WASHINGTON — Less than a year after "Arthur" wrapped up its historic 25-year run on TV, the show's star is back in a new format.
On Thursday, PBS Kids debuted the first episode of "The Arthur Podcast." The show will feature some of the beloved aardvark's favorite adventures with his sister, D.W., along with Buster and the rest of their friends.
The first episode, titled "Spelling Trubble," discusses how Arthur and Brain were picked to represent their class in the school-wide spell-a-thon.
"Arthur" was the longest-running kids animated series in history when its finale aired back in February. While the show ended with a look at Arthur and his friends as grown ups, it appears the podcast will continue to feature them all as kids.
The series, which has followed the life of aardvark Arthur Read since 1996, has earned a reputation for showing characters from different backgrounds, to create a diverse world for children to experience.
While the TV show is off the air, PBS Kids said there will be new digital shorts over the next several years that address "timely topics and teaching important lessons."
“We hope that parents who grew up with ARTHUR can now join their kids in listening to new stories from the characters they love, having fun and learning together,” said Sara DeWitt, Senior Vice President and General Manager of PBS KIDS.
The podcast's first season will feature eight episodes, launching weekly and available on the PBS Kids video app, the Arthur YouTube channel, pbskids.org, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and other major podcast platforms.
All 25 seasons of "Arthur" can be streamed for free on PBS Kids.