| Genre: | Children's television series Adventure Comedy drama Family |
| Creator: | Bonnie Bryant |
| Developer: | Sarah Dodd |
| Starring: | Keenan MacWilliam Sophie Bennett Lara Jean Marshall Heli Simpson Kia Luby (Seasons 1–2) Victoria Campbell Lauren Dixon Ariel Kaplan Marny Kennedy Aisha Dee (Season 3) |
| Opentheme: | "Hello World" (Instrumental) by Belle Perez (Seasons 1–2) "Hello World" (Season 3) |
| Endtheme: | "Hello World" (Seasons 1–3) Various songs (Seasons 2–3) |
| Composer: | Dale Cornelius (Season 1) Stephen Skratt Jack Lenz (Seasons 2–3) |
| Country: | Australia Canada |
| Language: | English |
| Num Series: | 3 |
| Num Episodes: | 78 |
| List Episodes: | List of The Saddle Club episodes |
| Producer: | Lynn Bayonas |
| Runtime: | 24 minutes |
| Network: | YTV (Canada) ABC TV (Australia) Nine Network (Australia) |
The Saddle Club is an Australian-Canadian children's television series developed by Sarah Dodd, based on the books written by Bonnie Bryant. Like the book series, the scripted live action series follows the lives of three best friends in training to compete in equestrian competitions at the fictional Pine Hollow Stables, while dealing with problems in their personal lives. This series debuted in 2001 and ended in 2009.
The series revolves around the experiences of three girls, who form a club named "The Saddle Club" after recognizing their shared love for horse riding. Their rival is another young rider at the stables named Veronica DiAngelo.
Throughout the series, The Saddle Club navigates their rivalry with Veronica, training for competitions, horse shows, and the quotidian dramas that arise between friends and staff in the fictional Pine Hollow Stables. In each show, The Saddle Club prevails over its adversities, usually sending a message emphasizing the importance of friendship and teamwork.
See main article: List of The Saddle Club episodes.
See main article: List of The Saddle Club characters.
| Characters | Season 1 | Season 2 | Season 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carole Hanson | Keenan MacWilliam | Victoria Campbell | ||
| Stephanie "Stevie" Lake | Sophie Bennett | Lauren Dixon | ||
| Elizabeth "Lisa" Atwood | Lara Jean Marshall | Ariel Kaplan | ||
| Veronica DiAngelo | Heli Simpson | Marny Kennedy | ||
| Kristina "Kristi" Cavanaugh | Kia Luby | |||
| Desiree "Desi" Biggins | Aisha Dee | |||
| Melanie Atwood | Marisa Siketa | Jessica Jacobs | Ella-Rose Shenman | |
| Ashley Taylor | Janelle Corlass-Brown | |||
| Jessica "Jess" Cooper | Kaiya Jones | |||
| Elizabeth "Mrs. Reg" Regnery | Catherine Wilkin | Briony Behets | ||
| Maximillion "Max" Regnery | Brett Tucker | Richard Davies | ||
| Dorothee Doutey | Matylda Buczko | |||
| Jackson "Jack" O'Neil | Troy Lovett | |||
| Phillip "Phil" Marsten | Glenn Meldrum | Cosmo Feltham | ||
| Murray Richards | Troy Lovett | Rory Donegan | ||
| Deborah Hale Regnery | Cathy Godbold | |||
| Andrew "Drew" Regnery | Nikolai Nikolaeff | |||
| Redford "Red" O'Malley | Nathan Phillips | James O'Dea | ||
| Brian "Scooter" Mucahy | Alex Marriott | |||
| Megan | Sophie Hensser | |||
| Samuel "Sam" | Anthony Hammer | |||
| Simon Atherton | Connor Jessup | |||
| Dr. Judith "Judy" Barker | Maggie King | Leverne McDonnell | ||
| Ashley "Chewie" Becker | Jackson Gallagher | |||
| Eleanor Atwood | Marie-Louise Walker | |||
| Colonel Mitchell "Mitch" Hanson | Christopher Kirby | |||
| Helen DiAngelo | Melanie Ryder | |||
| Frances "Frank" DiAngelo | Anthony Hawkins | |||
| Orlando Cooper | Gerard Kennedy | |||
| John Brightstar | Nick Russell | |||
Note: A grey cell indicates the character did not appear in that series.
The original series was filmed in Yarra Valley, Victoria in Australia, but involved a cast of mixed nationalities.[1]
In 2007, a news release announced a casting call and the production of a third series, which was filmed from late 2007 to early 2008. The third series was filmed in Daylesford, Victoria.[1]
The show was broadcast from 2001 until 2009, with 78 episodes over three series. The third series broadcast from 7 September 2008 to 10 April 2009. Regionally, the cast of the television series released a series of music albums such as Friends Forever, On Top of the World, Secrets & Dreams and Hello World – The Best of the Saddle Club, and appeared in live performances such as the 2004 Sydney Royal Easter Show. A new Saddle Club CD, Best Friends, was sold in Australia in stores and on The Saddle Club's website and in the US and Canada as a digital download.
The popularity of the series soon after its premiere on YTV and the ABC promoted international syndication and it made its American debut in January 2002 on Discovery Kids.
In the United States, the series later aired on Horse Racing TV and was distributed independently by Connecticut Public Television and American Public Television through public television stations nationwide, most notably PBS. The series also briefly aired in reruns on The Hub.
In Canada, it aired on YTV, and in the United Kingdom on CITV, Horse & Country and Pop Girl. It was broadcast by the French children's specialty channel Gulli, dubbed into French.
Series 3 was broadcast on Discovery Kids in the United States starting on February 22, 2009, while sneak views has been shown on "Saddle Club Sundays" in December 2008. In Australia, the new series commenced on Channel Nine and WIN TV on March 7, 2009.
WIN Television airs a compilation movie of “Horse Shy”, “Mystery Weekend” and “School Horse” (episode 6-8 of series 1) every Christmas Day since 2017.
| Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [2] | ||||
| Fun for Everyone |
| 45 | ||
| On Top of the World |
| 20 |
Gold[3] | |
| Friends Forever |
| 38 | ||
| Secrets & Dreams |
| 49 |
| Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [4] | |||
| Hello World – The Best of the Saddle Club |
| 59 | |
| Best Friends |
| — |
| Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS | ||||
| "We Are the Saddle Club" | 2002 | — | ||
| "Hello World"/"Hey Hey What You Say" | 20 |
| ||
| "Wonderland" | 2003 | 17 | ||
| "Boogie Oogie Oogie"/"Undercover Movers and Shakers" | 29 | |||
| "Everybody Come On" | — | |||
| "Undercover Movers and Shakers" | 2004 | 42 | ||
| "L.I.F.E." | 34 | |||
| "Welcome to the Saddle Club" | — | |||
| "Sleeping Under the Stars" | — | |||
| "These Girls" | 2009 | — |
Singles
| Year | Nominated works | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | On Top of the World | Best Children's Album | |
| Best Original Cast/Show Recording | |||
| 2004 | Friends Forever | Best Children's Album | |
| 2009 | Best Friends |