A new 24/7 linear kids channel is coming to Sky TV and its streaming service NOW, at no extra cost to existing subscribers, with new originals as well as franchise favourites.
Some of the content kids will be able to watch on the new channel includes popular names such as Clifford The Big Red Dog and Trolls: TrollsTopia.
New Sky Originals on the channel will include Fearne Cotton’s scripted show My Friend Misty and Ready, Eddie, Go! based on books by award-winning author Nikki Saunders.
The channel will be completely ad-free, and will be available from February 2023 (see below for full details on how to get it).
The new linear kids’ channel, which will air back-to-back programming 24 hours a day, will be joining the rest of Sky’s kids-focused channels, such as Nickelodeon, Cartoonito and others.
The channel will be dedicated to entertaining and inspiring children (ages 1-7), and supporting families through their daily adventures.
Lucy Murphy, Director of Kids Content at Sky said: “Millions of our customers already love watching our huge range of Original shows on-demand but families with younger kids have told us that watching on linear channels is an important part of their day.
“So, we’ve listened and expanded our Sky Kids offering at no extra cost.
What Can I Watch On Sky’s New Kids Channel?
Content on the new channel will span themes of learning and doing, arts and crafts, music, dance and fitness, and much more, with a raft of brand-new Sky Originals set to air.
This includes Fearne Cotton executive producing My Friend Misty (age 5-7), which sees animated character Misty set out to build kids emotional resilience.
Misty surprises a group of children in the show with magical visits, helping them to deal with their feelings both good and bad by providing a series of tips and practical exercises to support them in difficult situations.
Another show coming to the new channel is Ready, Eddie, Go! (age 3+), based on the loveable character Eddie who is autistic.
Viewers will see him taken step by step through new experiences and situations such as a trip to the barbers, so when he encounters this in real life, he’s ready to go!
The animated series is based on books (Eddie’s Stories) written by award-winning author, Nikki Saunders, also well known in the SEN (special educational needs) community and whose eldest son is autistic.
Then there’s Dino Club (age 4+), giving viewers the chance to discover the strangest and most surprising truths about dinosaurs, as they journey through a fantastically fun virtual land of these pre-historic giants.
The show’s young intrepid hosts, Ayo and Harriet, time travel into the past to reveal facts along the way and have an amazing adventure.
Children and families will also be treated to franchise favourites such as:
- Trolls: TrollsTopia (5+),
- Where’s Wally (5+),
- Madagascar a Little Wild (5+),
- LEGO (1+)
- 123 Number Squad! (3+)
- Clifford The Big Red Dog (3+),
Kids will also be able to watch some of the existing most-loved Sky Kids Originals:
- MC Grammar: Wonder Raps (5+)
- Pip and Posy (2+)
- The Brilliant World of Tom Gates (6+)
- Morph (3+)
- The Very Small Creatures (2+)
How To Get The New Sky Kids Channel
The new Sky Kids linear channel will launch in February 2023.
On Sky TV, the channel will be integrated into the existing Sky Kids package, which already offers 10,000 episodes of kids’ content on demand and a variety of partner channels.
Sky Kids is an add-on package, which currently costs £6/month. You can get it on Sky Q, Sky Glass and the new Sky Stream.
On Sky’s app-based streaming service, NOW, the Kids’ channels are not part of a separate subscription anymore – instead, they’ve been bundled into the general Entertainment Membership, which costs £9.99/month and also includes Sky’s TV channel (such as Sky Atlantic) and on-demand shows.
Although the new Kids channel will be linear – that is, it will air shows nonstop 24/7, we assume some of its content will also be available on-demand.