Stunning imagery and video captured show the Golden Bear toy floating around 120 feet above the Earth.

BBC Studios is excited to announce that it has sent the Hey Duggee Transforming Duggee Rocket Toy beyond the Earth’s atmosphere into space!

The toy earned its Space Badge as it travelled into space attached to a stratospheric balloon, powered by Hydrogen gas, which is a sustainable alternative to Helium.

The 2-in-1 Transforming Duggee Rocket Toy, whereby astronaut Duggee can magically transform into a space rocket with loads of fun features and surprises, left Earth from a dedicated launch site in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. The Duggee Rocket travelled for an hour and a half, ascending through the Earth’s atmosphere and reaching space by 19KM.

“As Hey Duggee puts fun and a have a go attitude at the heart of learning,  we couldn’t resist this opportunity to send the  transforming space rocket toy into orbit and ignite young imaginations on the wonder of space,” said Harriet Newby-Hill, VIP Marketing, Kids & Family.

Imagery and video captured show the Duggee Rocket floating around 120,000 feet above the Earth in 4K definition. Following the voyage, the Duggee Rocket parachuted back to Earth smoothly. Both the toy and the stratospheric balloon were safely recovered close to Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire.

Footage of the launch, plus further fun facts on the mission, are presented by Astrophysicist and Comedian Dr Josie Peters and is available to view on all of Hey Duggee’s social channels as part of Hey Duggee Space Week (running from 28^th November until 5^th December).

To send the Duggee Rocket into orbit sustainably, BBC Studios partnered with Sent Into Space, the world’s leading provider of commercial Near Space launches. BBC Studios chose to work with Sent Into Space because they strive to conduct their business with as minimal impact on the environment as possible.

“We’re passionate about education at Sent Into Space and my little ones are big fans of Hey Duggee, so putting Duggee into space and teaching viewers about our planet is a very exciting project for us,” said Dr Chris Rose, Head of Projects & Business Development at Sent Into Space.

The Transforming Duggee Space Rocket Toy is made by Golden Bear, BBC Studios’ master toy partner for Hey Duggee.

Earlier this year The Transforming Duggee Space Rocket toy was named as one of London Toy Fair’s 2022 Hero Toys.

Other new Hey Duggee toys on the market set to delight children and their families this Christmas include Hey Duggee Wooden Clubhouse (8^th Wonder, RRP £19.99), Hey Duggee Deluxe Scooter (MV Sports, RRP £39.99) and Hey Duggee Sing & Learn Microphone (Trends, RRP £19.99).

Tickets are also on sale for Hey Duggee The Live Theatre Show, which is touring the UK and Ireland from December, and would make a great Christmas gift.

Transforming Duggee Space Rocket (RRP: £44.99) is available now from all good retailers.

Download imagery and video HERE  | Copyright BBC Studios

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For more information, please contact: frances.cherry-becker@bbc.com

NOTES TO EDITORS

About the Launch

• The balloon is filled with hydrogen, which is the most abundant element in the universe, as well as the lightest element at 1/8th the density of air.
• The balloon expands as it rises; on the ground, it’ll be bigger than a person, by the time it’s at peak altitude it will be the height of Buckingham Palace/the White House.
• The Transforming Duggee Rocket Toy travels to around 110,000 feet above the Earth, above 99.5% of the Earth’s atmosphere (measured by mass).
• Ambient temperature at peak altitude is around − 65°C (− 85°F).
• When the balloon bursts, the craft falls at around 200mph for the first five minutes, before the parachute begins to slow the descent. By the time it lands, it’s moving at 5mph.
• From launch site to landing may be as far as 200 miles, but Sent Into Space can predict where it will land to within 500m.
• Standard flights take around 2.5 hours, 1.5 going up and 1h to come back down.
• Where possible, Sent Into Space schedules and conducts multiple launches on the same day to minimise the impact of travel and transportation. Additionally, all electronics on the launch vehicle are powered using rechargeable power sources. Furthermore, all equipment, including The Hey Duggee Transforming Rocket Toy, were recovered after the flight.
• The overwhelming majority of balloon materials are recovered and disposed of safely after every flight. Upon its flight back to earth, the balloon is designed to burst in thin ribbons which remain attached to the neck of the balloon. The balloon itself is substantially different to party balloons. It is made from undyed natural latex, which is non-toxic and degrades at the same rate as an oak leaf. Should any small fragments of the balloon break away they will leave no inorganic traces and the latex contains natural nutrients, which will add to the fertility of the soil where they land. Additionally, because of their size and shape, they are far less likely to be eaten by an animal; their organic chemical makeup means that they will pass harmlessly through an animal’s digestive tract.

About Hey Duggee

Hey Duggee is a fun, inclusive and educational series devised by Grant Orchard, senior director of Studio AKA, and narrated by comedian Alexander Armstrong.

BBC Studios and CBeebies recently announced it had commissioned a fourth series of the hit animation. Series 4 debuted on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer in September, with the new batch of episodes, including Dame Shirley Bassey voicing the character of Peggy.

Hey Duggee has over 2.5 million fans across its social channels and its official YouTube channel has over a billion lifetime views. Hey Duggee launched its TikTok on 26th September 2022 and amassed a following of 23K fans and 2.9 million views in under 72 hours. The Stick Song, in particular, went viral with over 5.6 million views and counting.

Recently Hey Duggee teamed up with Sir David Attenborough for The Green Planet Badge, a special episode to share the wonder of plants on CBeebies, BBC iPlayer and YouTube.

Hey Duggee will embark on its first ever live theatre show from December through until late August 2023. Hey Duggee The Live Theatre Show is touring 37 theatres across the UK and Ireland.

Hey Duggee | YouTube | Facebook |Twitter | Instagram | TikTok | Website |

About BBC Studios

BBC Studios is a commercial subsidiary of the BBC Group with profits (EBITDA) of £226 million on sales of £1.6bn (21/22). Able to take an idea seamlessly from thought to screen and beyond, its activities span content financing, development, production, sales, branded services, and ancillaries across both its own productions, and programmes and formats made by high-quality UK independents, with three-quarters of its revenues from non-BBC customers including Discovery, Apple and Netflix.  Around 2,400 hours of award-winning British programmes made by the business are internationally recognised across a broad range of genres and specialisms, with brands like Strictly Come Dancing/Dancing with the Stars, Top Gear, Bluey and Doctor Who. BBC.com, BBC Studios’ global digital news platform, has 139 million unique browser visits each month.

BBC Studios | Website | Press Office | Twitter | LinkedIn | Instagram |

About Sent Into Space

Sent Into Space is a marketing-focused space agency and the world's leading provider of commercial Near Space launches. Founded in Sheffield in 2011, Sent Into Space has conducted over 1000 flights to the upper stratosphere, combining cutting-edge aerospace engineering with video production and marketing expertise to create incredible campaigns. 

Sent Into Space’s work includes global marketing stunts, space cinematography for documentary and cinema, scientific research, aerospace research and development, educational projects and even ash scattering memorial services. Regulated by the UK Civil Aviation Authority and with full public liability insurance, they are unrivalled in their launch record.

Sent Into Space | Website

About Golden Bear

With almost four decades of producing award-winning, licensed ranges, Golden Bear continues to develop innovative and creative toys for some of the world’s most popular and iconic pre-school licensed brands. Golden Bear designs toys to stimulate your child’s imagination and help develop early skills. They pride themselves on providing an outstanding range of toys with quality, reliability, and safety at their heart.

Golden Bear | Website