Shaun the Sheep is a British stop-motion animated children's television series produced by Aardman Animations, and commissioned by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), a constituent member of the consortium of German public-broadcasting institutions, ARD. It is a spin-off of the Wallace and Gromit franchise, starring Shaun from A Close Shave as its main protagonist. It first aired in the UK on CBBC in March 2007. The show consists of 80 episodes in 2 series, and is currently on hiatus. It has been broadcast in 180 countries around the world. The series has also inspired its own spin-off show, Timmy Time, which is aimed at younger viewers.