M.I.High
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| M.I. High | |
|---|---|
 M.I. High logo |
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| Format | Adventure series |
| Created by | Keith Brumpton |
| Starring | Bel Powley Moustafa Palazli Rachel Petladwala Danny John-Jules Scott Gibbins |
| Country of origin |  United Kingdom |
| No. of episodes | 23 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Kerry Appleyard |
| Running time | 28 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | BBC One, CBBC |
| Original airing | 8 January 2007 |
M.I. High is a BBC children's adventure series following the exploits of a group of inner-city secondary school pupils, Blane, Daisy and Rose, who work as undercover spies. The series is shown on Mondays at 4.30pm on BBC One with the next episode shown 15 minutes later on the CBBC Channel. The previous two episodes are shown every Sunday at 4pm on the CBBC Channel.
The spies are led by M.I.9 agent Lenny Bicknall (Danny John-Jules), working undercover as the school caretaker. All other spies' covers have been rumbled and the only spies left undercover are school children still being trained.
The agents are summoned by a communicator disguised as a pencil. Blane, Daisy and Rose must come up with some excuse to get themselves out of class.
The caretaker's storeroom is the cover for the underground spy headquarters, accessed by means of a high-speed lift, where they learn about their latest mission from M.I.9.
M.I. High is produced for the BBC by the independent production company Kudos, who also produced the hit BBC spy drama Spooks. It follows in the success of Young Bond and the book/film Stormbreaker. M.I. High was recorded in high definition.
The first series of the programme was filmed at Eastbury Comprehensive School's old site (Dawson Road site), with the second filming at Christchurch School, Finchley North London.
Contents |
[edit] Character Profiles
See also minor characters in M.I.High
Lenny Bicknall (Saint Hope's Caretaker /M.I. High's Supervising Agent) is an M.I.9 agent deep undercover posing as Saint Hope's School's caretaker. He has an old war wound on his hip. He has been at M.I.9 for years and has lots of old secret mission stories. His storeroom is the secret entrance to the M.I. High underground headquarters, and he has his own personal spy gadget: a signalling device concealed within the handle of his broom, which he uses when in caretaker guise to secretly signal Blane, Daisy and Rose to report to M.I.High H.Q.
- Played by Danny John-Jules Current Status: ACTIVE
Blane Whittaker. Age 13 1/4. (Saint Hope student and M.I. 9 Spy) is a karate black belt. His hand-eye coordination is second to none and he is also the UK Long Jump Record Holder. In his spare time he loves watching Martial Arts films. He has been friends with Stewart since he was six years old. its thought that he is in love with Daisy.
- Played by: Moustafa Palazli (credited in the first series as "Moustafa Chousein-Oglou"). Current Status: ACTIVE
Daisy Millar Age 13 1/2. (Saint Hope's Student and M.I.9 Spy) An only child, her parents are married and both of them work abroad. In "The Power Thief", we learn that her dad is the chairman of a museum trustee board and he is very famous. She has met the Queen because of her dad's position and lives in a big country estate, although she tells no-one at school about her family or where she lives. Only Blane finds out the truth in "The Power Thief", she also apears to have deep feelings for Blane. She is an undercover expert with extraordinary chameleonic abilities (she is an expert in the art of disguise), building allegiance to get closer to the enemy.
- Played by: Bel Powley. Current Status: ACTIVE
Rose Gupta Age 13 3/4. (Saint Hope's Student and M.I. 9 Spy) is the eldest of three and her parents own the local DVD rental store. Rose has a very high IQ. She is the spy team's scientific, technical and analytical expert. She also has a musical side and played the tuba in "Eyes on Their Stars" before switching to clarinet at the end of the episode; she also has a hidden talent for singing, shown when she sang with Crush.
- Played by: Rachel Petladwala. Current Status: ACTIVE
The Grand Master (S.K.U.L. Super Villain) is the Leader of S.K.U.L., the Secret Kriminal Underground League, the whereabouts of which remain unknown. He operates an undefined quantity of enemy cells called S.K.U.L. Riding high after M.I.9's adult mission to locate him was foiled. Numerous failed missions to stop the Grand Master have led to his and his S.K.U.L. associates' increased capacity to threaten national security. He owns a white rabbit which he refers to as General Flopsy. The Grand Master's face is never seen on-screen; his features always being concealed in shadows. He has grey hair and is possibly in his late fifties/early sixties, but beyond that very little can be determined. On deciding to retreat to his hidden bunker on the floor of the Indian Ocean towards the end of "The Fugitive", the Grand Master turns down Agent Zero's offer to carry on the running of S.K.U.L. – preferring to leave the job in the capable hands of General Flopsy instead! As witnessed in "The Big Freeze", he is a big fan of the Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq.
