Jane and The Dragon (TV Series) - About The Series

About The Series

Jane is an adolescent girl who lives in 9th century England, in a small fictional kingdom called Kippernium. (The castle being Kippernia Castle.) According to the backstory explained in the opening theme song, Jane was being trained to become a lady-in-waiting, but had always dreamed of becoming a knight. When the prince is kidnapped by a dragon, Jane sets out to slay the beast. When Jane brings the prince back, the king makes her a knight apprentice. Jane and the dragon end up becoming friends. Further details of this early adventure are never explained in the series. They are, however, explained in detail in the book Jane and the Dragon by Martin Baynton.

The series follows Jane's interactions with the rest of the castle's residents and their frequent adventures. Themes of integrity, loyalty, friendship and courage are woven through the stories. Jane frequently makes errors in judgment, but every episode ends happily.

As a knight apprentice, Jane trains and performs various tasks and duties around the castle. Her master is wise Sir Theodore. Sir Ivon, a valiant but somewhat comical knight, has an apprentice of his own named Gunther, a boy whose integrity seems outwardly questionable, and whom Jane views as a rival.

Dragon helps Jane as she trains to become a knight. When she is on patrol duty, he lets her ride on his back as he flies around the kingdom. Jane in turn helps Dragon, who is an orphan, in his efforts to uncover the secrets of his ancestry.

In addition to her best friend, Dragon, Jane has several other friends among the castle staff. Jester the royal jester, Pepper the castle cook, and Rake the castle gardener are all about Jane's age. She is also friends with Smithy, the castle blacksmith, stable hand, and squire to the knights.

Also residing in the castle are the King and Queen, their two children, Jane's parents, and the wizard. The only non-resident of the castle seen is Gunther's father, a merchant who has regular dealings with Jane's father and the king. No other characters are seen or heard in the series. The wizard is never seen but he lives in a tower, in the far corner of the Royal Gardens near the castle. He is seemingly knowledgeable in alchemy. The younger members of the castle staff appear to be afraid of him, for some reason.

While hoping to preserve verisimilitude in its portrait of the earthy characters inhabitating a medieval castle Baynton engineered into his depiction substitute swear words to avoid controversy with parents. When frustrated or exasperated Jane is prone to exclaiming "Maggots!". In this manner the series taps into the imagination of children, encouraging them to find their own expressions that can be much more fun and creative and colourful than conventional profanity without being offensive.

See the List of Jane and the Dragon episodes for further details.