The Saddle Club

The Saddle Club is an Australian-Canadian children's television series developed by Sarah Dodd, based on the books written by Bonnie Bryant. Like the book series, the scripted live action series follows the lives of three best friends in training to compete in equestrian competitions at the fictional Pine Hollow Stables, while dealing with problems in their personal lives. This series debuted in 2001 and ended in 2009.
Overview.
The series revolves around the experiences of three girls, who form a club named "The Saddle Club" after recognizing their shared love for horse riding. Their rival is another young rider at the stables named Veronica DiAngelo.
Throughout the series, The Saddle Club navigates their rivalry with Veronica, training for competitions, horse shows, and the quotidian dramas that arise between friends and staff in the fictional Pine Hollow Stables. In each show, The Saddle Club prevails over its adversities, usually sending a message emphasizing the importance of friendship and teamwork.
Production.
The show was broadcast from 2001 until 2009, with 78 episodes over three series. Regionally, the cast of the television series released a series of music albums such as "Friends Forever", "On Top of the World", "Secrets & Dreams" and "Hello World – The Best of the Saddle Club", and appeared in live performances such as the 2004 Sydney Royal Easter Show.
In 2007, a news release announced a casting call and the production of a third series, which was filmed from late 2007 to early 2008, and broadcast from 7 September 2008 to 10 April 2009. A new Saddle Club CD, "Best Friends", was sold in Australia in stores and on The Saddle Club's website and in the US and Canada as a digital download.
Broadcast.
The popularity of the series soon after its premiere on the ABC promoted international syndication and it made its American debut in January 2002 on Discovery Kids.
In the United States, the series later aired on Horse Racing TV and was distributed independently by Connecticut Public Television and American Public Television through public television stations nationwide, most notably PBS. In Canada, it aired on YTV, and in the UK on Horse & Country. It was broadcast by the French children's specialty channel Gulli, dubbed into French.
Series 3 was broadcast on Discovery Kids in the United States starting on 22 February 2009, while sneak views has been shown on "Saddle Club Sundays" in December 2008. In Australia, the new series commenced on Channel Nine and WIN TV on 7 March 2009.
Discography.
There have been a number of "The Saddle Club" albums released in Australia with the actors from the series. The albums were released by Shock Records. Each of the albums has made the top 50 of the Australian album charts and the first three records achieved gold record status.