BKN takes off on Dork Hunters from Outer Space

DORK Hunters from Outer Space, a new children's cartoon, has sent BKN International's share price soaring after the series debuted on Sunday.

The cartoon, which was shown as part of GMTV's Toonattik segment, secured an average audience share of 14.8 per cent among children aged four to eight, the highest share in its time slot.

In South Africa, where the programme has been shown for the past four weeks, average audience share has risen to 43.3 per cent, the highest level since its debut.

Nicola Andrews, managing director of BKN New Media, said: "We are seeing a pattern developing from Spain in the spring to South Africa in the summer and now to the UK in the early autumn and they all point to kids worldwide loving the storyline and characters and humour. We are very excited with these early signs and this is only the beginning, we are looking forward to a very successful 2009 as we evolve the brand with the implementation of our licensing activities."

Shares in BKN International – which is listed in Germany and London's Aim and has a market cap of about 37 million – closed up 8.8 per cent at 185p.