Animated series aiming to honour leprechaun folklore
A NEW animated children’s series is aiming to take centuries of Irish folklore to a new global digital audience.
Aimed at four to seven-yearolds, it will follow a group of Carlingford leprechauns, or Carlichauns, as they embark on adventures to grant wishes to children all over the world.
The Carlichauns concept is the brainchild of children’s TV veteran Tim Patterson, whose 42-year career spans the BBC, Disney and Nickelodeon, along with Kevin Woods, who has dedicated his life to preserving and celebrating the myths and legends of Carlingford and the Cooley Peninsula.
Patterson and Woods are among the co-founders of Enterprise Ireland-backed Carlichauns Entertainment, alongside chief executive Niall Watters, chief financial officer Eoin Mccormack, senior executive Steve Woods and business affairs executive Lisa Logan.
The company has also brought in former Irish ambassador to the US Dan Mulhall as a brand ambassador.
Ahead of the series hitting the screens, Carlichauns Entertainment is launching a free location-based AR app on St Patrick’s Day to introduce audiences to the characters.
The app has been developed by Irish AR specialists Imvizar.
The launch will take place in Carlingford, Merrion Square, Dublin, People’s Park, Dun Laoghaire and Avondale in Wicklow.
App users completing the Carlichauns Adventure Trail in these locations will be in with a chance of winning a bar of gold.
Patterson said in all his years working in children’s television it has been “rare to find a project with such strong potential”.
He said: “The Carlichauns characters are all very relatable with strong story arcs running throughout. The series brings messages of hope and kindness with a real sense of fun running throughout each episode.”