Neil Buchanan exposes Art Attack secrets – where head is now and home studio

Children’s TV legend Neil Buchanan has revealed secrets behind iconic show Art Attack – including where the famous gallery head is now and how the Big Art Attacks were really made.

The CITV series, which ran between 1990 and 2007, was staple viewing for generations of young people, and inspired fans to get creative.

Speaking exclusively to Daily Star about the launch of a new creative project – AirCraft, in collaboration with easyJet – Neil spoke about inspiring the next generation of artists too, and spilled a few facts you may not know about Art Attack along the way.

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Here, Daily Star breaks down what you may not have know about Art Attack – and all you need to know about Neil’s new creative collaboration too.

Neil has the Art Attack studio in his house

The Art Attack studio was undoubtedly one of the most colourful, exciting and gigantic sets on TV – and every viewer certainly wanted to get their hands on a giant pencil or painting palette of their own.

When the CITV series finished its original run in 2007, Neil took most of the set home with him, where it still lives on to this day.

He said: “I’ve got all the stuff, it’s brilliant!”

Speaking of the giant paintbrushes and pencils, he also added: “One is in my daughter’s bedroom, one is in my son’s bedroom and three or four other pieces are actually in my studio at home.”

The head was not originally made for Art Attack

As iconic as Neil Buchanan and his Art Attack jumper was the head who used to feature in the gallery segment.

From showing off his own masterpieces and speaking about the fabulous art work that viewers would send in every week, the head became a star in his own right.

But did you know that the head was originally intended for another children’s TV show?

Aside from Art Attack, Neil revealed he was behind another famous programme during the nineties – ZZZap! – which the character of the head was originally created for.

ZZZap! featured a number of different characters behind the doors of a comic book, including Smart Arty, who was played by Neil – with all voices in the show provided by the star too.

Doctor Who star Sophie Aldred also played Minnie Magic in the series, alongside characters including Daisy Dare and Cuthbert Lily.

Neil revealed that the Art Attack head character was originally meant to be played by Richard Waites who starred as Cuthbert Lily in ZZZap, but when he was contracted to another job, this idea was put to one side.

However, the character was later brought to life on Art Attack, after Neil asked for a Spitting Image puppet of the character to be made instead.

As such, the famous Art Attack head was born.

Speaking about why he wanted the head in the show, Neil said: “I didn’t want to do a 20-minute show that was just me.

“I thought, people will get sick of me. What we were delivering was good, but it was just one bloke. I wanted to break it up.”

But where is the famous head now we hear you ask?

“He’s in a box,” said Neil, with the star saying that he added other toys in with the head before nailing the box shut, joking: “He’s got company. He’s got a friend there.”

How the Big Art Attacks were really made

Viewers were left in amazement when Neil would create the Big Art Attacks during the show.

The segment saw Neil travel to different places across the country, and use objects including hosepipes, blankets, bin bags, hooks and anything that was nearby to create gigantic pieces of art.

But how did he do it?

Neil revealed that despite only being a five-minute segment in the show, the Big Art Attacks took an entire day to film.

The stunning art works also took a lot of co-ordination from a team on the ground and a team located on a crane above Neil to bring it all to life.

He said: “When we used to go and do the big pictures, the first thing that came out into the big field or wherever we might be, was we had a crane.

“On the crane, we had cameramen who were up on the crane and they had to stay up there all day. We brought them down at lunch, but their coffee was hauled up to them.

“They were up there and what they would do, they would shoot what was going on down below.”

With help from the team on the cranes, Neil would then co-ordinate what he needed to add to the Big Art Attacks, saying: “I had a monitor.

“I had car with a monitor in the back of it, that would sit in there and I would go, ‘right that needs doing there’.”

Neil is inspiring the next generation of creatives

More than 15 years since Neil Buchanan last hosted Art Attack, he’s back to inspire the next generation of creatives.

He has joined up with easyJet on a project called AirCraft, which is encouraging young flyers to get creative onboard flights, and providing them with free arts materials to inspire their imaginations.

With the creative kits aboard 160 easyJet planes flying from the UK, Neil has also provided art tutorials via easyJet’s YouTube channel, which teaches kids how to draw planes and beaches.

The tutorials can even be viewed at home to inspire children during half-term.

Neil also recently made an appearance for an art class with young flyers on October 24, 2022 at Gatwick Airport, and speaking about the project, he said: “The response has been phenomenal.”

He continued: “We trial ran it and kids aren’t on an aeroplane anymore. They’re in a drawing club. Some of them are really into it, coming up with masterpieces.

“Other kids are just doodling, but they’re all being creative,” adding: “It’s just so simple, why has no one ever thought of that?”

Neil added: “I want you to come off that aeroplane having been creative, or thought about being creative.”

While Neil did not make a Big Art Attack on the day, he revealed that he is hoping to bring back the Art Attack gallery to display the work that children create on board their flights.

“I’m talking to EasyJet right now about that. All this creativity that’s going on at this time, what are we going to do with it?

“It’s going to be interesting to see.”

But will there be a Big Art Attack in the future?

“Maybe next year, who knows?” teased Neil.

Art Attack’s legacy lives on

Neil revealed that despite being a children’s TV icon, many of the young people he has met while working on the AirCraft project do not know who he is.

“Their mums and dads are blown away, but the kids don’t know who I am. It’s all about pure creativity,” said Neil.

However, he did say that the viewers who grew up with Art Attack share their own stories of watching the programme with their children, with Neil adding: “By the end, the kids believe I’m a superstar!”

The children’s TV legend also revealed that he still has people coming up to him now, saying how he changed their lives – something Neil is very thankful for.

“Creativity is us all setting our stall out in life. It’s about saying, this is who I am.

“We should encourage kids, inspire kids to be creative. You put any kid on the first rung of the creative ladder and they will climb all the way to the top.”

He added: “I get a lot of Company Directors or CEOs saying to me, ‘I’m in my job because of you’. It’s so brilliant that they do that.

“If I can get one kid to do that in the future, through Easy Jet and me of course, we’ve won. We’ve done what we set out to do.”

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk