The Mr Bean character is now celebrating 30 years on screen.

Mr Bean first appeared on British TV screens in 1990 and the show has spent 30 years in continual distribution.

Bought to life by actor Rowan Atkinson the character’s career has spanned not only television and film, but it has expanded across digital platforms, mobiles apps, various product lines, coffee shops and the music industry and more.

Rowan Atkinson said “I always believed that Mr. Bean had a very good chance of being successful and having longevity, partly because the comedy is mainly visual and partly because Mr. Bean is essentially a child in a man’s body. Across all races and cultures, the behaviour of children tends to be the same and so is easily identified and laughed at. Childish, anarchic behaviour will always be funny.”

Mr Bean has amassed a loyal fan base across digital platforms and social media, with a YouTube Channel established in 2009 with the Official Mr Bean Facebook page in 2010. Mr Bean’s digital footprint continues to have exponential growth with 30 million subscribers across 3 YouTube channels with over 11 billion lifetime views, 98 million followers on Facebook, 2 million followers on Instagram and 8 million followers on TikTok.

Altogether Mr Bean has over 137 million cross platform subscribers across the four main social platforms. There has also been significant success across mobile gaming with Mr Bean Special Delivery, and Mr Bean Around the World achieving 58 million downloads over the past six years.

Tom Beattie, Head of Kids and Family at Tiger Aspect said “It’s wonderful to say Happy Birthday to Mr Bean and to take this opportunity to recognise the joy he has bought to different generations over the past 30 years. He has been a hallmark of British culture and still has so much more left to give his fans and audiences around the world through new and innovating means, proving there is life beyond a TV screen”

With 30 years in TV distribution, Mr Bean has always been consistent in his popularity but also consistent in his sales.  Mr Bean Live Action and Mr Bean animated series 1-3 have both been sold to over 190 countries, and most recently to Latvia.

 

 

Jon Creamer

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