3C Playbox

3C Playbox is a Euroish children's television channel owned by EuroMedia. It is the main brand used for TV3 content for audiences under the age of 6.

In addition to a dedicated channel which broadcasts each day from 5.00am to 8.00pm (timesharing with Canvas) and a 24-hour radio station, 3C Playbox also has a dedicated four-hour strand on the main 3C channel and TV4 every weekday from 9am to 1pm, and half-hour slot on TV3 weekdays at 3.00pm.

History
Before 3C Playbox was launched, there had been a preschool slot on the Club 3 channel known as Clubhouse, which ran from the channel's launch in March 1996 until January 1998.

Club 3 Playbox was launched on Monday 2nd February 1998. It was the first channel on ET1 Digital to be skewed exclusively to preschool children. It timeshared with Spark² - Spark's male-oriented entertainment channel with Club 3 Playbox on air for fourteen hours a day - 5:00am to 7:00pm. The same day as the launch of Club 3 Playbox saw the launch of You and Me, a new mid-morning strand broadcast on both the new channel and on Channel 4.

Club 3 Playbox intitally featured a range of programmes from the Euro Republics, United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia and all over the world. Most of these programmes were already featuring on the Club 3 strands on TV3 & Channel 4, as well as Club 3 Digital.

The channel was rebranded as simply Playbox on Monday 3rd March 2003, as Club 3 was relaunched as C3.

The launch of The Fix in September 2005 done away with a specific preschool-based strand on the main digital channel, but The Clubhouse and The Bedtime Hour launched on ZTV and Playbox in the afternoon and early evening slots, and preschool programmes were shown unbranded on TV3 and The Fix channel. Get Up and Go! was also launched as a new breakfast slot on ZTV & Playbox.

Playbox rebranded as 3C Playbox on Saturday 1st January 2011, uniting it with the new brand for children's programmes on TV3.

Programmes
See List of programmes broadcast by 3C

Get Up and Go!
Get Up and Go! is the main early morning strand on 3C Playbox. It runs each day from 5.00am to 9.00am, and the first two hours are also simulcast on TV4. The strand is aimed at both the younger and higher end of 3C Playbox's remit, who may be getting ready for school or not.

Programmes include Bluey, Bing, Peter Rabbit, Hey Duggee, Peppa Pig, Sesame Street, Octonauts, Tee and Mo, Fireman Sam, Claude, Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom, Milo, Pip & Posy, The Brilliant World of Tom Gates, Bob the Builder, Sooty, School of Roars and Justin's House.

The theme song to this strand is "Let's Get Up and Go!". Get Up and Go! is typically presented by Rebecca May and Joe Webster.

You and Me
You and Me is the mid-morning and early afternoon slot on 3C Playbox which airs each day from 9:00am to 3:45pm, and is aimed at the younger end of the audience who are not attending pre-school or nursery yet. You and Me is simulcast on TV4 between 9:00am to 1:00pm, and is also simulcast on the 3C channel in that slot.

You and Me originally launched as a brand name in May 1998 for the mid-morning preschool slot on Channel 4. It also replaced the original incarnation of Clubhouse on the C3 digital channel in 2003.

Programmes include Roundabout, Alphablocks, Messy Goes to OKIDO, Something Special, Teletubbies, Big Cook Little Cook, Shane The Chef, Pablo, Play School, The Baby Club, Bluey, Patchwork Pals, Timmy Time, Dog Loves Books, Waybuloo, Coconut the Dragon, The Toddler Club, Pingu in the City, Why, When, Where, What?, Let's Get Arty, Postman Pat and The Sound Collector.

The theme song to this strand is "It's Just You and Me". You and Me is typically presented by Gemma Hewlett and Alex Winters.

The Clubhouse
The Clubhouse (known as simply The Fix pre-2011) is the late afternoon slot on 3C Playbox which airs between 4:00pm and 6:30pm, and is aimed at a slightly older demographic who are getting home from school. The Clubhouse is also shown on TV4, ending 30 minutes earlier however at 6pm.

Programmes include Bluey, Go Jetters, Supertato, Peppa Pig, Hey Duggee, Our House, Molly & Mack, Messy Goes to OKIDO, Love Monster, LazyTown, Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom, Pip Ahoy!, Octonauts, PAW Patrol, Justin's House, Charlie and Lola, JoJo & Gran Gran, School of Roars, Claude, Paprika, The World According to Grandpa, Wildwoods, and Shane the Chef.

The theme song to this strand is "Welcome to The Clubhouse". The Clubhouse is typically presented by Chris Osicka.

The Bedtime Hour
The Bedtime Hour is the final hour of the daily schedule for 3C Playbox, from 6:30pm to 7:30pm every night. The programmes that are a part of this strand are calmer in nature than others and is aimed towards the younger end. Previously a strand on ZTV/TV4/FOX in the 6pm-7pm hour from 2005 to 2023, it was moved to the new channel when it launched.

Programmes include 64 Zoo Lane, In the Night Garden, The Story Den, Waybuloo, Moon and Me, Sarah & Duck, Tee and Mo, Clangers, Charlie and Lola, Hushabye Lullaby, Daydreams and Teletubbies.

There are two theme songs to this strand: "Goodbye Sun, Hello Moon" which airs at the start of the strand, and "The Time Has Come to Say Goodnight" which runs at the end of the strand and the channel's broadcast day before Canvas takes over the broadcast space. You and Me is typically presented by Helen Caswell and Joe Webster.