Barney & Friends

Barney & Friends is an American television series aimed at preschool children created by Sheryl Leach. The flagship production of the Barney franchise, it originally aired on PBS through the PBS Kids block from April 6, 1992, to November 2, 2010, although new videos were still released on various dates after the last episode aired. It features and stars Barney the Dinosaur, an anthropomorphic purple Tyrannosaurus rex who conveys educational messages through songs and small dance routines with a friendly, huggable and optimistic attitude. Reruns aired on Sprout from 2005 to 2015, and from December 17, 2018, to January 25, 2020, on Sprout's successor network, Universal Kids, until the latter's closure on March 6, 2025. On October 6, 2015, the series was initially renewed for revival with a new season to premiere in 2017, but that never came to fruition. A CGI-animated series Barney's World aired on Cartoon Network's Cartoonito on October 18, 2024, and streamed on HBO Max on October 14, 2024. While popular with its intended audience, Barney & Friends drew severe negative reaction from adults, who mocked the title character in popular culture through song parodies, comedy routines such as being beaten up by NBA star Charles Barkley on a Saturday Night Live episode, and even the United States Army using music from the children's show to psychologically torture and interrogate Iraqi prisoners of war.