Shaun the Sheep is a British animated comedy television series created by Nick Park. Produced by Aardman Animations, it is a spin-off of the Wallace & Gromit franchise, focusing on the adventures of Shaun the Sheep, who previously appeared in A Close Shave (1995), as the leader of his flock on a British farm. The series premiered on 5 March 2007 on CBBC in the UK. In 2020, the sixth series, titled Shaun the Sheep: Adventures from Mossy Bottom streamed globally on Netflix. In March 2024, it was announced that a seventh series was in development, which premiered on 24 May 2025. With 190 episodes over 7 series, Shaun the Sheep is one of the longest-running animated series in British and German television.
The series inspired the spin-off Timmy Time, a show aimed at younger viewers that follows Timmy, Shaun's younger cousin, while a second spin-off series, titled Let's Go Timmy!, is set to release in 2027.. These 3 series are collectively referred to as the Mossy Bottom franchise. A first feature-length film, Shaun the Sheep Movie, was released in 2015. A short film, Shaun the Sheep: The Farmer's Llamas, was aired in 2015 as a Christmas TV special. A second feature-length film, A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon, was released in 2019, and a second short film, Shaun the Sheep: The Flight Before Christmas, was released in 2021. A two-part episode titled "Shirleyverse" premiered on 24 May 2025 on CBBC and BBC One. A third feature-length film, Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom, was released on 18 September 2026.
Plot Shaun lives with his flock at Mossy Bottom Farm, a small farm in Northern England. Each episode centres around Shaun's attempts to add excitement to their otherwise boring lives. The action snowballs into fantastic sitcom-style escapades, most often because the sheep are fascinated with human technology and culture. This usually brings them into partnership — and sometimes conflict — with the sheepdog Bitzer, while they all are simultaneously trying to avoid having their anthropomorphism being discovered by the farmer.
Characters
Main Shaun (vocal effects by Justin Fletcher) is the protagonist of the series and the leader of the flock. He is clever, confident, and prone to mischief, but equally adept at getting himself and/or his friends out of it. As there is no dialogue, like all the sheep, he communicates entirely through bleats and often explains his ideas to the flock by drawing diagrams on a blackboard. He has a good friendship with Bitzer, though this does not stop Shaun from playing pranks on him at times. Bitzer (vocal effects by John Sparkes) is the farmer's loyal sheepdog, dressed for work in a blue knit cap, black collar, knitted wristlet, and large official-looking wrist-watch, carrying a clipboard and walking upright or on all fours as needed. He communicates with barks, growls and the occasional whimper. He also gives instructions to the flock by blowing a whistle. Despite a tendency to be caught listening to music, he takes his job very seriously, to the point of occasionally letting his power go to his head. He is, however, a generally good friend to Shaun and does his best to keep the whole flock out of trouble. The Farmer (voiced by John Sparkes) is a bespectacled, balding man who runs the farm with Bitzer at his side and acts as the flock's primary, if unwitting, nemesis. His livestock's main concern is to ensure he remains completely oblivious to their unusual sapience, a task made easier by his unobservant nature but complicated by his enthusiasm for picking up new hobbies. He can be heard frequently making wordless noises or muttering under his breath just audibly enough for the viewer to pick up on his meaning. His disastrous attempts at dating are a running joke of the series. In the episode "Karma Farmer", it is revealed that the farmer has a twin. In Series 2, he sported a light stubble, which was removed from Series 3 onward. His glasses also changed from round lenses to squared lenses. Shirley (vocal effects by Richard Webber) is the largest member of the flock. A gentle giant, she is usually seen placidly eating. She is so big that large objects routinely disappear into her fleece, and she quite often gets stuck herself, needing the other sheep to push, pull, or even slingshot her out of trouble. However, her size can also come in very handy when what's needed is a battering ram or similarly immovable object. She is a devoted eater, blindly charging towards food, even if it's not food in the first place. Her size came from her eating, yet it has been proven that by following a diet and exercising, she can become as thin as Shaun. Timmy (vocal effects by Justin Fletcher) is Shaun's cousin, the flock's only lamb and often the innocent centre of the chaos. Timmy tries to be like Shaun. His personality is often contrasting: sometimes he acts responsibly and understands what the older sheep say; other times, he acts like a normal baby, he is prone to tears and something that is taken from him or scares him could set him off. He is a toddler in the series and is often seen sucking a dummy or holding his teddy bear, which he cares for very much. The spin-off series Timmy Time chronicles Timmy's adventures outside of the farm, as he attends nursery school. Timmy's mother (vocal effects by Kate Harbour) and Shaun's aunt wears curlers in her topknot and is a bit careless about maternal duties, like using Timmy as a makeshift paintbrush for example. But when her offspring goes astray, she is inconsolable until he is safely back in her care. She is also unnamed and is referred to as Timmy's mother or mum. Hazel (vocal effects by Emma Tate) is a timid sheep who jumps at the slightest thing and can frequently be heard