Returning to Balamory 'surreal but so much fun'
BBCResuming her role in a BBC children's TV show more than 20 years after it ended has been "so much fun", an actress has said.
Kim Tserkezie, from Newcastle - who played Penny Pocket - ran a cafe and shop in Balamory, between 2002 and 2005.
Inspired by the Scottish town of Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, the show depicts fictional characters using friendship to solve everyday problems. Two new series of the show have been commissioned.
"It's just lovely to feel all that love again from all the Balamory fans who are absolutely wonderful," Tserkezie told Radio Newcastle.
"I was just absolutely thrilled to get the call to say it was happening again."
Tserkesie, who uses a wheelchair, says getting the role after two decades was "so important".
"Just to play a character, and not a disibility issue, you know disabled children used to travel miles when we were on tour to say hello.
"It meant so much to them to see themselves on screen."
The original programme from the early 2000s, attracted a peak of two million viewers a week in the UK and was watched by millions more around the world.
Lion TV/MediaScotland BBCMany of the original cast have resumed their roles including Julie Wilson Nimmo as nursery teacher Miss Hoolie, Andrew Agnew as PC Plum, and Juliet Cadzow as Edie McCredie with the filming taking place in Tobermory.
"It was so much fun, it was really surreal seeing all my old pals, but making new friends too," Tserkesie said.
"I can't believe that 20 years has flown by, my 18-month-old grand-daughter is going to be watching the show so that's a bit strange for me," she added.
The programme is being produced by Lion Television Scotland, with 10 episodes in each series.
Additional reporting by Matt Bailey.
Balamory airs on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer on 20 April, 2026.