- Played by: Kerry Shale (voice) (series one).
- Played by: Julian Bleach (series two). Current Status: ACTIVE S.K.U.L.
Mr. Kenneth Flatley (Saint Hope's Headteacher) is the school headmaster, who is easy going but has a determined streak and an obsession for getting things right. He really believes in Saint Hope's School and its pupils. He has great patience and works long hours without complaining. Though there has been no improvement in school results, morale or truancy levels, Mr. Flatley's optimism remains undented. He likes to boss Lenny the school caretaker about all the time, but deep down he wishes he was more like him.
- Played by: Chris Stanton.
[edit] Episode Guide
[edit] Series One
| # | Title | Villains | Original airdate | Production code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Sinister Prime Minister" | The Guinea Pig | 8 January 2007 | unknown |
| MI9 become suspicious when Britain's famously peace-loving Prime Minister declares World War III. Daisy goes undercover and discovers that the Prime Minister has been replaced by a cyber-clone. The evil Grand Master is in cahoots with the Guinea-pig, a disgraced scientist. Together they are using the fake Prime Minister to seize control of Britain. Can the divided team come together to defeat the cyber-clone and stop the war? | ||||
| 2 | "Eyes on their Stars" | Tony Frisco | 8 January 2007 | |
| Zombie kids are on the rampage, ransacking music stores, and M.I.9 suspect boy-band Crush. Mega-fan Daisy goes undercover to examine their hypnotising methods. The team's investigations turn to Crush's manager, failed Pop-Factor contestant Tony Frisco. However, the school soon becomes seduced by Crush's naff lyrics. Can Rose perform an antidote song before the bell rings or will St. Hope's become a school for bad-taste zombies? | ||||
| 3 | "The Big Freeze" | Sonya Frost | 15 January 2007 | |
| Daisy and Rose's relationship gets frosty as Britain is plunged into a new ice age. A school trip to the Weather Bureau provides cover for MI9's investigations. When Sonya Frost failed to predict a huge gale, she built a weather machine - to accurately forecast weather of her creation! But the Grand Master has a more destructive plan - to freeze the world into submission! Can Daisy get Sonya on side and will our team remain ice-cool as the action hots up? | ||||
| 4 | "The Power Thief" | Brent Gilbert | 22 January 2007 | |
| A man named Brent Gilbert is planning to start the new Dark Age by using the three dark stones unless the government gives him £250,000, Blane and Daisy go undercover to investigate. | ||||
| 5 | "Nerd Alert" | The Worm | 29 January 2007 | |
| A shuttle launch is about to be sabotaged unless Daisy can persuade Stewart to defeat a computer geek named The Worm, without blowing MI9's cover.. | ||||
| 6 | "Super Blane" | Chad Turner | 5 February 2007 | |
| When Daisy falls for charismatic teen CIA officer Agent Chad who joins the spy-team, Blane's jealousy drives him to take a crazy risk. After humiliation on the football pitch, Blane puts on the MT-3000, a device that gives its wearer super human strength. When it dangerously short-circuits, the team realise they've been victim to a double-agent. Will they rescue the MT-3000 from enemy hands or will Chad make a superhuman escape? | ||||
| 7 | "Spy Animals" | Silas Fenton | 12 February 2007 | |
| A mad inventor and his modified animals are determined to sniff out the school spies. Fenton sends in spy-animals to unearth the Grand Master's competition, but he assumes the teachers are the secret agents. Armed with truth serum darts, a troublesome tortoise gets the teachers saying what's on their mind, but when a dart accidentally hits Daisy, MI9's cover is blown | ||||
| 8 | "Forever Young" | Vanessa Zeitgeist | 19 February 2007 | |
| When an ageing beautician Vanessa Zeitgeist unleashes a youth potion, St Hope's becomes a school for troublesome toddlers. Daisy goes undercover to retrieve the formulae from her.. | ||||