bleating nervously. In the first movie, when the Farmer's caravan rolls off towards the city, Hazel could hardly contain her fear – however, when the flock involve themselves in a hot pursuit of a runaway caravan, Hazel discovers that she's much braver than she ever imagined. Nuts (vocal effects by Andy Nyman) is quite an eccentric but useful sheep – and usually, like the rest of the flock, accompanies and helps Shaun. He has two differently-sized eyes and a differently-shaped nose, compared to the other sheep. Jim and Glynn The Twins (vocal effects by Simon Greenall) are two sheep who do almost everything together. Glynn has a more rounded head while Jim’s head is a little more flat down. The Flock (vocal effects by various) tend to follow Shaun, are obedient to orders, and generally form one big happy (if sometimes fractious) family. Unlike Shaun, however, they are not particularly bright, which becomes a problem when combined with their ongoing fascination with the human world. The Pigs (vocal effects by John Sparkes and Justin Fletcher) are bullies to Shaun and his flock, always trying to antagonize them and get them into trouble. They live in their own pen adjacent to their farm. They are, however, scared of Bitzer (though they still take the chance to bully him whenever possible). They communicate via oinks and squeals like actual pigs. Pidsley (vocal effects by Justin Fletcher) is the Farmer's orange cat, a minor character (without fur) in Series 1 and the main antagonist of Series 2, who makes his last appearance in "We Wish Ewe a Merry Christmas". In Series 2, he desires to be the sole recipient of the Farmer's attention and thus is jealous of Bitzer. He also dislikes the sheep, thinking of them as stupid and seeing them as inferior. He communicates through meows, trills and purrs like an actual cat.
Other Mower Mouth (vocal effects by Justin Fletcher) is a goat who first appears in the episode of the same name. He is an unstoppable eating machine. While not an unfriendly character, all of his considerable energy is focused on his next meal; he thus routinely causes trouble for Shaun and the flock. The Bull (vocal effects by Richard Webber) is belligerent, powerful and easily provoked by Shaun's antics and the colour red. He first appears in the episode of the same name. The Ducks make frequent appearances. In Series 1, a single duck gets into predicaments due to Shaun's exploits in "Off the Baa!", "Bathtime" and "Tidy Up". Sometimes, he is seen with his lady-friends. In Series 2, there are two ducks; in Series 3, they have once again been replaced with a single, pure white duck. The Aliens are green and have one large eye on the top of their head. Despite their advanced scientific technology, which frequently causes trouble for the farm animals, they exhibit human-like behaviour and generally cheerful personalities. They appear in "The Visitor", "Shaun Encounters", "Caught Short Alien" and "Cat Got Your Brain" and briefly in "Spring Lamb". The Granny is a short-tempered, short-sighted old lady, appearing in "Take Away" and "Save the Tree". She also appears in "Two's Company", holding a cart, and "The Big Chase", forcing the pigs to give her a lift in their car. She is renowned for hitting people (or animals) with her handbag when they annoy her by mistake. The Pizza Delivery Boy (voiced by Michael Hordern) is a young man who rides a moped (which Bitzer often "borrows" to chase after the sheep) and works in the local pizzeria. He also works as a postman in "Saturday Night Shaun". The Farmer's girlfriend appears to be adventurous and an animal lover, patting Bitzer and Shaun and offering food to Timmy. She first appears in Series 2. The Farmer's niece appears to be a fan of horses and irritates Shaun, Bitzer, and the flock. The Farmer's niece is also a spoiled brat, as she screams and cries every time things don't go her way. She is also one of the few humans who know what the flock is up to. She appears in the episode of the same name, "Bitzer's New Hat" and "The Rabbit".
Adventures from Mossy Bottom Rita is a parcel delivery woman who normally mails in packages to the Farmer. As shown in "Express Delivery", she is a very serious about her job and will do almost anything to make the delivery. Stash (vocal effects by Akiya Henry) is a red squirrel who is very speedy and clever. Originally an antagonist in "Squirreled Away", Stash is a good friend to Shaun and is usually helpful to him. Farmer Ben (voiced by Marcus Brigstocke) is a famous social media influencer who the Farmer tries to compete with. Lexi is Ben's pet Afghan Hound and in "Go Bitzer Go!" is seen to be very competitive.
Production The show was produced by Aardman Animations and was commissioned by the BBC and the Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), a member station of German public-broadcasting network ARD. It has aired on BBC channels in the UK since 2007.
Each seven-minute episode is shot in Aardman's stop-motion animation style. The comedic tone is a combination of slapstick and classic silent comedy, similar to that used in the Wallace & Gromit shorts. Unlike other shows made by Aardman Animations, the series was restricted in its ability to carry much-spoken dialogue, not even from the human characters, except for a few simple grunts, bleats, barks, growls, pointing, sighs, mutterings, and similar wordless inflections, which are used to indicate a character's mood or motive. Thus, the series also never uses any readable words in any episode, although "Bitzer" can be seen on a dog bowl, and—in series four--"Mossy Bottom Farm" on a gate, in the original English-language title sequence. All other signage, such as on a pizza box or a bus stop, is replaced by illegible scrawls and pictures.