
The Gruffalo
2009

"How I long to sail!" said the tiny snail.
A half hour animated film for all the family based on the much-loved book written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler. The Snail and the Whale is the much loved classic that shows us a restless young snail who has ambitions to travel the world. The other snails think she should stay put, but she puts out a call for a “Lift wanted around the world”. Eventually her call is answered by a great big grey-blue humpback whale! She sets off with him across the seas. On their journey the snail and the whale discover towering icebergs and far-off lands, fiery mountains and golden sands. The snail is delighted by the wonderful world around her, until she realises how small it makes her feel.

A half hour animated film for all the family based on the much-loved book written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler. The Snail and the Whale is the much loved classic that shows us a restless young snail who has ambitions to travel the world. The other snails think she should stay put, but she puts out a call for a “Lift wanted around the world”. Eventually her call is answered by a great big grey-blue humpback whale! She sets off with him across the seas. On their journey the snail and the whale discover towering icebergs and far-off lands, fiery mountains and golden sands. The snail is delighted by the wonderful world around her, until she realises how small it makes her feel.
Rob BrydonWhale (voice)
Sally HawkinsSnail (voice)
Diana RiggNarrator (voice)
Cariad LloydTeacher (voice)
Max LangFish (voice)









Availability for your region. Streaming data provided by JustWatch.
Did you know that a group of snails is called a 'flock". Well it is in Julia Donaldson rhyming world and one of a group who live rather mundanely on an harbour rock dreams of going out to sea and exploring the world. Using it's very own snail-trail, it writes a message that attracts an enormous humpback whale who invites this tiny little gastropod to slide onto his tail and off they go. Luckily, he is quite adhesive so doesn't get washed off as his giant host takes him on an enjoyable trip for both us and the animators who get to present us with a submersible travelogue that shows the delights and dangers of the deep, has some fun with some hungry sharks and even manages to involve some human kids and some human kindness. This is a charmingly simple story that sort of encourages the grass is greener philosophy, but equally extols virtues of inter-reliance, friendship and courage. Maybe best not look at the whale snail scale too closely, but that's just a detail for this finely drawn film.

2009

2011

1936

2015

2012

1994

2016

2019

2022

2021

2009

2004

2022

2022

2015

2018

2007

2019

2016

2022