| 9 | "Red Button Rampage" | General Ryan Scarp | 25 February 2007 | |
| Dylan Towser has world peace in his grasp with his missile disarmer. General Scarp brings him and the army into St Hope's for a drill day to protect him from a kidnap plot. However, when Daisy and Towzer are kidnapped from under their noses, Blane realises war-mongering Scarp is the culprit. He doesn't want an end to armies, and only world war will secure the military's future. In the final battle, will our spies emerge victorious? | ||||
| 10 | "The Fugitive" | Agent Zero, Carla Terrini | 5 March 2007 | |
| When a UFO crashes nearby, the spies are tasked with securing the site for aviation agency, AirOne. Headed by Lenny's friend Carla Terrini. Lenny's loyalties are torn when he's forced to deceive the team, but the team discover the craft has a human pilot and Lenny's lies unravel. Daisy can't come to terms with Lenny's betrayal. Will she find out what Lenny's up to, or will the team become fugitives themselves? | ||||
[edit] Series Two
| # | Title | Villains | Original airdate | Production code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | "It's a Kind of Magic" | Leah Retsam | 7 January 2008 | unknown |
| Daisy, Blane and Rose have caught the Grand Master but the USA President is suddenly kidnapped. | ||||
| 12 | "You Can Call Me Al" | A.L.L.E.N. | 7 January 2008 | |
| A hapless inventor brings trouble to St Hope's when his Artificial Intelligence computer tries to enforce the school rules. | ||||
| 13 | "Evil by Design" | Lorenzo Ferrago | 14 January 2008 | |
| A new fashion range is imprinting logos into kids, with weird side effects. | ||||
| 14 | "Fit Up" | Maximus Fiticus | 21 January 2008 | |
| When a strange sleeping sickness hits Britain's kids, the team investigate but when Daisy is tricked and falls into a deep sleep the spies are put under pressure. | ||||
| 15 | "Face Off" | Charlie 'Chuckers' Chuckworth, Lewis Chuckworth | 28 January 2008 | |
| A crimewave is committed by allegedly well-behaved kids, and the team are baffled when Lenny is arrested. | ||||
| 16 | "Big Sister" | Mary Taylor | 4 February 2008 | |
| The spies investigate when a child-hating MP threatens to send Britain's kids to a remote island. | ||||
| 17 | "The Cold War" | Gesundheit | 11 February 2008 | |
| The Grandmaster unleashes his own cold war on Britain, a nasty flu epidemic. | ||||
| 18 | "Nano Nits" | Nora Braithwate | 18 February 2008 | |
| Daisy must overcome her greatest fear when the kids of St Hope's catch nits and become master criminals. | ||||
| 19 | "The Others" | James Blond | 25 February 2008 | |
| The spies are stunned when they are forced to team up with old foes Violet Webb, Lewis Chuckworth and the Worm to battle ex-agent James Blond. | ||||
| 20 | "The Big Bling" | Reg Lacey(aka Mr B) | 3 March 2008 | |
| When the most famous diamonds in the world are stolen, the team investigate the captain of the England football team for crimes against bling. | ||||
| 21 | "Spy Plane" | Irena Ryfeild (Mr X) | 10 March 2008 | |
| Will Blane be able to keep his feet on the ground when a mysterious pilot steals the X20? Could Blane have revealed MI High's secrets to Stewart? Daisy goes undercover to investigate.Mr X has put Irena Ryfeild up to this | ||||
| 22 | "Green Finger" | Greenfinger | 17 March 2008 | |
| When crazed plants attack anti-green targets, Blane goes solo, but it's unclear whether his boy power is enough to weed out the enemy. | ||||
| 23 | "Asteroid Attack" | Doctor Von Quark | 24 March 2008 | |
| When an asteroid hurtles towards the Earth the government abandons its post, leaving the fate of the world in the spies' hands. But will Daisy abandon Blane and Rose? | ||||
[edit] Spy Gadgets
During the series, Blane, Daisy and Rose make use of a variety of spy gadgets, all of which – with the exception of the handheld weather machine – were specially created by M.I.9.
