What's the Big Idea?
Season 1
CBeebies' first philosophy show for preschool age children. Hugo takes us on a journey of philosophical enquiry confronting big questions like 'What is the difference between thinking and dreaming?', 'Can it ever be good to be angry?' and 'Why do people feel sad?'.
Where to Watch What's the Big Idea? • Season 1
52 Episodes
- What is Big?
E1What is Big?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo explores things that are big, from elephants and trees, to cities and planets. But he learns that big can be all kinds of things, like a big appetite, or a big surprise! - Am I Kind?E4
Am I Kind?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Lily and Felix explain to Hugo all the different ways to be kind, like helping someone who is hurt and taking care of your pets. But when Hugo gives almost all of his balloons away to his friends, he wonders if he's been too kind. - What does it mean to be fair?
E6What does it mean to be fair?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo understands it's good to be fair so everyone can have a turn going down the slide and getting the same amount of sweets. But when Hugo gives the same size cupcakes to his huge yeti friend and a tiny ant, the yeti is still hungry. Is that fair? - What is a Hero?
E8What is a Hero?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo learns that heroes are not just ones with superpowers - there are also heroes in real life, like firefighters, rock stars and even his granny. Even Hugo can be a hero to someone. - What is Nature?
E10What is Nature?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo goes on a journey to discover that tiny flowers and huge elephants are part of nature, and so are forests and oceans and the wind. But are humans also part of nature? - Can Anything be Art?
E11Can Anything be Art?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo explores what art is by looking at all sorts of weird and wonderful paintings, sculptures and photos. And he learns that art can make you feel all kind of feelings! - What makes me Human?
E12What makes me Human?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo thinks he's human because he's got legs, ears, eyes, nose and mouth. But his pet spider and his friend the naughty monkey have all those things too! Felix and Lily help Hugo work out what makes humans different. - Am I Always Thinking?
E14Am I Always Thinking?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo always has something to think about, whether it's something important like remembering Mum's birthday or scoring a great goal. But is there ever a time when he's not thinking? - Is Everybody Different?
E15Is Everybody Different?Preschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo imagines a perfect world where every kid looks, thinks and acts exactly like him. But this gets pretty annoying fast, and Felix and Lily help Hugo learn that variety is the spice of life. - Memory
E17MemoryPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo learns that a brain is kind of like a computer, which can store lots of different thoughts that make him feel and remember all kinds of things, good and bad. Lily and Felix help Hugo figure out how memory works. - Knowledge
E18KnowledgePreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo knows some things because he can see, hear or touch them. But when he wonders if his friend the elephant can fly, Hugo holds his very own experiment to find out. - Advice
E20AdvicePreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Everyone needs advice and Hugo does too, especially when his dad helps him get his flying dragon toy working again. But when the big, furry yeti convinces him to climb a huge mountain without even their winter jackets, Hugo learns that not all advice is good. - Home
E21HomePreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo is worried about moving to a new home. Felix and Lily help him learn that a home is a place where you feel safe and spend time with your family. So don't worry Hugo, you can feel the same in another house and make new memories! - Beautiful
E23BeautifulPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo explores things that are beautiful, from flowers and rainbows to his cool new bike. But he learns that beautiful can be all kinds of things, even Mr Yeti and Mrs Yeti. - Truth
E24TruthPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo knows some things are true, like elephants are big! But is it true that llamas can skateboard? And is his friend Oscar right that a giant dinosaur still walks the earth? Hugo tries to find the truth. - Pets
E25PetsPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo learns there are good pets, like dogs and cats, and other pets that are too big, like elephants! Felix and Lily explain that pets are animals you love and take care of, but when a space robot wants to make Hugo his pet, Hugo's not so sure. - Sharing
E26SharingPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Felix and Lily show Hugo that it can be fun to share things, like a comic book, or an idea, or your time. But Hugo also learns that sometimes sharing is not a good idea, like sharing his bath with a naughty monkey! - OthersE27
OthersPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo wants his friends to like him for his fancy tricks, and his parents and teachers to be proud of him for his super smarts. But he learns that sometimes it's also important that he be himself. - Grown UpsE36
Grown UpsPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Every kid becomes a grown up, even Hugo. One day, he will have to find a job and might have his own house, maybe with his own family! But can grown-ups act like kids sometimes too? - Growing UpE37
Growing UpPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo is growing taller all the time. Growing up can be good so you can do exciting things like fly a plane! But with so many things to learn and discover, Hugo wonders if people ever stop growing up. - DreamsE39
DreamsPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. When Hugo is sleeping, he dreams a lot, about flying with dragons and racing with cheetahs. But even when he's awake, he daydreams he can bounce super high in the sky. Hugo wonders what dreams really are, and how do we know they're not real? - AllowedE40
AllowedPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo can't wait to grow up so he can drive cars, watch scary movies, and do whatever he wants! But he soon learns that grown-ups don't always have the freedom to play like kids do. - ImaginationE42
ImaginationPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo has a great imagination, which helps him conjure up lots of fun and wild games. Felix and Lily show him that he can use his imagination to figure out tough problems and even help people too. - FightE43
FightPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo finds it scary when he sees some big robots fighting, and upsetting when he argues with his friend. But he learns that sometimes people have to fight to defend others from danger. Bravely, Hugo defends a princess from a marauding dragon. - FamilyE45
FamilyPreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo has a big family: he has two sisters, a dad, a mum, a granny, uncles, cousins and so many more people - and all these people have a dad, mum and cousins too... what a big family! Maybe someday, Hugo will make his own family too. - LoveE46
LovePreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo's friend the yeti loves his teddy, and elephant loves his rollerskates. Hugo learns about love by looking at all the things and people around him and how they make him feel. - DesireE47
DesirePreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo thinks he needs a monkey to play with, badly. But he doesn't think he needs stuff like books or sleep. Felix and Lily help Hugo understand the things Hugo needs and the things he wants. - CompromiseE48
CompromisePreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Some things are easy to agree on, like snow is cold and the sun is hot. But Hugo finds it harder to agree on other things, like when he wants to play basketball but his friends want to play dolls! They learn to compromise and go on a fun bumper car ride all together! - PreferenceE49
PreferencePreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Hugo definitely likes some things over others, like Granny's homemade soup, good music and the colour orange. Hugo wonders if the world would be even better if it was only made up of things he likes, and if everything was orange! - ChangeE50
ChangePreschool animation exploring ideas and promoting thinking skills, encouraging viewers to make up their own minds. Lots of things change when they grow up. An egg becomes a bird, a caterpillar becomes a butterfly and a kid becomes a grown up. But Hugo likes some things just the way they are!
