Nick James plays Hank Zipzer, the 12-year-old Londoner whose dyslexic wiring turns every homework assignment into low-stakes heist. Filmed at a real primary school in Haringey, the 2014-16 series keeps the action in corridors, kitchens and the music room where Henry Winkler’s twinkling Mr. Rock teaches drums and unfiltered optimism. Winkler, who co-created the books with Lin Oliver, based the part on the one teacher who believed in him at McBurney School, New York, and insisted on playing the role when the BBC optioned the property after every US network passed.
Each 28-minute episode follows the same cheerful arithmetic: Hank dreams up a shortcut, best mates Jayden Elijah as Frankie and Alicia Lai as Ashley supply the muscle and tech, head teacher Felicity Montagu’s Miss Adolf supplies the brick wall, and Hank’s bumbling but loving parents Juliet Cowan and Neil Fitzmaurice hoover up the collateral damage. The scripts, all by British writers’ room veteran Matt Bloom, never mention dyslexia after the pilot; instead they let the camera linger on backwards letters, crossed-out words and the perpetual hunt for lost PE kits.
Three series, 39 episodes, zero cliff-hangers: every story ends with Hank back where he started, older by a week and still convinced tomorrow’s plan will stick. After the BBC run ended in 2016, Universal Kids picked up US repeats, proving that American broadcasters were happy to watch the show once somebody else had paid for it.
Production Details
CBBC / 3 Seasons / 39 Episodes / 2014
Writer(s): Adam G. Goodwin
Producer(s): Jim PoyserRichard GrocockAli Brayer CarronSiobhan Bachman
Main Cast
Nick James as Henry "Hank" Zipzer
Jayden Elijah as Frankie Townsend
Madeline Holliday as Emily Zipzer
Felicity Montagu as Miss Fanny Adolf
Henry Winkler as Mr. Rock
Juliet Cowan as Rosa Zipzer
Neil Fitzmaurice as Stanley "Stan" Zipzer
Vincenzo Nicoli as Papa Pete
Jude Foley as Nick McKelty
Alicia Lai as Ashley Wong
Javone Prince as Mr. Joy
Chloe Wong as Ashley Wong