High-speed Elevator Hidden within the caretaker's storeroom at Saint Hope's School, and used in all episodes by Blane, Daisy and Rose to descend to M.I.9's underground headquarters. It is accessed by means of a Fingerprint scanner hidden behind a dummy light switch outside the door. Once inside, a lever disguised as a broom handle in a railway signal box is pulled, a green arrow pointing downwards illuminates on a fake paint tin, and the elevator begins its speedy descent. The elevator also seems to have a quick-change device (although this is never explained in detail on-screen), as during the journey the spies' clothing can be seen to change from their school uniforms to casual black outfits – as well as apparently swapping Rose's spectacles (which she wears in civilian life) for contact lenses. Bearing in mind that the elevator appears to be the only access from the caretaker's storeroom to M.I.9 headquarters and back, it would appear that the quick-change facility can be negated for when Blane, Daisy and Rose set off on their missions – otherwise they'd end up back in school uniform again.
Weather Machine The Weather Machine, as developed by Sonya Frost, controlled the weather by means of transmitters located in different national landmarks around the world. A smaller handheld device had a smaller range. Both machines can produce all manners of weather. The handheld version was used by Blane and Roger Powel and the large scale device by the Grand Master in "The Big Freeze".
Code Breaker A green calculator-like device with wires connected to suckers. When the suckers are attached to any encoded or locked device, the code breaker works out the correct combination or code. Used by Rose in "The Big Freeze".
Laser Lipstick A red laser contained in a lipstick tube-style casing. It can cut a hole at ten metres. Used by Daisy in "The Sinister Prime Minister".
Pencils Standard pencils at first glance, but when missions are received the small eraser on the end flashes. The pencils also work as communicators. Used by all agents in most episodes.
False Nail Cameras Five fake nails containing miniature cameras. Used by Daisy in "Eyes on Their Stars".
Sonic Detonators Three button badges with harmless looking motifs on them, like a PEACE slogan and a smiley face, but which are actually sonic detonators. Used by Blane, Daisy and Rose in "Spy Animals".
Forcefield Pods At first glance, these appear to be ordinary traffic warning cones, but can actually generate an invisible forcefield around the required area – in this case, the crash-landed 'flying saucer's' landing zone – which can be activated/deactivated as needed by remote control. Used by Daisy and Rose in "The Fugitive".
Strong String This is a badge-like device worn on Daisy's belt, and when she pulls it a long strong string comes out. She can then attach it to her headband and throw it over a high wall or fence; it'll then grip to it and she can climb up and over. Used in "The Power Thief". Given that Daisy regularly wears the headband and belt she probably carries the device with her even when it's not in use.
Radio Ears These are earrings which when attached to a surface allow the spy to hear from up to 1 mile. They were used by Daisy in "Forever Young".
Spy Camera Headband Pink and white headband with a spy camera on the front. Used By Daisy In "Fit Up"
False Eyelashes Black false eyelashes that disarm security cameras. Used by Daisy in "The Cold War".
[edit] DVD Release and Literature
The first series of M.I. High was scheduled to be released on DVD in two five-episode instalments. The first of which was released on the 21st January 2008 and the second was to follow on 31st March 2008 yet has been suspended indefinitely. The first DVD includes a documentary about the series (which is made up of various short clips show during the series on CBBC Extra). With these are to be four novelisations and a 'Spy Survival Handbook' published in the UK by Puffin.
[edit] M.I. High Game - Whack the Mole!
Starting at the beginning of season two there is a new interactive web experience that can be found at the show's web site. The game was created by Xenophile Media. After gaining access to the Flash-based game with a simple registration process, players can participate in weekly missions. So far, the missions are tied in with events occurring on the show each week, but the game includes video clips that summarize each episode which makes it possible for people outside of the broadcast area to play the game as well.
The plot of the game centers around the spy school which is the basis of the television programme. There is a mole amongst the students, and it is the job of the player to try to figure out who the rogue agent is. At the successful end of each mission, the list of suspects is narrowed down automatically.
The user interface includes the Digital Operations Research Assistant, or D.O.R.A, which guides players to manipulate various technological tools including a geographic locater and an audio analyzer. Players are given instructions about how to use the tools to complete the missions.
[edit] Series Three
The series was officially recommissioned for a third series by the BBC on 6th February 2008. [1]
[edit] MI High Day
CBBC held a MI High day on May 5, 2008. All Series Two was shown on this day. It was held from 09:00 to 15:15.
