in the lab. Nina wears either a white lab coat with brightly coloured cuffs and lapels in her lab, or one of a bright yellow coat or blue jacket when outside. In the programme, Nina drives either a pale blue 1970s Volkswagen Type 2 minibus or a New MINI, both bearing numberplates reading 'NINA', or rides a bicycle in the Go ECO! version.
The Neurons are computer-animated characters who live inside Nina's brain, with no legs, and are named to reflect the five senses which they represent:
Felix, voiced by James Dreyfus in the first series but subsequently by Lewis MacLeod, represents touch. He is green, speaks in a posh accent and is particular about his appearance.
Belle, voiced by Kelly Harrison represents hearing. She is pink but also loud and can be bossy. She's also the group vice leader.
Luke, voiced by Patrice Naiambana, represents sight. He is yellow and is also the group leader. His character is laid back and relaxed, and speaks with a Jamaican accent.
Ollie, voiced by Siobhan Redmond represents smell. She is purple and described as 'sweet, self-assured and a bit of a goth.' She is the elder sister of Bud.
Bud, voiced by Sharon Small represents the taste neuron. He speaks with a Scottish accent. He is blue and also the youngest Neuron and can be enthusiastic and easily excited. He is the younger brother of Ollie.
Bud and Ollie are often chosen together by Nina due to the way taste and smell work together.
Felix and Luke got chosen together by Nina due to the way touch and sight work together.
Belle and Luke got chosen together by Nina due to the way hearing and sight work together.
Felix and Belle got chosen together by Nina due to the way touch and hearing work together.

Awards and nominations

Composer: Scottish Composer Graham Ness

Exhibits

There is a themed Nina & the Neurons activity trail at the Glasgow Science Centre..
There was also an attraction located at Alton Towers themed to the show called Nina's Science Lab which opened in 2014 and closed in 2018.

Episodes

The first series began on 26 February 2007 and ended on 30 March 2007. The 2nd series began airing on Cbeebies on 31 March 2008 and ended on 2 May 2008. It was followed by a third, this time called Nina and the Neurons: Go Eco!, on 13 June 2008 as part of CBeebies' year-long green initiative called EcoBeebies, which ended on 15 August 2008. A fourth series called Nina and the Neurons: Go Inventing started on 18 May 2009, where Nina invites several young inventors to her lab to discover how things work by inventing their own versions. It ended on 19 June 2009. The fifth series, Nina and the Neurons: In The Lab, was broadcast from 27 September 2010 to 10 December 2010. In the show, Nina and the experimenters discover changes and reaction.
A sixth series, called Nina and the Neurons: Brilliant Bodies, premiered on 5 September 2011. The show focuses on the parts of the human body. The seventh series, Nina and the Neurons: Go Engineering, is another series about inventions. It started in 2013. Series 8 is called Nina and the Neurons: Earth Explorers, explores the Earth, the sea and beyond. The series also started in 2013. The last three series, Get Sporty, Go Digital and Get Building focus on sport, gadgets and building respectively.

Series 1 (26 February 2007 – 30 March 2007)

A series about Engineering feats consisting of 25 episodes started being broadcast on 14 January 2013. Each episode tries to simplify a tricky science concept into three key experiments which children can participate in.
This series looks at various geographical and geological features such as lakes, caves, volcanoes, etc.